Teachers strike... what will actually happen in end?!

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My school is striking again next week with others that have teachers from the particular union.

All that is happening is parents are getting massively angry. Kids are missing out. I've used so much holiday on strike days as I have multiple children. I know my anger should not be directed to school but exactly where can I direct it to? I'm pretty sure my MP wouldn't care. He's completely useless.

The government don't seem to care.

I personally think something needs to change in that profession and funding in my area is shocking! It's probably not attracting the best people to the profession and certainly is driving people away.

However, am I right in thinking rishi and co don't care?! Teachers could do 5, 10, 100 days and it seems they won't budge right?

Parents don't seem to care or get angry enough, short of tweeting about it or writing to MP. It isn't really enough to get this resolved.

How do you think this situation will end?

I actually can't argue with this 🤷‍♀️

But the money isn't there, life. That's the problem. And even I can see that if there is any spare cash it needs to go to stop people dying from cancer instead of paying what is fundamentally a group of well people more. I think that's what's sticking in the craw a bit.

As much as I understand this point of view, I also just simply don't believe it's true.

I think there is money for what the Government prioritises. I think health, education and social care are like the bottom wrung of Maslow's hierarchy of need for a country. Cuts needs making elsewhere if they aren't well enough resourced. I don't believe it is impossible to do. I just think they don't want to 🤷🏻‍♀️

Feel free to report.

Unfortunately the government don't care about state education at all which is pretty obvious from the high number and low quality of the Education Secretaries since they came to power. Rishi Sunak has no interest in it at all and won't get involved.
Gillian Keegan is useless and never stops rabbiting on about pulling herself up by her bootstraps rather than addressing educational issues. To her teachers are wonderful but at the same time the enemy who must be driven into submission.
The general public don't have much respect for teachers and think that striking is unacceptable as it harms children rather than thinking about the lack of funding in education by the government which is what is actually harming children.
Finally many parents are generally a bit apathetic about educational issues and are only moved to moan when teachers are on strike because that means they have no one to care for their child. Again it's generally teachers they blame not the government.
Unfortunately I don't think the strike will result in fully funded decent payrise for teachers and I doubt they'll get what the independent review body are recommending.
Teachers will keep leaving and there are few takers to replace them. It's a shit show.

What a shame you haven't actually outlined how you would solve the recruitment and retainment issue that is plighting schools when you've got so much to say about teachers' pay.

Do agree that teachers aren’t going to get what any of this demands met by current govt, they have made that absolutely clear. If I was a teacher think I would have realised the futility of further industrial action by now.

@Julen7 yup, it futile, that's why so many are leaving. But those of us left will continue to fight for the right of an education for all.
I don't think parents are ready for Sept when they find their child is being taught in classes on 60 (already happening). When little Jimmy pops home and tells mummy about the poo running down the walls because the pipe has burst again I imagine there might be some shock.

@TheSnootiestFox see that's exactly what I mean.

You have been asked this question several times by other posters, and me twice and you seem to have still not answered the question (undoubtedly it will be all our faults rather than the actual answer) I suspect because you don't have one ?

You can only ignore outright for so long before it looks like what it is (name calling, outrage, ect) actually a complete diversion.

As I said previously I wasn't expecting a answer although always love to be proven wrong. I don't give a fig who or what you vote for frankly.

But like the government is doing right now which is flat out refusing to engage with talks, it doesn't solve the problem and hoping it goes away. Bit like your doing with this question.

I've written chapter and verse a couple of times today. It's evening, I'm tired, I've said what I'd change more than once and I'm relaxing with a lovely big glass of wine. I refuse to be goaded further and if you don't like it, well I guess I'll just have to live with it 😁 Good evening.

I'd be fascinated to know what charity aligns with this values and beliefs. Specifically an anti poverty one.

@TheSnootiestFox you haven't answered the question which is

What would you do about the recruitment crisis in teaching ?

You have told us that you don't think teachers need a pay rise, your political views and money doesn't grow on trees ect

Let's not be pedantic about things. The thing is you won't address this question because you can't.

It's like having a debate about summer holidays abroad and you toodling along saying you hate cars and all car users.

