The experiences of new teachers at BSix
Part II
April 2009
S Izzidien
Researcher-in-residence
BSix Brookehouse Sixth Form College
Contents
Page
Executive summary
3
Section one: Introduction and sample
5
Section two: Findings from second round of interviews with teachers who started at
BSix in August 2008
6
2.1 Teachers’ safety
2.2 Staff relationships and support structures
2.3 The management of the college
2.4 Experiences of teaching at BSix
2.5 The main challenges of teaching
2.6 Experiences of Ofsted
2.7 Experiences of being a tutor
2.8 Teachers’ work/life balance
2.9 Overall satisfaction levels among teachers
2.10 Training and support needs
2.11 Teachers’ perceptions of their career development
Section three: Discussion of main findings
37
2
Executive Summary
This report presents the findings from stage two of a three-stage longitudinal study that aims
to chart the experiences of new teachers over their first year at BSix and to monitor job
satisfaction level. The primary source of data comes from semi-structured interviews with ten
teachers (including three Newly Qualified Teachers) who took up teaching posts at BSix in
the Summer of 2008. The data are presented under the following themes: teachers’ safety,
support structures, management, teaching, Ofsted, job satisfaction levels, support needs and
career development. The main findings from interviews with new teachers include:

All ten teachers continue to feel safe working at BSix, and none had been through any
experience where they felt their safety had been compromised.

Good relationships continue to exist between staff in BSix departments. Teachers still
feel they can approach their colleagues and head of department for support. However,
one teacher who works across two departments felt she could only approach one set
of colleagues for support.

Nine of the ten teachers said they felt they were valued members of their department.

Teachers noted that colleagues in other departments were friendly, but that they
continued to primarily mix within their own department. Busy schedules mean that
cross-departmental conversations and sharing best practice is limited.

The three Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) each had a departmental and Senior
Management Team (SMT) mentor. The support process is informal, in which they
have chats with their mentors and seek help as and when they need it. They continue
to value this support and are happy with the informal approach.

Overall teachers were happy with the management of the college and the direction
taken by the senior management.

All ten teachers spoke positively about their overall teaching experiences and said
they were still enjoying that aspect of the job. When asked to rate the amount of time
they enjoy teaching out of 100%, teachers rated this between 80 - 95 % of the time.

Teachers’ prime motivation for coming to work relates to the students.
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
The challenges mentioned by teachers are the same as those mentioned during the
first set of interviews. These include motivating students in the classroom and lack of
time for pastoral support. Teaching was seen to be more demanding because the
students require a lot of support from teachers. However some teachers have managed
to deal with these challenges more effectively over the last few months. This is due to
both their own personal initiative and new practices e.g. reward cards. Some of the
challenges are seen as ongoing issues that will take time to resolve.

Seven of the ten teachers described the Ofsted inspection as stressful, exhausting or
hectic.

Teachers continue to enjoy the role of being a tutor. As with the first set of interviews
conducted in October/November 2008, seven of the ten teachers still had concerns
about how tutorials operated across the college.

Two of the ten teachers interviewed were happy with their work/life balance. The
other eight teachers did not feel they had a satisfactory work/life balance. Six teachers
felt that the workload was still high even post-Ofsted. Teachers spoke about working
at weekends, half terms and holidays.

Teachers were satisfied with their overall job. On a scale of one to five, with five
being a very great deal satisfied and one being not at all satisfied, the mean (average)
job satisfaction was 3.5, the mode was 4 and the median was 4. This is positive to
note despite teachers’ sentiments about a heavy workload, both in general and due to
Ofsted, as well as a poor work/life balance.

Teachers accepted the heavy workload and poor work/life balance as part of being
new at the college. There is an expectation that workload in the form of lesson
preparation will get easier next year. There is also an expectation that work/life
balance will improve next year. Both of these factors may have an impact on these
teachers’ future job satisfaction levels.

Eight of the ten teachers were happy with the new approach to staff development i.e
voluntary sessions held at different times during the week, and most of the teachers
are attending sessions that they find relevant to them.

