Shortage of Head Teachers

[Snoopy]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7615872.stm

So only three candidates for every post advertised eh? Does that not tell somebody something. Despite salaries starting around £35k and building to a massive £65k suitably qualified people just don't want to be head teachers. Nothing to do with the fact that Ed Ballsup and co keep messing about with the goal posts I don't suppose.
AND reading between the lines where are all these "retiring" heads going? Surely they could be prevailed upon to stay in post for a couple more years? Of course not ~ they can't wait to grab the pension and run. Teaching is no longer a vocation. Mr Chips is dead and buried. They are there for the pay packet and then get out as fast as possible. Thank you successive governments of all hues who have brought it to this. We ask only that you provide a decent education for our children and the best way to do that would be to leave it to the teachers to get on with it and NOT keep setting ever more stupid targets. That way we might get kids who can read and write and teachers who enjoy their work enough to stay in it.
Since 1997, we have been force-fed 14 Education Bills, 370 consultation papers and over 1,600 new parliamentary regulations just to teach our children to read, write and add up.

National Curriculum in the UK = 635 pages
National Curriculum in Sweden = 21 pages
No prizes for guessing which country has better educated teenagers.

[Barman]

 

Well said Snoops...

[Nick]

I quite agree. Dunno why this has surfaced now though, it's been well known (and covered in the trade press) for at least three years. Oh, of course, party conference season,,,,,,,,

[Snoopy]

Exactly ~ but we don't all read the "Trade Press". The figures toward the end of my rant come from the Lib Dem education spokesmen but I think we can trust his researchers to have got them right.

[Uncle Mort]

In Suffolk they're reorganising their school system from a three to two schools, cutting out the 'middle school' Currently there is a surplus of head and head of department teachers as they amalgamate the various schools.

[Bar Wench]

We were talking about this at the weekend. MILFH reckons a lot of it has to do with the fact that headships have been in the main a male post. And that in the last few years there has been a significant lack of men entering the profession due to the pay scales lower down. Schools and governors seem unwilling these days to appoint women due to maternity leave and so there is a dearth of "suitable" candidates. There is also of course the paperwork issue and the demand that schools be run as a business rather than an educational zone. (I don't mean they should run in the red but cost cutting and profit making should not be a priority.)

As for the retiring heads, on their pension I'm not surprised they are doing so. There is no incentive for them to stay and every reason for them to leave.

[Snoopy]

In Suffolk they're reorganising their school system from a three to two schools, cutting out the 'middle school' Currently there is a surplus of head and head of department teachers as they amalgamate the various schools.

That three school system was one of the reasons we left Bedfordshire to move here

[Nick]

And another prob with recruiting male heads (and teachers) are the worries about being accused of being a paedo for wanting to work with small children.

[Bar Wench]

And another prob with recruiting male heads (and teachers) are the worries about being accused of being a paedo for wanting to work with small children.

Also an issue. During teacher training there was a two hour lecture only for male students covering this aspect, very very strict guidelines. Mr Wench won't even do private tutoring for female students the risk is just too high.

[Nick]

Is he a pervert then? Doesn't trust himself, like? 

[Bar Wench]

Is he a pervert then? Doesn't trust himself, like? 

No dearie. It just isn't worth taking the chance.

[Nick]

Put him on Bromide?

[Grumpmeister]

I quite agree. Dunno why this has surfaced now though, it's been well known (and covered in the trade press) for at least three years. Oh, of course, party conference season,,,,,,,,

Well its partly that but the government is also cherry picking head teachers for its flagship academies which pretty much strips the pool of candidates.

This may be a daft question but do schools need head teachers? Why not put an administrator in place to deal with the running of the school so that the teachers can concentrate on teaching?

[Nick]

I disagree. My unvarying experience of working in schools, colleges and universities for the past, um, 30 years is that there is a strong and direct correlation between the qualities of the Boss and the qaulity of the institution. It's not just about admin - they have bodies for that if they are lucky. A visionary Head (like the brilliant one at the Boy's currentnd forthcoming schools) makes a HUGE difference.

[Grumpmeister]

Thats true, and I'm not saying that if you put an administrator in place they should have total control of the school. But if you can create a post that takes up most of the day to day admin and red tape that a head teacher currently has to deal with then you have a chance of making the post more appealing as well as giving the visionary head teachers more time to be able to do what means so much to them.