Quality teaching and learning: a quality assurance framework for initial teacher preparation programmes

Education and the challenges of preparing quality teachers are important priorities in many countries. Singapore is no different. The success of what Singapore hopes to achieve in education depends on the quality of its teachers. Competent and effective teachers help build a strong educational system. In response to the nation’s need for quality teachers, the National Institute of Education (NIE), Singapore, reviewed and enhanced their initial teacher preparation programmes in 2005. A Values, Knowledge and Skills (VSK) model listing the attributes of beginning teachers was developed to anchor the review and enhancement. This also provided first steps in developing an overarching Quality Assurance (QA) framework. The QA framework covers key aspects of programme delivery and development, from student’s entry profiles to beginning teacher’s competencies. The paper has two parts. Part one details the development and conceptual underpinning of the QA framework. Part two outlines the framework’s structure and components.