What could be done to stop the teacher recruitment and retention crisis?

[noblegiraffe]

The situation in teaching is absolutely dire and parents would be up in arms if they knew the true extent of the effect it was having on their children's education.
So what can actually be done about it? There is an issue with workload because while some is pointless, some actually does benefit the kids. e.g. In maths, the new GCSE has 3 papers instead of 2. My school also introduced a second mock in March as well as November. This has tripled the amount of mock marking compared to previously. In addition, we have to enter each mark for each question for each student by hand onto a spreadsheet which then generates a list of all their strengths and weaknesses. Huge extra workload. But if it was suggested that the second mock and the analysis was binned, there would be a pang of guilt because it is actually useful. Think of the children!

So what can be done?

1. My school should have considered workload before it introduced the second mock. What we didn't have already, wouldn't be missed. If any new initiative is seen to increase workload, then workload has to be decreased elsewhere to compensate. Always. That might focus a few minds on what is really necessary.

2. Ofsted are considering dropping the outstanding rating. This would have a huge impact, but they are being held back by the fact that parents like it. The views of education professionals should outweigh parents in this instance.

3. Scrap any notion that teachers' pay should be linked to individual student results or class results. Unions already advise against it, but Ofsted should ask to see appraisal objectives and any school that has results in there should be not allowed to get higher than requires improvement. Student and class results are too volatile to be used as a positive performance indicator. Cohort results for those with a cohort responsibility I'm not sure about...

4. Cap CEO of academy pay linked to how many schools they are responsible for. School funding should not be lining individual pockets. On top of that, increase base funding for schools so that they have enough money for sufficient TAs, support staff and so on.

5. Way more funding for SEN. Open more special schools, review the EHCP process, better training for teachers and so on (there are people way more knowledgeable than me with ideas about this).

6. Behaviour - do not make having a poorly behaved class increase the workload of a teacher to an unreasonable degree. Centralised detentions. On-call support that actually turns up. An escalating series of sanctions/intervention that is actually followed, and doesn't involve the class teacher doing anything once the kid fails to turn up to their lunch detention/persists in being a pain/is a pain across the school. This should be verified by Ofsted because otherwise SLT will get away with not doing it.

Any other ideas?

The class size research actually needs reading properly and in full. As does the feedback research.

The class size research actually says smaller class sizes ARE of benefit when they are below a certain number ! What it acknowledges is that this isn't cost effective. So, reducing class size from , say 30 to 27 makes no real impact (it's not about us really) and I can see that really. What is awful is that some school (looking at you Mr Grant Povey) are --ab-using this research to create supersized classes.

The EEF research states optimal class size is 16 - 24.

I have a class of 21 - it is true that they are not progressing spectacularly - but the relentless focus on progress and the endless cycle of feedback plus the increased marking load is definitely driving staff out.

And in a lot of subjects A level is no longer pleasant and stimulating relief. Class sizes can rise to 30 for some teachers in some subjects.

I'd also say ostrich SLT with their heads in the sand - fretting over data and doing nothing to support. The creation of policies and 'innovations' with no logic, no consultation, no feedback, (oh the irony!) or review but then a sudden halt to it without telling anyone! Usually not grounded in any actual research. I disagree with the PP who said about SLT reading the latest book. Most never read anything. They are so off the ball it's on a whole different pitch.

But I'm still in the job!!

And maybe don't get me started on the boys' club nature of a lot of secondary schools....

The culture needs to be changed (back?) to trusting the teachers as professionals. The idea that an SLT member qualified in English can observe a Science GCSE class and give meaningful feedback (especially when it is prescriptive) does not hold water for me.

We have also all seen inspirational lessons where teachers have not taught formulaically (pointless starter taking ages to prepare etc). If a teacher is getting the results, just let them get on with it. No one continuously improves throughout their lives, another dose of cool aid to beat teachers up with.

Focus on what actually works for the pupils. I am really not convinced that detailed formative feedback (which takes hours) is worth much at all (at least in my subject). Most pupils look at the grade and skim read the comments (at best). Far better to peer mark or go over work in class. Peer marking actually forces pupils to engage with the topic and a mark scheme,

Finally it is time to start believing that teenagers are at least in part responsible for their own results. If Flossie fails because she is bone idle, it is her fault, not the teachers. This would actually improve pupils motivation for learning as too many believe that there is an infinite safety net and, if they fail, must have been poor teaching.

larry we had an Oftsed inspector visit 4 English lessons last week who was not an English specialist and make proclamations about marking and how exercise books could be used... that is galling. The English specialist who appeared on the second day said almost the opposite things!

According to TeachetTapp most teachers still enter the profession because they want to 'make a difference' to children and/or society.

I think one of the issues is teachers soon learn they are going to be told it is actually all about progress and that their efforts are good, but never good enough. this began with RAG coding and excessive scrutiny of progress data by people who either don't understand data, or teaching or both!! This can be utterly demoralising.

And your last paragraph illustrates that really larry!

I would say , in his defence though, the science SLT who visited with the Ofsted inspector gave very supportive and thoughtful feedback and did challenge some of her ideas.

People who don’t understand data would appear to be the DfE and most SLT.

The amount of data that is churned out by schools, both internal and official that’s just bollocks is incredible, and the attention that is paid to it as if it were actually meaningful!