Anyway as I said your response is not surprising or even slightly enlightening 🤷‍♀️

Just because I'm a Tory doesn't mean that I want to see people starve and it saddens me beyond belief to see people that are busting a gut to do their best struggling.

Do you not see the link between the increase in people, particularly children, living in poverty, and the Tory policies that put them there?

I'm starting to see a pattern.

I give up! Well, not literally, I love my job, the team I work with and the kids. I give up trying to fight for education. I have so much respect for noblegiraffe she is very knowledgeable. I just can’t lose pay and pension contributions fighting a flight that I think is lost.

I'm not convinced all is lost. The DfE recommended 3% to the independent pay review body. Then they offered us 4.5% plus £1000 mostly unfunded BUT tried to work really hard to show that it was actually funded because they acknowledged that pay rises being unfunded is actually a massive issue.

Now the independent pay review body has said 'look, everything in teaching is on fire, we need to increase pay more than the government would like in order sort it out' and suggested 6.5%.

The government are talking about rejecting the independent pay review recommendations BUT it means it's going to be far harder for them to argue that whatever they do offer is fair or reasonable. And if it's unfunded, they can't justify that either, given the arguments they made for the 4.5% being funded.

Progress is being made.

OK, if I must, I would suspend Ofsted inspections for at least 12 months. That would free up HMI to go into schools to act as a bit of a school improvement service. I would prescribe a marking policy that all state schools must adopt, that was more in line with what we did when I first started teaching rather than 3 marks with silly coloured pens etc. The NHS needs to pull its weight re CAMHS and ASD/ADHD and schools would go back to being educational establishments and not an extension of social services, at least in the short term. I'd take school catering back in house and make sure all kids have a decent breakfast and lunch and if I could these would be universally free. Exams would cease to be the be all and end all and kids would be encouraged to get the best grade they can without anybody worrying about their value added. I'd remove performance related pay and teachers would progress up the scale as per the old days. Then noone is disadvantaged by taking on a challenging class. I'd try and reduce class sizes a bit but obviously if there's teacher shortages that would be tricky. As long as kids are cleanish and tidyish uniforms could come from anywhere and not have to be an exact length or have an exact logo. And teachers would not waste time chasing the wrong trousers etc but would teach. And probably controversially but I'd bring back old fashioned teaching heads of year but with a decent timetable adjustment. Discipline started to go downhill when glorified admin managers started behaviour managing kids. I like the idea earlier of all teachers having an MSc. but this would be CPD for a few years and fully funded. And that's just off the top of my head.....

Feeding hungry people is desirable cross party I think you'll find 🙄

Not in my experience.

Anti poverty suggests campaigning.

Like when the Tories voted not to extend FSM into the holidays during covid and kept having to backtrack because of Marcus Rashford?

Or the fact that they haven't raised the FSM threshold since 2017 despite inflation?

Or that their policies have led to a massive increase in food bank usage?

What is it about the Tories that makes you think they really care about feeding hungry people?

I said desirable not mandatory. Plus not all Tories think the same. I'm sure that I have different taste in curtains from Rishi too!

Plus not all Tories think the same.

So with their massive majority they must have reduced child poverty, put food banks out of business and extended the FSM offering?

Is that what the Tories have done? With their massive majority?

You really are spoiling for a fight today, aren't you?

@TheSnootiestFox well to be fair actually I agree with all you have put.

Quite sensible in my view and I can't quite fathom why all of those things disappeared. That said my industry isn't education.

Should be interested to see if any other teachers agree. I suspect they might.

No, I'm just baffled to see someone trying to position the Tories as caring about people going hungry.

I see you're making no attempt to answer my questions though. Again.

Nearly all of those good things happened under -oooh- a Labour government.

I'm not. I'm positioning me as caring about people going hungry. I just happen to be more politically aligned with Conservatism.

I can assure you they didn't. There was still Ofsted inspections, catering contracts, non teaching progress managers, ridiculous marking policies, glorified social work etc etc up until 2010 and I remember my first years at one particular school (2004 until about 2008 ish) being all about counting five stripes on a tie and removing make up. There was also if you recall, the whole diploma debacle. Which were a complete waste of money that sold a couple of cohorts down the river academically, I was there, remember!