Teachers get £5,000 to become a physics specialist

Teachers are being offered £5,000 to retrain as physics specialists under new government plans.

As part of a new £140 million government scheme to boost the number of science and maths teachers in England, those who switch to physics are being offered the golden handshake.

The government has pledged to donate £31 million to the recruitment and training of science teachers, with £11.4 million of this sum going towards training teachers to be specialists.

Schools minister Jim Knight said: "When I visit schools I see that science and maths lessons can be exciting and inspiring."

He added that more "flash bang" was needed to get students' science pulses racing.

"We want more young people studying science and maths A-Levels, that is why we are investing more than ever in these important subjects," Mr Knight explained.

Another £50 million of the total funds will be put towards continuing professional development, which will include £18 million for regional science learning centres.

The National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics will also receive extra financial backing and schools will get £4.5 million to encourage them to release teachers to use this facility.