Lack of teaching qualifications in staff at Free Schools

[gingeroots]

One in ten teachers working in Free Schools lack a formal teaching qualification .

Does this concern people ? Is it not unusual in private sector ?

Idea of a 27 year old with no teaching qualification ,no experience of teaching being the headteacher at a primary school certainly worries me .

As does this quote from Observer article
She has already said that she will ignore the national curriculum and teach lessons "inspired by the tried and tested methods of ED Hirsch Jr", the controversial American academic behind what he calls "content-rich" learning

www.guardian.co.uk/education/2013/mar/10/free-school-head-no-qualification

[HorribleMother]

Recent interview with Terence Stamp in the Big Issue: he talks about being a bright lad who completely failed at grammar school (no O-levels) because all they did was learn rote facts; he was bored witless. It sounds exactly like what Ed Hirsch/Civitas are promoting.

[Bonsoir]

Ed Hirsch/Civitas are not promoting rote learning of facts. I live in a country (France) where there is a lot of rote learning of facts, so I know what that looks like (two step DC in Y13 and Y11 - I've seen years of this stuff). The Civitas book is nothing like "rote learning of facts".

[gingeroots]

What is it like Bonsoir ?

( shameless attempt to avoid reading it )

[Bonsoir]

It is principally full of texts that can form the basis of discussion of ideas.

[Bonsoir]

You can look inside here.

I would have been delighted for this book to have formed the basis of what school covered with my child in Y2.

[gingeroots]

Thanks Bonsoir .

Hard to judge I think without reading more ,and of course no knowing what the curriculum will be like at Pimlico Primary as I believe it's to based on this line of thinking rather than slavishly following .

I confess I was put off by the tone ( smacked to me a little of religious fervour ) and of course comments about how vague and unspecified the curriculum in primary schools cannot be applied to UK .

I've worked in a primary school as a TA and the curriculum was enormously prescribed ,every detail specified ,what needed to be learnt ,consolidated before the next stage tackled all listed .

I remember the despair of teachers when children were off because their absence meant that they'd missed a vital building block .

[Mintyy]

Lol at Xenia's valuable contribution to this thread.

[Bonsoir]

Xenia constantly wants something to boast and name-drop about. There is no boasting and name-dropping potential in a new school...

[Xenia]

That is not how I am but I do think some parents aren't aware of what much better schools are available particularly if women work full time and earn enough to pay school fees so it is worth drawing it to their attention. No need to accept mediocrity.

[CecilyP]

^You can look inside here.

I would have been delighted for this book to have formed the basis of what school covered with my child in Y2.^

I don't know; the third review is none too positive.

[Bonsoir]

Buy the book (as I have) and judge for yourself.

Honestly, it is so far removed from rote learning, memorisation of facts etc that the criticisms are laughable.

[CecilyP]

I have no need to. The poster of the third review did and was not impressed.

[Bonsoir]

Gosh, do you take Amazon reviews as Gospel ?

[CecilyP]

It's no big deal, just amused me that's all. It did represent 33.3% of the reviews though.

[Bonsoir]

In a statistically meaningful sample of 3

[VinegarDrinker]

I am no Free Schools fan. But, as someone else has mentioned, there are "unqualified" teachers who are actually highly qualified and experienced, just don't have QTS, as well as those who really are "unqualified".

My DH is an "unqualified" teacher. He's a primary music specialist with a BA, MMus, LRAM and lots of relevant teaching experience. I wish he had QTS because he could earn a lot more (he is essentially paid on the TA scale), but I don't think it would make a jot of difference to his skills in the classroom.

And yes, as mentioned upthread, it is very common in private schools to have unqualified teachers.

[bidibidi]

Having peeked inside, I am unconvinced that the 3 Wise men of Gotham or knowing what a Ziggurat is are that essential skills for modern children/people.

[muminlondon]

I'm sure a well qualified teacher could dip into it, and I like some of the poetry - it seems particularly aimed at home educators and parents. Experienced teachers will have lots of examples of materials that motivate children. But I am a little wary when politicians and thinktanks pile in to promote a certain methodology in schools to the exclusion of other methods - like phonics, good idea, but not neceassarily exclusively, and testing six year-olds on made-up words reminds me of the disaster that was ITA.

She still doesn't seem to have spent a lot of time in classrooms, however, but does seem to be connected to lots of politically influential people (including Boris Johnson's education enquiry where Civitas, Pimlico Academy and the Curriculum Centre were very well represented (more than borough education directors) along with Toby Young, Katherine Burbalsingh, etc.

[Bonsoir]

It is a good thing when outsiders contribute to the education debate. Schools and their curriculum should not be the exclusive preserve of educators.

[muminlondon]

A good debate is fine but I counted about eight associated with Civitas/Pimlico Academy alone (although sponsor John Nash has since been made DfE director) and other organisations only sent one or two representatives.

[Lizzzar]

If teachers have a good degree, I personally don't see why having or not having a PGCE in addition will make much difference to their teaching ability - a lot of it appears to be general classroom management and some other things that unions consider important at the moment, but can be easily learned by a bright teacher while working. A one year certificate that is relatively easy to get on does not make most teachers the equivalent of doctors and lawyers - maybe they should have that kind of status, but it would take more than a PGCE requirement to do it. Teachers ultimately teach well because they enjoy what they are doing, and have reasonable education and abilities themselves. Unfortunately many state schools still have lots of struggling children despite having a QTS requirement for their teachers.

[sashh]

Lizzar

You have no idea do you?

Do you know about special need?
Differentiation?
Extension work?
Child protection law / policies / procedures?


Oh and you can convert any degree to be a lawyer in just one year of a course that is easy to get on.

[englishteacher78]

It is also getting harder (rightly in my opinion) to get on the PGCE courses. Whilst a 2:1 or a first does not necessarily make someone a good teacher, a certain level of enthusiasm and ability should be demonstrated by someone wishing to teach a subject.
In Finland, widely regarded as an excellent education system, teachers need to be educated to Masters level.

[muminlondon]

Whether you train within a teaching school or are based in a teacher training college with blocks of teaching practice, you need proper training and support. A degree is also important - not ex-soldiers without degrees training in two years:

www.guardian.co.uk/education/2013/jun/07/former-soldiers-qualify-teachers-government