Eight of the ten teachers plan to work at BSix next year, one teacher has resigned and
another teacher has not yet decided about her plans for next year. For some teachers,
opportunities to develop, and to take on more responsibility were important factors
that might influence how long they ended up staying at the college.
4
Section 1: Introduction and sample
This report presents the findings from stage two of a three-stage longitudinal study that aims
to chart the experiences of new teachers over their first year at BSix and to monitor job
satisfaction levels. The reader should refer to part one of the report for further information on
the background to the research, including methodology.
The second round of interviews took place with teachers in March 2009. Since the first set of
interviews, one teacher had resigned and left BSix. As a result the total number of research
participants was reduced to 11 (three men and eight women). Of these ten teachers (three men
and seven women) took part in the interview, while the eleventh did not find the time to be
interviewed. She was, however, able to provide her current job satisfaction level score.
Teachers were employed across seven departments:

Business/Health

Humanities

Art/Media

Music/ Performance

Sports, Hair and Beauty

English/ESOL/languages and literacy

Progression
The aim of the second round of interviews was to explore further teachers’ experiences of
working at BSix and to note any changes in attitude that that might have occurred since they
were first interviewed in October-November 2008. It should also be noted that BSix
underwent an Ofsted inspection during the week 9th -13th of March. The interviews were
conducted towards the end of March i.e. after the Ofsted inspection.
Interviews were tape-recorded and lasted between 20-30 minutes. Two teachers could,
however, only spare 15 minutes for the interview. In order to maintain teachers’ anonymity,
the researcher removed identifying information from the report. Some important findings are
linked to identifying information and the researcher will therefore negotiate how to present
this through discussions with the teachers in question. The pronoun ‘she’ is also used
throughout the report to give further anonymity to the three male teachers who took part in
the research.
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Section 2: Findings
2.1 Teachers’ safety
All ten teachers continue to feel safe working at BSix, and none of them had been through
any experience where they felt their safety had been compromised. One teacher commented
that while she felt safe at the college, she did not always feel safe when she had to take her
classes on outside trips. She had asked other colleagues to accompany her, but they were
never able to do so due to their own busy schedules.
One thing I’ve not liked in term of safety is that I haven’t had anyone to accompany
me when we go out on trips. I’ve asked but no one has been willing due to their
work load.
2.2 Staff relationships and support structures
Good relationships continue to exist between staff in BSix departments. Furthermore, the
camaraderie between teachers is still evident. All ten teachers said they get on with
department staff well and have good relationships with them.
Fine, I love the department. Get on with them really well.
Everyone in the department is very friendly.
You know in November it was a new place, and I was very unsettled. But now that
I’ve settled in, I really enjoy working here. The atmosphere in the department is
really lovely. I don’t know what it’s like anywhere else, but within my department it’s
fantastic and everyone is motivated and if you’re having a down day you know
they’ll lift you up, so I enjoy getting up in the morning and coming to work.
We get on very well. When I first came in September, because it was two
departments being brought into one, there was a legacy of individual work rather
than team work, but over the few months there was more team working because it
was facilitated…I’m worried what will happen now the manager has left.
During the first round of interviews, all teachers mentioned that they would approach
colleagues for support, and the majority also mentioned their line manager. This pattern of
support has continued with all teachers saying they can still approach their departmental
colleagues for support. Heads of departments continue to be seen as supportive, but one
teacher felt she could only approach her manager ‘sometimes.’ The Head of another
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department had recently resigned which meant that this support structure would have to be reestablished.
We’re all open with each other and speak to each other...I’d go to other more
experienced teachers that have been working for many years… but I guess I’d go to
anyone for support.
My head of department is easily approachable. I’ve got my colleagues in that
department and I speak to all of them about anything that’s been a problem.
There are lots of colleagues that don’t have an official role in supporting me but
they’ve come and offered help and advice at various points which has been helpful.
At the moment I can’t approach anyone because the manager has gone. We’ve
interim management. X started this week and will be here until a new manager is
