Returning to teaching course
This is an online course aimed at teachers who have been out of the profession for a while or have graduated abroad and would like to get back into a teaching job in Scotland.

Moray House School of Education and Sport, in partnership with our six partner authorities (City of Edinburgh Council, East Lothian, Fife, Midlothian, Scottish Borders and West Lothian) is offering this online Returning to Teaching course for primary and secondary teachers.
The course is designed for professionals who have a teaching qualification but have had a career break or are new to the Scottish Education system.
We strongly recommend that your visit our FAQ page where you can find further information regarding the course.
It is a requirement that you be eligible for registration with the GTCS (General Teaching Council for Scotland). If you are not already registered, please contact the GTCS via their website or phone 0131 314 6000.
General Teaching Council for Scotland website
The course will be most relevant for:
- Those wishing to return to teaching in Scotland after a period away from the profession
- Those wishing to teach in Scotland for the first time from both Primary and Secondary sectors
- Those who wish to engage with the course to support a Professional Update submission to the GTCS
- Teachers in the independent sector to support a potential GTCS registration application.
Course aims
- Understand and engage with current National Education Policy and the Professional Teaching Standards in Scotland, providing teachers with information on recent changes in national priorities
- Work collaboratively to develop an awareness of professional identity and teacher professionalism, discovering yourself as a learner and as a practitioner committed to career-long professional learning
- Develop a critical awareness of your own values, beliefs and practices and how these align with the Professional Standards and current educational policy in Scotland
- Consider and engage with key areas of social justice and equality in the classroom and develop thinking and strategies for a socially just classroom
- Understand key legal and policy requirements relating to inclusive policies and strategies in school to address barriers to learning
- To advise on current curriculum guidelines and their implications for professional practice
- To increase confidence in completing applications and preparing for interview.
Course delivery
This course will be running 22nd September to 9th December.
This 10-week course is run fully online with two live online sessions, one at the beginning and one at the end of the course.
The two live online sessions are not compulsory and the content from these sessions is available on Moodle, our online learning platform.
Please see below for an indication of the topics included in the course starting in September 2023. Each new week starts on a Friday.
Please note, there are no other scheduled sessions. Once a week opens, participants have access to its content for the duration of the course and can choose to study at times that suits them.
Week 0 (online) From Friday 22 September |
Introduction to Returning to Teaching (RTT) and the landscape of education in Scotland |
Week 1 (online) From Friday 29 September |
Professional Values, Professional Standards, Learning for Sustainability, The National Attainment Challenge Live online session on Saturday 30 September |
Week 2 (online) From Friday 6 October |
Introduction to the Scottish Curriculum for Excellence: principles, design and purpose |
Week 3 (online) From Friday 13 October |
Curriculum for Excellence / Curriculum for Excellence in Practice / Critical literacy in the classroom |
Week 4 (online) From Friday 20 October |
Curriculum for Excellence / The planning process |
Catch-up week From Friday 27 October |
Time to catch up on readings or engage in additional readings on the subject of your choice or even take a break. |
Week 5 (online) From Friday 3 November |
Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC), Child Protection, Mentally Healthy School |
Week 6 (online) From Friday 10 November |
Equality and diversity |
Week 7 (online) From Friday 17 November |
Inclusive pedagogies / Additional support needs (ASN), policies and practice |
Week 8 (online) From Friday 24 November |
Positive relationship and restorative approaches |
Week 9 (online) From Friday 1 December |
Assessment, careers and qualifications |
Week 10 (online) From Friday 8 December |
Digital literacy, professional learning and job applications Live online session on Saturday 9 December |
You can find further information about the course by visiting our FAQ page
Booking information
The course fee is £450.
THIS COURSE HAS NOW SOLD OUT
For any enquiries please contact the Professional Learning team:
Booking Terms
The course fee is non-refundable. The Professional Learning Office operates a cancellation policy to ensure that delegates are not disadvantaged by the last-minute cancellation of courses due to withdrawals making the course unviable.
We will use your personal data to allow us to process your registration, communicate with you and obtain your feedback about this course. We are processing the information about you for these purposes because by registering for the course you give your consent for us to do so.
In order to facilitate online bookings for our events, we use Epay.
Details of Epay’s privacy policy
We will not share information about you with any other third party.
We will hold the personal data you provided us for 12 months after course completion. If you have agreed to be contacted about future events, we will hold your personal data for as long as you subscribe to these updates. Financial data such as a payment record will be held for 7 years. We do not use profiling or automated decision-making processes.
Quotations from previous participants
It has highlighted and given me a clearer understanding of current issues in the Scottish education system. I have gained a wealth of knowledge and a supportive group of colleagues to work collaboratively with in the future.
The course has given me much more confidence than I previously had. I feel secure in my knowledge of current policies and practices.
The course was well lead, very supportive and manageable despite working full time and having a family. I wholeheartedly recommend anyone considering a return to teaching to complete this course (actually I think it should be compulsory).
I thoroughly enjoyed the course and feel motivated and enthusiastic about returning to teaching. The clips and presentations were excellent, and extremely helpful.
Useful links