RESEARCH
The NASUWT has recently published the findings of a number of independent research studies that it has commissioned. There are summaries below.
SEN and behaviour management -
www.nasuwt.org.uk/TakingAbuse
This study found that teachers working in alternative education are being subjected to regular violent, threatening and abusive behaviour from pupils with little support or protection from employers. The survey of teachers working in special schools, pupil referral units (PRUs) and specialist settings found that employers are routinely failing to use their legal powers to tackle pupil indiscipline and violence and are also failing to put in place effective policies and procedures to protect staff.
Despite the introduction of a raft of powers by the Government to tackle pupil behaviour and ensure schools are safe places in which to learn and work, it appears that schools are failing to make use of this support.
The NASUWT will be using the findings of this study to examine why this is and how the Union can support schools to use the law to ensure that all staff are able to work in a safe environment free from violence.
Women teachers’ careers -
www.nasuwt.org.uk/WomenTeacherCareers
Women teachers still feel they are ‘skating on thin ice’ when they try to advance or progress their careers, the second stage of research by the NASUWT into women teachers’ careers has found.
The study, which was carried out by researchers from the University of Manchester on behalf of the NASUWT, found that family and caring responsibilities continue to impede women’s career progress, with the average impact of a two-year career break was a five- year delay on female headteachers’ career trajectories.
Sex discrimination is also a key factor, researchers found, as three times as many women as men questioned for the survey said they had been the victim of sexism. This rose to one in six in the secondary sector.
The NASUWT has recommended that more detailed data on teachers’ progress on the leadership scale be provided by local authorities to support work to achieve greater gender equality among school leaders, along with greater access to flexible working patterns.
Community cohesion -
www.nasuwt.org.uk
The NASUWT has examined the role of schools in preventing violent extremism and promoting community cohesion, concluding that the narrow focus on Muslim extremism heightens the risk of alienating and marginalising key sections of the community. The Government believes schools have a key role to play in tackling violent extremism and the study examines the extent to which schools can and are responding to this issue.
Researchers found that while schools were broadly accepting of their role to promote community cohesion, they were less comfortable with being associated with work to challenge violent extremism, largely because the focus has been on preventing Islamic extremism.
While there was little evidence that schools were being targeted by violent extremism, what evidence there was predominately related to far-right fascist groups such as the British National Party (BNP). This supports the NASUWT view that the role of schools in tackling violent extremism should not simply focus on Islamic extremism, but equally on the threat of the far right by providing opportunities for students to discuss issues of equality, diversity and identity as the best vehicle for this work.
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