Student teachers arrive on their ITE courses with very different prior experiences in the field of English studies. Their degree courses cover a bewildering variety of modules and disciplines. This variety should be seen as a strength and a resource for teaching and learning.
So the first task for a tutor is to find out about these things. The initial opportunities to explore the student teacher's subject knowledge are via the application form and at interview. This should be seen as the beginning of a dialogue between student teacher and tutor that continues throughout the ITE course and moves towards a reconceptualisation of literature which is shaped in significant ways by the experience of English in school.