appointed. If there is an immediate issue I’ll go to him, but hopefully it will be fine.
Two teachers worked across two departments. In October/November, both teachers noted that
this created some challenges. Since then, one of the two teachers noted that she felt better
supported by staff in her second department, while the other teacher still felt she could only
approach colleagues in one of the departments for help and support.
I’ve definitely got to know the other department better and they’re more supportive,
especially this [Ofsted] week.
I get support mainly from my colleagues in X department. I’m not in the office in the
Y[other] department so I don’t really see them.
Nine of the ten teachers said they felt they were valued members of their department. One
however was not sure if she felt valued in one of her departments.
I don’t know. Not sure…it’s hard being in two departments as I can’t go to both
meetings, so it’s kind of like you get forgotten about.
During the interviews in October-November, teachers said that while they had met staff from
other departments, their busy schedules meant that they tended to only mix with teachers in
their own department. Similar sentiments were expressed during this second round of
interviews, that is, four months later. Teachers noted that colleagues in other departments
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were friendly, but that they continued to primarily mix within their own department. Two of
the teachers noted that it would be useful to have more cross-departmental working to share
best practice and enhance cross departmental learning. Busy schedules were however seen as
a limitation to developing such a process.
I don’t really have the opportunity to meet and mingle across the college, just
because of work load, so I kind of just stick with my department, but you know
everyone is really friendly and you can get a smile out of everyone in the corridors.
[Getting to know staff] across college hasn’t changed in that I don’t get out and
about much. But yes when I see people I get on well with them.
I get on with staff but I don’t think I’ve met any more staff since we last spoke in
November. I think it’s important for me because when you are teaching X, unless
you can really pick the brains of teachers in other subject areas, you miss out…and
I think having a casual conversation can go a long way to getting ideas for classes.
College staff are quite friendly but I think everyone is really too busy to spend time
together.
Newly qualified teachers (NQTs) also have a departmental mentor. In the first set of
interviews teachers mentioned that they tended to receive support from their departmental
mentors informally. This meant they had the occasional meeting with the department mentor,
would chat in the corridor and would seek help as and when they needed it. It was important
to find out if this approach was still working for the NQTs.
One NQT teacher said that she had had two or three meetings over the last four months with
her departmental mentor, but that mostly it was a case of informal conversations and help.
The second teacher said she could seek help from her departmental mentor, but this was not in
an official capacity and there were no meetings. At the time of the first interview, the third
NQT had yet to meet her departmental mentor. Since then she has received support from her
mentor, but this has also tended to be informal. All three NQT teachers seem happy with the
way this support continues to be delivered.
It’s going well. It’s just like having informal meetings, and she asks ‘How’s it going,
do you have any problems with teaching, behaviour?’ We talk over strategies. We
sit down and just chat.
We don’t always have a planned meeting, so if we see each other in the corridor, or
at lunch we have discussions. Planned meetings rarely happen but when they do
they are fine.
8
One NQT felt that while the departmental mentor was useful, the support she required was
subject specific. She felt there was no one in her department that had the capacity to help in
this respect.
There’ve been times when I’ve asked for support and people have tried to put things
in place but it hasn’t really worked. I found it quite difficult to do X with the students
and I asked somebody to help me with that. They tried to put me in touch with
someone else in another college but that kind of fell through.
NQT teachers also have an Senior Management Team (SMT) mentor. As with their
departmental mentors, the NQT teachers tended not to have formal meetings with their SMT
mentor, but would see them around the college on an informal basis. Teachers felt it was
useful to have someone there in case they had any problems. The NQT teachers seemed more
positive about the usefulness of the relationship compared to when they were interviewed four
months ago. One teacher had however recently asked her manager for clarification on why
she had an SMT mentor.
We don’t meet regularly, but if I see him in the corridor he will say ‘Are you ok and
do you need anything?’ I feel like I can actually go to him if I have problems with
things and he is quite good at dealing with them. It’s nice to know that someone in a
higher up position is looking out for you and making sure you are ok.
I can approach him. He’s very good whenever I want to see him he is there and I
