March tomorrow at 11am from Portland Place.
I will be there defending the UK education system. Here's some reasons why:
1. It's not really about pay.
As a profession I think we are well paid. That is why we have good quality professionals working hard to teach children, inspire them and look after them. But this is about to change.
2. The white paper
The governments latest white paper proposes DEREGULATION of teachers pay and conditions. Currently all local authority employed teachers in England are paid according to the same contract. Like nurses and doctors, teachers have automatic pay progression (so the longer you serve the more you get - an incentive to stay in the profession), pay portability (if we move schools we get the same basic pay - they can't pay us less - this stops a competition between schools for teachers based on money - without it richer schools will always poach good staff from poorer schools) .
3. What is performance-related pay?
The introduction of performance related pay will mean that teachers get paid according to exam results. As a parent I would never want a teacher to look at my child and think 'is he going to wreck my data and stop my pay rise?' We are not working in sales - it is hugely problematic to pay us based on exam results.
4. Why should non-teachers care about teachers pay and conditions?
Deregulation also means that our working hours, holidays, pay, sick pay and maternity pay will be individually decided by the employer - the academy that is. An Academy in Manchester has in its contract that maternity pay will be 'subject to affordability'. Who will become a teacher if the terms and conditions are unattractive? A mum said to me yesterday 'but in my job I don't get good maternity pay - why should I care about teachers?'. My answer is this: public sector pay and conditions set the bar for private sector pay and conditions. If we get screwed you will get screwed too.
5. What's the problem with academies and free schools?
Academies and free schools are businesses. That means their primary concern is money. The government is paving the way for them to become profit-making businesses. Already many academies double up as wedding venues, conference facilities etc. No harm in generating revenue eh? Well only if it's being ploughed back into the school and The children. Let's remember schools are about children aren't they? It seems not. Many academies including Harris academies have recently got in trouble for deliberately excluding 'problem children' and paying local authority schools to take them off their hands - because they wreck the data. How can you publish your excellent GCSE results if some stubborn children just won't make progress! The answer in some academies is to get rid of them - then you don't have to report their results.
So if the money isn't spent on the kids where does it go?
Good question!
Do a Google search on haberdashers free school account fraud. He ran off with £4million! How did he manage to do that? Answer - because he was only accountable to the board of governors and the head teacher. Local authority schools are overseen by a democratically elected local council. Academies don't have to bother with that level of accountability. And the government also wants to get rid of parent governors. This would mean that academies would only be accountable to themselves. We're talking about millions of pounds of public money. Already there have been many documented cases of fraud in academies and free schools.
6. Qualified teachers V unqualified teachers
Academies and free schools don't have to employ qualified teachers. Unqualified teachers are cheaper of course. But I know which one I want teaching my children.
I will be there defending the UK education system. Here's some reasons why:
1. It's not really about pay.
As a profession I think we are well paid. That is why we have good quality professionals working hard to teach children, inspire them and look after them. But this is about to change.
2. The white paper
The governments latest white paper proposes DEREGULATION of teachers pay and conditions. Currently all local authority employed teachers in England are paid according to the same contract. Like nurses and doctors, teachers have automatic pay progression (so the longer you serve the more you get - an incentive to stay in the profession), pay portability (if we move schools we get the same basic pay - they can't pay us less - this stops a competition between schools for teachers based on money - without it richer schools will always poach good staff from poorer schools) .
3. What is performance-related pay?
The introduction of performance related pay will mean that teachers get paid according to exam results. As a parent I would never want a teacher to look at my child and think 'is he going to wreck my data and stop my pay rise?' We are not working in sales - it is hugely problematic to pay us based on exam results.
4. Why should non-teachers care about teachers pay and conditions?
Deregulation also means that our working hours, holidays, pay, sick pay and maternity pay will be individually decided by the employer - the academy that is. An Academy in Manchester has in its contract that maternity pay will be 'subject to affordability'. Who will become a teacher if the terms and conditions are unattractive? A mum said to me yesterday 'but in my job I don't get good maternity pay - why should I care about teachers?'. My answer is this: public sector pay and conditions set the bar for private sector pay and conditions. If we get screwed you will get screwed too.
5. What's the problem with academies and free schools?
Academies and free schools are businesses. That means their primary concern is money. The government is paving the way for them to become profit-making businesses. Already many academies double up as wedding venues, conference facilities etc. No harm in generating revenue eh? Well only if it's being ploughed back into the school and The children. Let's remember schools are about children aren't they? It seems not. Many academies including Harris academies have recently got in trouble for deliberately excluding 'problem children' and paying local authority schools to take them off their hands - because they wreck the data. How can you publish your excellent GCSE results if some stubborn children just won't make progress! The answer in some academies is to get rid of them - then you don't have to report their results.
So if the money isn't spent on the kids where does it go?
Good question!
Do a Google search on haberdashers free school account fraud. He ran off with £4million! How did he manage to do that? Answer - because he was only accountable to the board of governors and the head teacher. Local authority schools are overseen by a democratically elected local council. Academies don't have to bother with that level of accountability. And the government also wants to get rid of parent governors. This would mean that academies would only be accountable to themselves. We're talking about millions of pounds of public money. Already there have been many documented cases of fraud in academies and free schools.
6. Qualified teachers V unqualified teachers
Academies and free schools don't have to employ qualified teachers. Unqualified teachers are cheaper of course. But I know which one I want teaching my children.
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