Nursery World - Early Years Teachers: Part 1

In the first of a six-part series on Early Years Teacher training
options, Charlotte Goddard tracks the progress of a former geologist on
the graduate entry pathway.

kate-martin Kate Martin abandoned a lucrative career advising oil and gas companies for nappies, forest school and circle time. The mum of two worked for five years part time at a geological consultancy, and, after her children were born, got involved at the local playgroup.

'You can guess which one paid the bills' she says. 'But then I got to like working with children, so I got a job in a pre-school. I found working with children to be more sociable than my previous role, which was a very masculine environment.'

Dr Martin, who has a PhD in palaeontology to her name, is currently training to attain Early Years Teacher Status (EYTS). She enrolled at the University of Northampton in September 2014, one of eight providers piloting the new early years initial teacher training (EYITT) scheme last year. Dr Martin joined the graduate entry route - one of four available pathways to EYTS (see box).

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