ASCL UK

Where did all the teachers go?

More than ever before we are struggling to recruit and retain staff. Too often we advertise multiple times, and our pools get smaller and smaller. In Wales, Welsh Language is a core subject, but our ability to recruit is nigh on impossible. When did it change? When did it get so difficult to attract the best graduates into our profession? We must accept our new reality and ask the question why? What about this amazing, wonderful, inspirational job that changes the life chances of children that fails to entice people in? Why don’t they see what we saw, the laughter, the excitement and the energy that drives our organisations and kept us enthralled in education for decades?

Too often the answer is brutally clear – workload. We must accept that what we ask of our profession is simply too much. Too often when we asked: how can I make this work? maybe we should have been asking: why am I doing this? That’s what those new to the profession ask, then they think: is this really for me?

Sinéad Mc Brearty from Education Support often quotes the World Health Organization – “If we consistently work over 50 hours a week, we damage our health.” I think it would be easier for school leaders to identify when they didn’t work a 50-hour week – it’s the norm, it’s the culture of our system.

Maybe that’s what needs to change. Maybe it starts with you? Maybe we need to establish a culture where we retain balance in our lives, where work doesn’t dominate our thoughts and our actions, and where it doesn’t reduce our connections with our family and friends. Maybe now is the time we lead by our own example and create the appropriate working culture our profession needs. 

   
   Claire Armitstead
   Director of ASCL Cymru



 

TransformED: A strategy for excellence

Last time I wrote for Leader, I talked about a lasting legacy: the Education Minister Paul Givan’s drive to bring about wide-reaching educational reform at pace. Well, it’s fair to say that he has brought forward a comprehensive, ambitious, and evidence-informed plan in the form of the TransformED strategy that seeks to set out a road map for transformation over the course of the next five years.

The strategy centres on five pillars of curriculum, assessment, qualifications, standards, and tackling educational disadvantage, all underpinned by improved, research-led teacher professional learning. It is clear that standards have somewhat stagnated in Northern Ireland and his desire, supported by an international panel of experts, is to drive improvements across the board with a focus on these areas.

Lucy Crehan’s review of the Northern Ireland Curriculum is drawing to a close, there are plans afoot for a new approach to statutory Key Stage assessment, a revision of GCSE and A level qualifications is coming, a new inspection model is in operation, and plans for fully funded, collaborative research conferences led by clusters of schools are being rolled out.

It would be difficult to argue that this minister has allowed the grass to grow under his feet; in fact, it is rare to see a minister in the Northern Ireland Executive bring forward so much reform that could produce a seismic shift in how education works in Northern Ireland. This is all rooted in the findings of the Independent Review as I’ve discussed previously, but it is still brave, bold, and ambitious.

As an association we welcome this strategy, however, let’s not forget it is our members who will ultimately bring about this policy shift in their schools. It is our members who will make this a reality, and so we will look to the Minister and his officials for the necessary support and funding to deliver collaboratively going forward.


   John Trueman
   Director of ASCL Northern Ireland


 

Slow, cautious, and lacking boldness

Although education reform seems to be making very good traction in Northern Ireland, here in Scotland the pace is much slower, too cautious, and is short in boldness.

The Education (Scotland) Bill, currently going through the Scottish Parliament, will legislate for the independence of His Majesty’s Inspectors of Education from Education Scotland, which will continue as a separate body leading in the curriculum but is scarcely mentioned in the Bill. It will also replace the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) with a ‘new’ Qualifications Authority. However, the Bill is in danger of sinking under a mass of amendments from all parties (showing how much education is a political football) and we await the second reading with trepidation.

The posts of chief inspector and CEO of Education Scotland were again not filled after interview. To not appoint once looks unfortunate, to not appoint twice, looks like carelessness. And there is concern that the same might happen with the appointment of a new CEO of Qualifications Scotland. This void of permanent leadership is sadly redolent of the lack of a joined-up vision across Scottish Education. No one is really sure how it all hangs together, and the role of the new Centre for Teaching Excellence seems to overlap both with the remit of Education Scotland (gallantly trying to get the Curriculum Improvement Cycle in place as recommended by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report – one bright, positive spot), and with the role of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education (HMIe) in seeing (although not always sharing) interesting and valuable practice. However, the Centre’s focus on research into pedagogy could be potentially very impactful. 

The Review of Inspection processes is also under way, and hopefully any proposed system will not be going down the same road as Ofsted.

Then throw in two further knotty problems: the stalled pay claim and the ongoing wrangle about the Scottish Government’s manifesto commitment to an extra 90 minutes’ non-class contact time weekly. We live in interesting times. 

 
 Graham Hutton
 General Secretary of School Leaders Scotland



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