Government sets out first ever ‘Teachers’ Guarantee’

ENGLAND – The government has set out a new commitment with the ‘Teachers’ Guarantee’ to help support teachers to do what they do best – teach.

The ‘Teachers’ Guarantee’ goes alongside the government’s pupil and parent guarantees.

The ‘Pupil Guarantee’ sets out what every young person should get during their school careers, including one to one or small group tuition for pupils falling behind at primary and the first year in secondary school.

The ‘Parent Guarantee’ includes tougher Home School Agreements, so every family understands their responsibilities and heads can take action against parents with the worst behaved children if they do not comply and parents have their views listened to about how their child’s school is doing.

As part of the continued drive to improve the quality of teaching in schools, schools secretary Ed Balls set out how the government, working with Social Partners which includes teaching unions, will continue to trust, support and challenge teachers to deliver the best education for every child in the country.

The ‘guarantee’ includes new powers for teachers to tackle bad behaviour and dispels the myth that schools should have ‘no contact policies’.

A newly published guide challenges the idea that teachers shouldn’t be able to intervene when pupils are fighting, causing risk of injury to themselves or others, where a pupil refuses to leave a classroom or where a pupil is behaving in a way that seriously disrupts a lesson, school sporting event or school visit.

It gives them clear guidance that in some situations, like when a very disruptive pupil refuses to leave a classroom when asked, they have the powers and legal protection to use force.

Behaviour is good in the vast majority of schools and standards have increased over the last 12 years. The government has given teachers the powers they need to ensure strong discipline in the classroom.

Pupils and parents also have clear responsibilities when it comes to improving behaviour in schools and this is set out a new leaflet, designed with young people, that outlines the importance and value of good behaviour.

The ‘Teachers’ Guarantee’ will also ensure that teachers get:

• Dedicated time to plan and prepare lessons and time to assess pupils’ progress so teachers can continue to deliver high quality lessons.
   
• Support from the wider school workforce so teachers aren’t tied up with photocopying and other admin tasks but in the classroom inspiring every child to learn.
   
• Continued professional development alongside a ‘Licence to Practise’ giving teachers a statutory entitlement a statutory entitlement and a responsibility to keep their skills and knowledge up to date, and the Masters in Teaching and Learning, which as seen the first tranche of Newly Qualified Teachers start working towards gaining this classroom practice-based qualification.
   
• Help from ‘super’ teachers through the Advanced Skills Teachers and Excellent Teachers programmes to share good teaching practice in their own school and others.

• The powers to enforce discipline and encourage good behaviour including the new guidance on the use of force, and new and stronger powers to enforce parents’ responsibility in maintaining good behaviour.
   
• Strong, effective leadership to help the best teaching and learning flourish in their school and others through collaboration.

• National pay and conditions recognising the workforce as a highly skilled professionals and a firm but fair performance management framework to support head teachers and teachers in maintaining the highest professional standards in the workforce, so that underperforming staff don’t let down the rest of the workforce and children.
   
• Maintained investment in schools, Sure Start Children’s Centres and 16-19 learning to continue supporting the front line, with 0.7 per cent a year increase in funding in real terms in 2011-13 for schools.