Govt planning to screw over teachers again

[noblegiraffe]

The government have recommended to the independent pay review body (late, they missed the deadline) that teacher pay rises should be 'more sustainable' this year. They haven't suggested a figure but looking at budget this would be 1-2% (i.e. another below inflation pay-cut.)

In the meantime, their commitment to reduce teacher working hours by 5 hours per week has been a complete failure as teacher working hours have actually increased in the last year:

"The latest wave of the working lives of teachers and leaders survey shows full-time leaders’ average working week in 2023 was 58.2 hours – over 11 hours a day – up from 57.5 in 2022.
The survey polled more than 10,000 workers, and found full-time teachers’ average hours were 52.4 per week, up from 51.9 in 2022......Teachers and leaders’ job satisfaction has also plummeted. Only 46 per cent were satisfied “most of the time”, compared to 58 per cent last year.

At the same time, the number of teachers quitting is increasing, and recruitment is becoming an even bigger issue due to the lack of people starting a PGCE last September who should now be applying for jobs.

The government gearing up for another war with teachers is clearly something they see as a vote-winner in an election year.

However, many voters are parents and can see the impact of the state of education on their children's experience at school.

NEU and NASUWT are currently consulting members to see if they want another ballot for strike action.

https://schoolsweek.co.uk/keegan-calls-for-return-to-more-sustainable-teacher-pay-rises/
https://schoolsweek.co.uk/heads-and-teachers-working-longer-despite-workload-push/

Yes, people are leaving in their droves-that is a huge problem. One which needs to be addressed.

Absolutely agree with this.

I left primary teaching last summer for these reasons.

I think my biggest problem with the pay issue is that we have been lied to time and time again by the government. The last couple of years increases comes nowhere near close to solving the issue from the last 10 years!

We didn’t just fight for more pay, which I think people forget - we fought for fully funded pay increases which didn’t take away for our school budgets which didn’t happen. One local school has 3 years left on their existing budgets before they simply run out of money and have had to start making staff cut-backs. The extra pressure on existing staff is ridiculous.

The problems with workload that are causing people to leave - it’s generally agreed that more PPA would help. But we can’t give teachers more PPA without hiring more teachers to cover it.

And we can’t recruit on current salaries.

I've only read half this thread but it definitely seems to follow a theme.

The teachers seems to be in agreement that the teaching is ok, but it's all the other stuff they are expected to do that drains the joy out of the job. So it seems that it's not necessarily the money that is the issue.

If money is off the table, what would make a teachers life better? How would you alter the workload?

I'd fund units for children struggling in mainstream. A variety of types to accommodate different need. Generalising but for eg, small classes autism focused, behavioural specialist unit focusing on routine and strict in terms of behaviour alongside support to deal with traumatic past experiences.

Give powers to school to exclude more often and make parents more responsible. I know some will disagree here but most low level behaviour could be dealt with by strict sanctions and parental support. I'm fed up with phoning parents who say "I don't know what to do"... Take their phone and WiFi for a start.

Behaviour is probably the biggest issue for me. Kids aren't being supported, and also have no respect for their surroundings. The societal contract is somewhat broken. Children and parents are "entitled" but don't acknowledge the responsibility this comes with.

More PPA-20%?

A TA for each class.

Streamline the curriculum and revert back to free national resources to complement it-I know the QCA documents weren’t perfect, but they were better than spending thousands on schemes. There was nothing wrong with Letters and Sounds and the government removing that and forcing schools to buy a new scheme (and replace their book scheme to match) was a bloody scandal.

Scrap Ofsted and all of the unnecessary stress and workload that come with that. Subject ‘Deep Dives’ for starters. I have been through 7 inspections and the last nearly broke us. I can’t do another.

Funding SEN properly so that schools could access support and placements for children quickly.

For me in KS1...

A TA per class.
Proper funding and support for children with SEND to either thrive in Mainstream or find a suitable alternative provision
A more relaxed curriculum that doesn't involve us all running and rushing from one things to another all day every day.
20% PPA

Haven't RTFT but I was a teacher for over a decade and the pay increases advertised, certainly didn't match up to what we received.

Sure, it was published that teachers would receive 3% but the government actually only funded 1% and it was up to the school to provide the rest, which they couldn't afford to do so it was capped at the 1%.

There will always be a cohort of people who are, on the whole, grateful for the teachers their children have had.

There will always be a cohort who believe that teachers do nothing but whinge about their pay and conditions, because they believe that the job has more advantages than disadvantages and that teachers have no business complaining.

I don’t think that the second group will ever change their point of view. After all, they went to school, so they know how it works. When you try, as @noblegiraffe does, to point out the real situation in schools these days, they come out in force and always trot out ‘If you don’t like it, leave’. Well, that’s what teachers are doing. Not only that, they’re choosing not to start in the first place.

No one, on these sort of threads has ever said that teaching is the worst job in the world. What people are saying is that it’s becoming a profession that is unsustainable for a number of reasons and that if the pay and conditions continue to deteriorate, there won’t be a workforce.

I don’t see how you can’t understand that if your salary increases, but everything you need to pay for increases at a faster rate, then you are less financially well than you were previously.

There are so many short sighted people on this thread. In my ds's reception year, he had 4 different teachers and many supply teachers. Because of this, he struggled to settle into school until the summer term. Year 1 started better but then his teacher left at October half term- after that he had a mishmash of TAs, supply teachers and the headteacher teaching him. For 3 of those weeks he had a different unfamiliar adult teaching him everyday. He would cry every morning at drop off and the unfamiliar adult would then have to drag him into the classroom in tears. He says he hates school and is reluctant to do anything associated with school. My dd, who is Year 6, has spent most of this school year being taught by various supply teachers, none of whom stay more than a couple of days. She has gone backwards this year in terms of her education. I am having to teach her myself after school every day to attempt to get her back to where she should be for her age and ability. I have friends who teach who say their schools cannot fill vacancies despite repeatedly advertising roles. Both of my children's education is suffering because of the recruitment/retention/lack of funding issue.

