Inspection being used to create climate of fear in schools
Too many employers are placing intense pressure on teachers by cynically using the fear of inspection to make unnecessary demands, the Annual Conference of the NASUWT, the largest teachers’ union in the UK, has heard today.
Representatives at the Conference in Birmingham debated a motion condemning employers who use the fear of inspection to justify punitive management practices.
Chris Keates, General Secretary of the NASUWT, said:
“There is no doubt that the inspection and accountability regimes are in need of reform.
“Teachers understand the need for schools to be accountable.
“However, they need to be held accountable for the right things and no fit-for-purpose accountability system should be capable of being abused in such a way that it creates a climate of fear in the workplace.
“The threat of inspection is now becoming a convenient stick with which to beat teachers, with poor management practices being justified by claims they are required by inspection.
“Even Ofsted’s Chief Inspector has now recognised this publicly as a problem.
“Recognising the problem is one thing. Taking action to address it quite another. There is still no sign that either Government or inspection bodies are taking any steps to prevent these unacceptable pressures on teachers.”
