singular_me
25th April 2015, 12:54 PM
Teaching profession headed for crisis as numbers continue to drop and working lives become ‘unbearable’
Saturday 25th April 2015
The working lives of teachers have become ‘unbearable’ because of constant monitoring and as a result they are quitting in such numbers that the profession is heading for a crisis, according to an open letter to The Independent signed by 1,200 teachers.
The letter calls for more support and warns that politicians have made teachers’ working lives “increasingly difficult and for many, unbearable” and that “a constant fear of being judged to be failing” was “bleeding the profession dry”.
Teachers who signed the letter, organised by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) union, warn that schools are heading for a teacher supply crisis as more teachers leave and the Government fails to recruit enough new trainees.
They call for the next Government to urgently reform the schools inspectorate, arguing that teachers cannot work under the “constant monitoring of Big Brother Ofsted”. Teachers need to be supported, not punished, they argue.
The letter follows figures disclosed at the ATL union conference this month showing that nearly four in 10 teachers will quit before completing a year in the classroom.........
The letter in full
Although politicians all agree that teaching is a vital profession, full of excellent and committed graduates, the policies they create have made teachers’ working lives increasingly difficult and unbearable for many.
Increasing numbers of both newly qualified teachers and more experienced teachers are leaving teaching to escape the excessive hours, preferring a life where work can be balanced with other interests and commitments and where they feel free from the constant monitoring of Big Brother Ofsted.
Teachers are monitored to within an inch of their lives; the pressure of Ofsted inspections leads to school leaders demanding evidence for anything that inconsistent Ofsted teams can ask for. What is most frustrating is that much of this Ofsted-generated workload doesn’t support teaching and learning and stifles the innovation and creativity that can create those ‘light bulb’ moments for pupils.
Teaching is extremely demanding. But teachers are also being crushed under the weight of unnecessary bureaucracy, which is piled on because of a constant fear of being judged to be failing; so it is hardly surprising that some decide that enough is enough.
As more teachers leave, the Government has also failed to secure the numbers of new teachers needed and a teacher supply crisis looms.............
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/teaching-profession-headed-for-crisis-as-numbers-continue-to-drop-and-working-lives-become-unbearable-10203085.html
Saturday 25th April 2015
The working lives of teachers have become ‘unbearable’ because of constant monitoring and as a result they are quitting in such numbers that the profession is heading for a crisis, according to an open letter to The Independent signed by 1,200 teachers.
The letter calls for more support and warns that politicians have made teachers’ working lives “increasingly difficult and for many, unbearable” and that “a constant fear of being judged to be failing” was “bleeding the profession dry”.
Teachers who signed the letter, organised by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) union, warn that schools are heading for a teacher supply crisis as more teachers leave and the Government fails to recruit enough new trainees.
They call for the next Government to urgently reform the schools inspectorate, arguing that teachers cannot work under the “constant monitoring of Big Brother Ofsted”. Teachers need to be supported, not punished, they argue.
The letter follows figures disclosed at the ATL union conference this month showing that nearly four in 10 teachers will quit before completing a year in the classroom.........
The letter in full
Although politicians all agree that teaching is a vital profession, full of excellent and committed graduates, the policies they create have made teachers’ working lives increasingly difficult and unbearable for many.
Increasing numbers of both newly qualified teachers and more experienced teachers are leaving teaching to escape the excessive hours, preferring a life where work can be balanced with other interests and commitments and where they feel free from the constant monitoring of Big Brother Ofsted.
Teachers are monitored to within an inch of their lives; the pressure of Ofsted inspections leads to school leaders demanding evidence for anything that inconsistent Ofsted teams can ask for. What is most frustrating is that much of this Ofsted-generated workload doesn’t support teaching and learning and stifles the innovation and creativity that can create those ‘light bulb’ moments for pupils.
Teaching is extremely demanding. But teachers are also being crushed under the weight of unnecessary bureaucracy, which is piled on because of a constant fear of being judged to be failing; so it is hardly surprising that some decide that enough is enough.
As more teachers leave, the Government has also failed to secure the numbers of new teachers needed and a teacher supply crisis looms.............
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/teaching-profession-headed-for-crisis-as-numbers-continue-to-drop-and-working-lives-become-unbearable-10203085.html