Unfortunately there are more parents than teachers in the general population so things parents like (ratings accountability etc) are likely to stay whether they work (for teachers or in general) or not. I am not sure there is a recruitment or retention 'crisis' last time they looked at this on 'more or less' it was debunked the long term drop out rate was pretty stable over time. There is an issue with 'baby boomers' retiring and insufficient planning for 'unexpected' increases in youth population but Brexit might begin to solve that... big data and insufficient training in data management and time to understand data / statistics is endemic across all employment at the moment including teaching - too many numbers / tracking not all is probably any good. I doubt a quango running education would improve much but would no doubt add costs not going to the front line. I would focus energies on areas teachers and parents agree SEN provision, general funding esp frontline, less executive roles /pay.

HIGHER PAY, MORE RESPECT FOR THE PROFESSION, FEWER ASSESSMENTS

YES I KNOW I’M SHOUTING

More money for outside agencies, for example, I work in early years and we refer lots of children for speech and language therapy. Most are not even seen for an initial assessment for 6 months, so usually around May (referring in November after having identified the children who need help, convinced the parents and made the referral) then we wait 2 weeks for the report then they do 6 weeks of one a week group sessions by which point it's nearly the summer holidays and they come back into reception or year one with new teachers who ask why their speech is so unclear.

Posted too soon.
It's seems like such a waste of our time and we are sent a load of stuff to do with the children one-to-one because the speech therapists can no longer come out to work in schools because their workload is too high. No idea when we are meant to find the time to work one-to-one with 6 children every other day.

Better IT systems for maths etc for children to work through that can be marked and have progress tracked by the program, not just dipping in and out of maths games etc.

All of this is the reason i didn't become a teacher. More importantly - why I despair for dd

I’m out but the obsession with progress and triple marking was ridiculous. Linear progress for all is illogical but if you don’t put it’s happening you get slated. So people make it up as it’s not worth the hassle to say someone is less able in a new area than they were in a previous one. And if you’re put in a position where what your data and books look like are more important than everything else you do it sucks every last bit of enjoyment out of the job.

I remember when I started and we loved going with our groups on trips and it was a break from the routine and an opportunity to spend time with the pupils and when I ended no one wanted to do them as if you stayed behind in school you could get on with your mountain of paperwork interrupted. That to me sums up what has gone wrong and why people drawn to teaching aren’t staying.

Nothing will change whilst a significant number of parents just see school as free child care, and think that teaching is an easy job.

Maybe, just maybe one of the few good things that will come out of Brexit is for major employers to realise that they won't have a pool of 500 million people to recruit from, many who have received an excellent education, and they start putting pressure on the government to properly invest.

handbag I tired to explain that exact point about linear progress to my headteacher last week. he looked dumbfounded

Our data guy gets it - but still sets up tracking systems based on half termly linear progress!

And then we 'intervene'/ phone home/ field emails/ demotivate ourselves and the students.

tired = tried!

Freudian typo!

Class size matters.

Here's some research on class size:
www.aeuvic.asn.au/class-sizes-research

I'm in Victoria, and in a state school. Union/school local agreement top is 26. If it goes to 27, I don't cop a cover any week that happens.

Class sizes for me in 2017:

25
14
19
10

Sharing a class just does not happen.

As with the progress we need to accept that children and adults have a spectrum of abilities and needs and there will always be children who don’t excel academically and they and their teachers should not be made to feel like failures because of it. SEN children are expected to make more rapid progress than others, yet if a child has a learning difficulty they find learning...difficult! They need to have things repeated far more, learn in different ways and have more support; some kids will pick things up straight away- and the curriculum and standards assumes all children are like this. Those who aren’t should not be seen as a problem for the data. The government are responsible for this culture that has developed.

echt I don't do cover anyway. One thing we do have in my school is zero cover! I think we do need to be a little wary of applying overseas research to the UK system but I do think all actual teachers agree that class size massively impacts on workload : this, of course isn't why the EEF looked into class sizes. Unfortunately.

Is there setting in Australia? We would have smaller class sizes if we abandoned our fetish for setting.

And sharing classes does cerate workload and is rife.

abandoned our fetish for setting.

You can prise my fetish for setting out of my cold, dead hands. (Maths, obvs).

yes, I know we have had that argument on MN !

EEF doesn't support setting either but I know maths teachers do. It seems to have spread to PE in our school!

My DS2 is really languishing in a top set year 9 at the moment. When he asks for help she tells him it's a top set and he needs to be more independent. The ultimate answer no doubt will be to move him down where he then won't access the learning needed to eventually get a grade 7 upwards. I had this with DS1 so it's a bit groundhog day...

Hey ho!

certainly in English rigid setting achieves little.

Finally it is time to start believing that teenagers are at least in part responsible for their own results. If Flossie fails because she is bone idle, it is her fault, not the teachers.

This.
And maybe that would help reduce the pressure and the crazy amounts of data. Because let's face it, the data is used primarily to judge what schools and teachers are (or aren't) doing, not to judge what children are learning or how they are being helped to become happy, well-adjusted human beings.

Same with feedback eolian. We don't often do it for the kids...

Exactly. I fear I have somewhat old-fashioned views of how we should teach. We've come a long way in terms of understanding and helping kids from different backgrounds and with different needs, but I'm a great believer in the idea that all you need for kids to learn well is a charismatic, knowledgeable teacher, desks in rows and a seriously robust and consistent whole-school discipline policy. Most of the rest is flim flam.

When is anyone going to realise that the way to get the best out of teachers and make them teach engaging, progress-promoting lessons is to give them the time and autonomy to do so? Not any time soon, I fear.