News
Graduates show loyalty to teaching, thanks to new and improved rewards
T
he Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA) is urging top graduates in priority subjects to opt for teaching as their first choice career, as new data reveals that teachers are staying in schools longer than graduates in other professions because of good career progression opportunities and rewarding salaries. Teachers are twice as likely to remain in their chosen profession, with nearly half (44 per cent) of graduates in a range of popular non-teaching roles switching career within their first three and a half years, compared to just 21 per cent of those who choose teaching first time round. Graduates suggest a lack of autonomy, limited opportunities for career progression and the routine nature of the work as the main reason for the switch. While 79 per cent of those who started in teaching were still in post three and a half years on, over two fifths of graduates who started their careers working as scientists (43 per cent), IT professionals (44 per cent), or financial analysts (44 per cent), and a third of accountants (36 per cent) and legal professionals (32 per cent) had switched profession in the same time period.
Teachers were also twice as likely to be in management positions compared to many of their fellow graduates three and a half years in, with 19 per cent of those teaching having management responsibilities, compared to less than 10 per cent of science professionals (6 per cent), legal professionals (6 per cent) and accountants (9 per cent). According to new data from the Department for Education, starting salaries for teaching now compare favourably with average starting salaries for other graduate jobs (£22,800 compared to a range of £17,720 - £23,335). What’s more, on average, teachers are seeing their salaries rise by nearly 40 per cent during their first three years in the job.
The TDA is using the data to call for more top graduates in maths, physics, chemistry and modern foreign languages to take advantage of the opportunities provided by teaching and the new competitive rewards package, with bursaries of up to £20,000 also available for those graduating with a 2:1 in those subjects.
Commenting on the findings, Stephen Hillier, Chief Executive of the Training & Development Agency for Schools (TDA) said: “Unlike many of their peers at the same point, teachers have autonomy, recognition and clear opportunities for further progression. Teaching is a very different profession today than it was in years gone by. Bright graduates who go straight into the classroom are quickly climbing the ranks and gaining increasing levels of responsibility. There’s never been a better time to be a teacher”.
Caroline Pardoe, who has been teaching French and German for four years at Beverley High School in Yorkshire & Humber and is now Second Head in the Language Department, said: “Teaching is the greatest professional challenge I can imagine, and often the most rewarding. In four years I have progressed quickly and I see further opportunities ahead. Having once explored journalism, professional translation, charity aid work and even politics as possible careers, this is the profession that has had me hooked from day one. It is hard now to picture myself doing anything else”.
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www.education-today.co.uk February 2012
Trio of Board Appointments for NCFE N
CFE, national qualifications provider, has welcomed three new directors to its Board including Chair, Terry Hodgkinson (CBE), who will take up this position formally in February after succeeding Chris Hughes (CBE). Terry is joined by David Allison and Roy Sandbach. Together, they bring a wealth of business experience to the awarding organisation which in the last year, helped over 340,000 learners move their careers forward from over 2,000 colleges, schools and private training providers. David Grailey, Chief Executive at NCFE, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Terry, David and Roy to our Board. These appointments will further enhance our established team of highly skilled directors, who continue to bring innovative ways of working and fresh ideas to our organisation."
Career Academies UK joins the Coalition’s Business Compact
B
usiness Education charity Career Academies UK was congratulated by Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg last month for opening up opportunities for young people and providing them with meaningful experiences of the workplace.
Career Academies UK is named as one of the supporters - the only charity - to become a part of the Business Compact, the Deputy Prime Minister’s flagship scheme to create fairer opportunities to getting the best jobs.
Chief Executive of Career Academies UK, James McCreary said: “We are very happy to be a part of this initiative and are very pleased to see that many of our supporting employers are too getting involved in widening opportunities for young people to boost their social mobility." Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, said: “This is an important step towards a society where it’s what you know, not who you know, that counts. Working with the Coalition, the biggest hitters in Britain’s business world are helping lead the way to a fairer, more open society." More than one hundred of Britain’s biggest companies and top professional groups have signed the Business Compact, committing them to making entry into their professions fairer. The Business Compact forms a key part of the Deputy Prime Minister’s Social Mobility Strategy, launched in April 2011, which sets out the Government’s determination to ensure every individual is free to achieve, regardless of the circumstances of their birth.
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