People who flippantly parrot "well if you don't like the job then just leave" are doing all teachers and children a disservice. Our education system is crumbling and teachers ARE leaving and there aren't enough new teachers to replace them. You can sneer at what teachers are saying and belittle them all you want but that isn't going to magically produce any more teaching staff or stop your own child from having their education negatively affected.

I didn't realise there were so many parents who actively dislike teachers, if this thread is a fair representation of society.

No wonder behaviour is at rock bottom in schools, kids learn how to behave and think at home first.

It doesn't matter what the employer contribution rate is if you cannot afford to pay into the pension scheme in the first place.

If the Teachers scheme is anything like the LGPS, then your pension is based on what you have paid in, not what the employer pays in, so just because the employer suddenly pays £500 extra per month, you aren't going to get your pension recalculated on that. It's just used to make sure that the scheme is financially viable.

In response to everyone saying - if you don't like it, leave...teachers are leaving so what are schools meant to do?

Most people assume children should be taught by teachers - if those no longer exist - then what should be happening?

If you cant recruit - it's usually due to pay or conditions - therefore either or both needs to improve to ensure there are teachers in the classroom.

I really dont see what is there to be debated...........so yes maybe rephrasing the question from teachers about how to improve their lot in life to how do schools/teaching profession ensures more teachers are employed might be helpful.

But other than that....beyond the issues of how best to improve recruitment - the shortage is there in broad daylight and clear to anyone with a school age child.

@bradpittsbathwater

I don't know know many jobs that have the pensions, holidays and pay rises teachers get. Many jobs are worse for less benefits. Leave if you don't like it.

But they are & so as a result schools can't find teachers. Many students have a continual stream of supply teachers & cover work.

I know of so many good teachers who have left in the last year-such a wealth of experience and knowledge just gone; it’s such a shame and so unnecessary.

There is no shortage of teachers in England, there’s just a shortage of people prepared to teach under the current Tory shit show.

I wouldn’t be as bothered about pay rises if education was properly funded so that children’s needs could be met. I’m sick of spending my wages on paper, card, pencils, colouring pencils, paint, glue, rugs, pencil pots, books, chalk, plant pots, soil, seeds, play dough to name just a few things I’ve purchased this academic year.

That’s before I’ve even got started on the lack of support for children with SEND and the non existent support services for families. The reason teachers are leaving is because education is chronically underfunded in all aspects. At least if schools were properly resourced, not falling to bits, adequately heated and had enough staff in them, teachers might be more willing to stay for purely vocational reasons.

I don't know know many jobs that have the pensions, holidays and pay rises teachers get. Many jobs are worse for less benefits. Leave if you don't like it.

Who’s gonna teach your kids though?

If things weren’t bad for teachers, there’s no way people would contemplating leaving something they have put decades of work into and built their whole lives around. It’s a huge upheaval to leave teaching and many are taking pay cuts and working in roles that are way below their level of expertise and education just to get out. I don’t know why people have such a hard time believing it. Teachers workload in many subjects and many schools is intolerable and not compatible with family life or indeed any happy life. The proof is in the pudding. People are leaving and kids are being taught by cover supervisors and the like. Bash teachers all you like but they will and are walking.

My suggestion would be to give teachers a 20% pay increase and enrol them into a D.C. pension scheme with an 8% employer contribution (still generous) - that would be more on a par with other professions in the private sector.

The problem with that is that the current pension contributions are used to cover the pensions of retired teachers currently claiming a pension. As there is no actual fund set aside for you.

To do this, school funding would remain the same as you've taken the 28%, put 20 on salary and 8 into an actual personal penson. So now the whole of the current retirees pension still have to be met from the treasury. So basically the country is finding that extra 20% from tax somehow and it would take years to start to go down. So in the interim this would cost more.

This.
It's desperately needed.

On radio 4 earlier they were fact checking Gillian Keenan's statement earlier in the week that school funding is at record levels.
It will in fact be back to 2010 levels by the end of the year.
On top of that schools are expected to pick up much, much more.
HR, payroll, SEN stuff such as SALT and Ed Psych costs..... it's a total shit show.
I love my job but I am in my knees with the workload. My family are suffering because of it. I have no idea how anyone manages teaching with juggling parenting young children of their own.

I reckon if the government…

1. reverted to paying teachers centrally-so heads weren’t forced to ‘manage’ out older (expensive) teachers-and destroy their mental health in the process-in order to replace them with NQTs. This would mean you could value and retain experienced teachers on UPS, and you’d have a full complement and range of staff- not end up with a team full of teachers 1/2 years in, who are not not being supported properly and then end up in leadership positions which they are woefully prepared for.

2.scrapped Ofsted

3.streamlined the curriculum

A lot of the issues in school would get much much better.

People want to teach-that’s the best bit. We don’t need shit loads of management layers all out of the classrooms pulling up spreadsheets if Ofsted aren’t there looking for that. If the curriculum wasn’t so boring, hard and irrelevant, more kids would be able to access it. We want them engaged and motivated and interested in their learning, not constantly stressed and being tested.

Everything appuski said (loved that book) - the gov I believe did realise they'd fucked ip getting rid of qca and are currently ploughing ££££££ into oak national to be the new version of qca.

14 years far too late.

I would say though that we do need some sort of version of Ofsted but it needs an overhaul.