can speak to him.
I’m still trying to get my head around the purpose of the SMT mentor. I‘ve asked my
manager to clarify why I’ve got an SMT mentor, but I’ve used my SMT mentor to
help with X so it is kind of nice that X is my mentor.
2.3 The management of the college
Overall teachers were happy with the management of the college and the direction taken by
the senior management. However two teachers felt that there remained some disconnection
with the realities of teaching, and a third teacher felt that senior management needed to be
more visible.
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They’re very good, and I’m happy with the way the college is going.
The management are doing a good job, and I think it’s a difficult job to do.
I don’t have much to do with senior management. HoD is really organised and if we
need anything we go to X [HoD] and X [HoD] will get our questions answered. We
see Y [senior manager] in the department quite a lot and he is very approachable.
My department has spoken about the need for senior management to be more
visible.
I’ve always thought that they have the right strategy of where they want BSix to be,
but I don’t think they are in touch with the pressures and realities of teachers. When
you take time off teaching you forget what it’s like and when you go back to the
classroom it’s a bit of a shock to the system.
A-level meetings
One teacher made reference to the A-level meetings that are held by various members of the
senior management team. She felt that they did not set a good impression when they turned up
late to the meetings. Furthermore the meetings were not seen to be very purposeful.
We’ve had A-level meetings with members of senior management, and they’ve
been late and everybody has been upset. We’re expected to start lessons on time,
but with the A-level teachers meetings, three of them started late. Also some of the
meetings are not purposeful. Careful thought has to be given to the meetings and
wasting time is something we resent.
College consultation
Lack of consultation by the management was brought up as a concern by two teachers during
the interviews. One teacher made reference to the new disciplinary system and the BSix
Baccalaureate. Another spoke about having to fill in forms and report writing. Both felt that
there seemed to be a rush to get these practices in place before Ofsted.
10
I feel quite strongly about lack of consultation. It’s not the case with every policy. It
has been partly true due to pressure of Ofsted, so there was a rush to get things in
place before Ofsted so there wasn’t much time to consult properly. A new
disciplinary system was introduced without consultation just as with the BSix Bac, I
think constructive criticism from staff could’ve highlighted some of the flaws in that
and ironed out some of the issues, but without it they were introduced in an
imperfect way.
There was the whole report fiasco before Ofsted. We had to do all these forms. It
was such a chaotic procedure. It was as if no one had thought it’s the teachers that
have to implement this, so why don’t we design the whole system with some
teachers. Instead it is top-down, no consultation. The guidelines were very unclear
so we weren’t sure what to do.
A few teachers also commented on the whole college consultation that took place before
Christmas in which senior management wanted each department to put together ‘a wish’ on
how the college could improve. The management would then take forward the wish that was
most popular with staff. This final decision took place during an all staff meeting on the last
day of term before the Christmas lunch was served. The teachers felt disappointed by the
process, did not view it as a proper consultation, and said it had not resulted in any tangible
changes.
People got excited to be given the chance to offer some constructive criticism of
senior management. We did it first as a department, then with other departments
then as a whole college. When we got to the hall for senior management to hear
what we had said, it was like a stand up comedy show. I think X completely
misjudged how unhappy some staff were about some things they were not getting
quite right… They determined the wining wish through people whistling the loudest
to more resources. It was the most gross over simplification of a whole load of fair
points. That upset me and others.
I thought it [wish list consultation] was a bit patronising because I knew there was no
possibility of getting any of this stuff. People were coming with good ideas but I
thought what’s the point if we’re not going to get them. That’s not consultation, that’s
just people being made to feel they are being consulted.
I thought we’d get something out of it [wish list consultation]. I didn’t realise that
nothing would happen. We wanted some resources, and we made a list. At the end
I thought everyone was pulling my leg, because at my old place if they do a
consultation, there is an outcome, so I was a bit confused that they didn’t even
attempt to get what we asked for.
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Sick policy
One teacher felt the college’s sick policy of having to call Human Resources and managers
every morning was bureaucratic, especially if you were very unwell.
I think the absence policies are quite harsh, as I had a week off work after
