As a former physics teacher, I can shed some light on why this situation is so bad. Teacher pay has been flat since the Conservatives came to power, making teaching less and less viable as a...
As a former physics teacher, I can shed some light on why this situation is so bad.
Teacher pay has been flat since the Conservatives came to power, making teaching less and less viable as a career; it's now more of a thing to do between getting your degree and working out what you really want to do with your life.
Pandemic lockdowns have caused an awful lot of bad behaviour. Early in primary school (Reception and Year 1), children are taught how to behave in a school environment, and teachers rely on the regular reinforcement of these norms that comes with regular school attendance to manage student behaviour. Teachers are too stretched thin to cope with these additional behavioural problems.
The cost of living crisis has made teachers' personal lives more difficult, but also causes additional stress, mental health issues, and subsequent behavioural problems amongst students.
The pandemic motivated early retirement amongst many older workers, including teachers.
During the pandemic, many working parents (usually mothers) had to leave their jobs to homeschool their children. In doing so, many found that the cost of childcare exceeded their wages, and so didn't return to the workforce when schools reopened. Many teachers will be amongst this group.
The government has increased teachers' pay without increasing school budgets, forcing schools to cut back on resourcing and teaching assistants (some of whom have left for higher pay in supermarkets). This has increased teachers' workloads.
Schools have also been forced to spend a greater proportion of their budgets on energy (especially for heating) and on food.
Ofsted has insisted that everyone pretend that none of this has been going on, and has inspected schools accordingly.
My friend was a music teacher and told me tales of woe for a few years before he quit to become a developer. The workload and stress compared to the pay is atrocious. Teaching the next generation...
My friend was a music teacher and told me tales of woe for a few years before he quit to become a developer. The workload and stress compared to the pay is atrocious. Teaching the next generation of citizens well should be one of the primary goals of a nation. Not paying enough and not providing adequate resources to save a few quid is typical of Tory short sightedness.
There were a bunch of poorly behaved kids when I was in school, but I was lucky enough to have some really passionate teachers who motivated me to learn and do well. I worry that the gen x kids won't all have had those same opportunities because their teachers have left the profession.
In my mind it should be paid the same as a doctor or firefighter. If we truly want to "level up" the nation we need an educated and skilled workforce.
That's something I had never considered! I'm in a system where most teachers are direct employees of the Ministry of Education and are assigned to schools by a staff:student ratio formula which...
The government has increased teachers' pay without increasing school budgets, forcing schools to cut back on resourcing and teaching assistants (some of whom have left for higher pay in supermarkets). This has increased teachers' workloads.
That's something I had never considered! I'm in a system where most teachers are direct employees of the Ministry of Education and are assigned to schools by a staff:student ratio formula which means that if teacher salaries go up, the budget allocation to the institution goes up accordingly. Conversely this leaves little flexibility in hiring staff above and beyond your allocation of roles but it at least provides a baseline # of staff.
That all rings quite true for the situation down here in NZ too. Teachers get crushed by cost of living increases because we can't individually negotiate for raises or switch to a different...
That all rings quite true for the situation down here in NZ too. Teachers get crushed by cost of living increases because we can't individually negotiate for raises or switch to a different company to get a better offer. The scope of our role just gets larger year after year, especially as we start to reckon with the long-term effects of the disparities created by the covid lockdowns.
As a teacher outside the UK (Singapore) looking in, yes the situation seems a bit horrific. Could I ask- is there a difference in how Academies have handled this crisis as compared to local...
As a teacher outside the UK (Singapore) looking in, yes the situation seems a bit horrific.
Could I ask- is there a difference in how Academies have handled this crisis as compared to local authority schools? As I understand it they have more flexibility with regard to certain OFSTED requirements?
Academies have the same Ofsted inspection requirements, but have more flexibility around staffing and curriculum. Academies can employ teachers who don't have Qualified Teacher Status, but are...
Academies have the same Ofsted inspection requirements, but have more flexibility around staffing and curriculum. Academies can employ teachers who don't have Qualified Teacher Status, but are wary of doing so, and have the same party scales as maintained schools anyway. Academies face the same problems as maintained schools.
I'm headed to the UK to do a master's degree. No intention of teaching in the UK. I have QTS and experience; I'm curious to see if there will be any attempts at recruiting my cohort. Somehow I...
I'm headed to the UK to do a master's degree. No intention of teaching in the UK. I have QTS and experience; I'm curious to see if there will be any attempts at recruiting my cohort. Somehow I think it won't happen.
After I did my BA in the UK back in 2005 there was a desultory attempt at recruiting but the recruiters didn't seem particularly enthusiastic. Admittedly my degree was in English so I'm sure they...
After I did my BA in the UK back in 2005 there was a desultory attempt at recruiting but the recruiters didn't seem particularly enthusiastic.
Admittedly my degree was in English so I'm sure they had an oversupply but I remember the group interviews with people who had read Chemistry and such and the recruiters just seemed to be going through the motions.
As a former physics teacher, I can shed some light on why this situation is so bad.
My friend was a music teacher and told me tales of woe for a few years before he quit to become a developer. The workload and stress compared to the pay is atrocious. Teaching the next generation of citizens well should be one of the primary goals of a nation. Not paying enough and not providing adequate resources to save a few quid is typical of Tory short sightedness.
There were a bunch of poorly behaved kids when I was in school, but I was lucky enough to have some really passionate teachers who motivated me to learn and do well. I worry that the gen x kids won't all have had those same opportunities because their teachers have left the profession.
In my mind it should be paid the same as a doctor or firefighter. If we truly want to "level up" the nation we need an educated and skilled workforce.
That's something I had never considered! I'm in a system where most teachers are direct employees of the Ministry of Education and are assigned to schools by a staff:student ratio formula which means that if teacher salaries go up, the budget allocation to the institution goes up accordingly. Conversely this leaves little flexibility in hiring staff above and beyond your allocation of roles but it at least provides a baseline # of staff.
That all rings quite true for the situation down here in NZ too. Teachers get crushed by cost of living increases because we can't individually negotiate for raises or switch to a different company to get a better offer. The scope of our role just gets larger year after year, especially as we start to reckon with the long-term effects of the disparities created by the covid lockdowns.
As a teacher outside the UK (Singapore) looking in, yes the situation seems a bit horrific.
Could I ask- is there a difference in how Academies have handled this crisis as compared to local authority schools? As I understand it they have more flexibility with regard to certain OFSTED requirements?
Academies have the same Ofsted inspection requirements, but have more flexibility around staffing and curriculum. Academies can employ teachers who don't have Qualified Teacher Status, but are wary of doing so, and have the same party scales as maintained schools anyway. Academies face the same problems as maintained schools.
I'm headed to the UK to do a master's degree. No intention of teaching in the UK. I have QTS and experience; I'm curious to see if there will be any attempts at recruiting my cohort. Somehow I think it won't happen.
After I did my BA in the UK back in 2005 there was a desultory attempt at recruiting but the recruiters didn't seem particularly enthusiastic.
Admittedly my degree was in English so I'm sure they had an oversupply but I remember the group interviews with people who had read Chemistry and such and the recruiters just seemed to be going through the motions.