NQTS Supporting all our NQTs


Editor Pete Henshaw welcomes you to SecEd’s


latest NQT special which, in association with the NASUWT is offering crucial advice and support to new teachers across the UK


WELCOME ONCE again to SecEd’s now regular NQT support special, produced in association with our friends at NASUWT. We publish this eight-page section twice annually


with the aim of advising NQTs across the UK and supporting you through what is undoubtedly one of the toughest years a teacher will experience. The date is June 24, and as you read this you will no


doubt understandably have one eye on the end of term and a well earned six-week summer break. However, I am sure you will also have an eye


on September and year two at the chalkface, when, having passed your NQT year, you will re-enter the classroom as a qualified practitioner and when you will be expected to continue to deliver to a high standard, but with less support than you have seen this year. Equally, I am sure many initial teacher training (ITT)


students will also be reading this, and you will also be focused on gaining as much experience on your school placements now in a bid to hit the ground running in September as you embark on your NQT year.


This section offers crucial advice on the many


aspects of life as a young teacher, and our aim is to help you handle the pressure of school life, and to also show you that you are not in the boat alone – there are thousands of NQTs and student teachers out there experiencing the same as you. Features in this section include a focus on managing


SEN in the classroom and also behaviour management (pages 20 and 21). Our regular CPD expert Margaret Adams also lends you her expertise on pages 18 and 19 as she offers advice to ITT students, looks at the induction process, and also offers her support and tips to NQTs on preparing for year two. Our NQT diarist this year is Matt Connett, an


English teacher from Shenfield High School in Essex, who has been keeping us up-to-date with his exploits, including getting stranding in Madrid by the ash, and his ongoing battle with his year 9 boys and Shakespeare! Matt has written us a special one-off entry for this


edition (page 22) where he talks about his year to date, what he has achieved, and where he has been challenged.


Whatever your situation going into these final few


weeks of term, my message to you is simple. This year is tough, and the challenges many and varied. You will have struggled this year, and you may not have achieved the success you wanted every day. The main thing to say is that this is perfectly


normal and is the whole point of NQT year. The important aspect is that you learn from your


challenges and failures, you celebrate your successes and achievements, and you continue to develop as a teacher. Year two will be easier, I assure you. You will


arrive in September feeling more confident and more able to deal with the many challenges of life as a teacher. I hope the advice in this section helps you in your


journey and may I wish you all every success in your burgeoning careers. SecEd is always here to support teachers, and


fight for your corner, so make sure you have a great summer break and we’ll be here in September to help you through year two! The best of luck!


Protecting new teachers


Chris Keates, general secretary of the NASUWT,


emphasises the support that new teachers must be receiving from their schools as they begin their careers


T


EACHING IS one of the best, most satisfying and worthwhile of the professions. It is also highly demanding and challenging. For this reason, NQTs in the UK


have a number of statutory and other entitlements, specifically designed to


ensure that their induction year provides a structured introduction into the profession. The experience in that first and important year can


be one where schools harness, utilise effectively and celebrate the enthusiasm, energy, commitment, new ideas and talent thatNQTs bring to the role, or it can be a disappointing and demoralising experience. The best schools recognise the importance


of growing and supporting new teachers and most importantly they recognise that they need support, encouragement and working conditions which enable them to gain appropriate experience in their first school placement. In England and Wales, the range of statutory


provisions which schools are required by law to provide include a reduction in timetabled teaching, in addition to a contractual entitlement to 10 per cent guaranteed planning, preparation and assessment time (PPA); teaching only the age range or subject for which they have been trained; an induction tutor or mentor; not routinely to have to teach classes or children with especially challenging discipline problems; teaching the same class(es) on a regular basis to establish a routine and a rapport with pupils; receiving regular feedback and support on progress; and to be given early warning of any perceived problems or difficulties with progress. Judgements on performance must be communicated in a professional and timely manner. The induction period is intended to lay firm and


positive foundations and provide an excellent start to professional development. Induction should be a mixture of support and


challenge for any NQT, and is designed to be so. Therefore, during this first year it is absolutely essential to have access to all of the statutory provisions – provisions which are a legal entitlement because experience shows they are essential to providing the best start for a new teacher. NASUWT encourages and seeks regular feedback from NQTs to enable us to identify the specific


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challenges they are facing and target and provide the support and advice needed. The union offers free seminars during August to


prepare NQTs for their first teaching post, with follow- up seminars throughout their induction year to provide opportunities for networking, sharing experiences on induction and professional development. TheNASUWT has also carried out a five-year study


into the experiences of newly and recently qualified teachers. While most NQTs report positively on the support


they receive from more experienced colleagues, on the opportunities they are given to work regularly with the same classes in the age range or subject in which they had been trained, and on discussions with a nominated mentor, their experiences in other areas of provision can leave a great deal to be desired. NQTs regularly report that the statutory provision


of a reduced timetable is not provided. This often goes hand in hand with a failure to provide their contractual PPA time, which, when taken together with their induction time, should result in a maximum of 80 per cent contact time. In some cases, where time is allocated regularly it is


often eroded by activities such as cover, although from September 2009 this should have been a thing of the past with the advent of the contractual change which means that teachers rarely cover.


Many NQTs report being observed, sometimes


excessively so, but with no feedback or constructive comment. Some are allocated classes of pupils who are known


to exhibit extremely challenging behaviour, even with the most experienced of teachers. The statutory rights and entitlements are provided


for the very good reason that someone new to the profession needs such provisions to enable them to become confident and effective teachers. There can, therefore, be no real justification failing to provide them. Happily the last government agreed with the


NASUWT and as a result of the union’s highly successful campaign, Is Your School Breaking the Law? – which highlighted the failure by schools to implement a range of contractual entitlements with the consequent negative impact on workload, working hours, morale and motivation – legislation was introduced in England and Wales to ensure compliance at school level with induction provisions. Local authorities are able to issue warning notices to


schools to secure compliance with the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document, associated regulations and induction provisions. Schools which fail to comply face severe


consequences which include removal of their delegated powers and replacement of their governing body.


This legislative provision was a significant and


important step forward in securing the conditions at school level to enable all teachers, including those who are newly qualified, and school leaders to work effectively. Management of NQTs in a manner which chokes


their enthusiasm and energy by failing to give them the support during induction to which they are contractually entitled should now be a thing of the past. There is of course still more to do. The legislative


provisions sadly do not address the continuing poor practice of NQTs being placed on temporary contracts, often for no other reason than “to see how they turn out”. Such contracts are disempowering for new teachers,


as they fear poor reports and consequent job loss if they complain or raise concerns. Those who have been unable to access a placement for their induction year and work on supply often fare even worse. It is for these reasons that the NASUWT continues


to campaign for a guaranteed placement for all NQTs for the duration of their induction period, along the lines of the scheme which already operates in Scotland. NQTs are the future of the teaching profession and


should be treated by employers as a precious resource not to be squandered. The NASUWT will continue to campaign to


secure this. SecEd


SecEd • June 24 2010


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