Qualifications for teachers of hearing and visually impaired children and young persons: guidance

Covering Letter

GUIDANCE ON APPROPRIATE QUALIFICATIONS FOR TEACHERS OF CHILDREN AND YOUNG PERSONS WHO ARE HEARING IMPAIRED, VISUALLY IMPAIRED, OR BOTH HEARING AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED.

1. I am directed by the Scottish Ministers to draw your attention to the attached guidance as to what shall constitute appropriate qualifications for teachers of children and young persons who have a hearing impairment, or visual impairment, or both hearing and visual impairment.

2. On 30 September 2005 The Requirements for Teachers (Scotland) Regulations 2005 (Scottish Statutory Instrument 2005/355) came into force. These Regulations set out the requirements to be met by education authorities in employing teachers in the course of discharging their duty under section 1 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, as amended, and section 2(1) of the Standards in Scotland's Schools etc. Act 2000. In particular, the Regulations require that where an education authority employs a teacher wholly or mainly to teach pupils who are hearing impaired, visually impaired or both hearing and visually impaired, then that teacher must possess an appropriate qualification to teach such pupils.

3. The qualification is defined in terms of specific competences, as detailed at Appendix A . These comprise the specialist knowledge, understanding and skills required of teachers to enable them to teach pupils who are hearing impaired, visually impaired or both hearing and visually impaired.

4. This guidance does not define the route to be taken in obtaining this appropriate qualification but acknowledges that there is a range of pathways, for example, through completion of a post-graduate diploma, accredited prior learning and/or local authority-based, or other, training.

5. It is for individual local authorities, as employers, to ensure that all teachers employed wholly or mainly to teach pupils who are hearing impaired, visually impaired or both hearing and visually impaired hold an appropriate qualification, i.e. have the specific competences required to meet the needs of their pupil population, or are working towards achieving such a qualification by whichever route the authority deems to be appropriate.

Yours sincerely

Mike Gibson
Head of Support for Learning Division