Christmas with bad flu. I thought it was difficult as I had to ring HR and two HoDs. I
had to do it everyday which I didn’t because I was so ill, and I kind of got told off for
it. I thought it was a bit harsh.
Equal opportunities and anti-discrimination
One teacher felt that the college management did not take the issue of homophobia among
students seriously. Concern was also expressed about the lack of counselling services for
students who did not speak English as a first language.
Staff have heard conversations of students that are very prejudiced. Other Hackney
schools have bullying policies, including sexuality. I’m not sure we do. It’s an
invisible issue at BSix. I think BSix wouldn’t be a safe place for a lesbian or gay
student.
There’s no interpretation and for ESOL students to access that counselling
support…Language is a barrier and they need to have interpreters.
The management of departments
During the first set of interviews, individual teachers had issues with the organisation of
certain departments. Two teachers felt that their departments were too big and this meant that
while the heads of each department were described positively, they were seen to have too
many responsibilities. These concerns were once again reiterated by the two teachers.
The gap is there and so huge. I think it’s a fundamental thing. X [HoD] is great and
we can go to X and X helps and supports us in everyway, but there should be
something in place so we’ve someone in charge of each area.
I still feel we need more direction from a lead person around curriculum issues, and
that person needs to have specialist knowledge.
12
A couple of teachers felt that the college and departments were constantly coming up with
new initiatives and while this was seen to be positive, it was also seen to have its
disadvantages.
We’re constantly having to get used to a new initiative and getting on board with it
within the department.
The exciting thing is that decision making is ad hoc and pragmatic. That can also
have a down side because you are constantly getting used to new
initiatives...sometimes it has felt like a shock, not a nasty shock but you’re just
always having to get used to a new set of rules.
2.4 Experiences of teaching at BSix
Teachers were asked to comment on their experiences of teaching since October/November
2008. This was split into three aspects: teaching students, workload and college resources.
All ten teachers spoke positively about their overall teaching experiences and said they were
still enjoying that aspect of the job. When asked to rate the amount of time they enjoy
teaching out of 100%, teachers rated this between 80 - 95 % of the time.
Teachers noted that for the 5-20% of time in which did not enjoy teaching, this was a result of
various factors relating either to the students e.g. poor student punctuality, poor student
behaviour, and students lacking motivation to work, or factors relating to themselves e.g.
teacher having a bad day generally, teachers not having the time to prepare lessons as well as
they would have liked, a heavy workload or student administration paperwork.
It’s been quite good actually. I enjoy the teaching side of the job. I really do and
students are quite well behaved and motivated sometimes.
I enjoy it 90% of the time. The other 10 %, well it’d be when students aren’t there on
time.
Teaching students has been good. Some students are badly behaved and you have
bad days. I enjoy teaching about 80% of time.
80% of the time I like teaching. I do enjoy teaching most of the time, but there are
some days where I hate it. It’s when things collide, like when I’m behind with some
of the work and I’m having a difficult day with a class. That gets on top of me.
Enjoy teaching 80%. It’s spiky. Sometimes it’s good and sometimes it’s bad but I
can’t complain.
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In the first set of interviews teachers were asked about the most rewarding aspect of their job.
Their responses focused primarily on students understanding lessons, trying hard and
achieving. During this round of interviews, teachers were asked about the factors that
motivated them to come to work. Again, the main motivating factor was students. Teachers
said they were motivated by feeling responsible for students, and wanting students to achieve.
They also felt motivated when students made an effort and did well in their studies. Other
individual motivating factors included positive feedback from Ofsted, good relationships with
colleagues, and teaching interesting lessons. Factors that impacted negatively on their
motivation included students not achieving, heavy workload, and paperwork
Today I feel happy. I’ve had some of the feedback already [from Ofsted] and people
are pleased with what I’ve done, so that has made me feel motivated…but
sometimes it feels like an uphill struggle and sometimes I feel like what’s the point in
trying, especially if the students get bad results.
Playing a part in making students achieve. It’s rewarding when students pass
exams, get the grades and get to move on to university - that motivates me…The
people that I work with, they are brilliant people, they are lively, friendly and
supportive.
The kids, the students. I wouldn’t miss a day. I wouldn’t want them to suffer if I
wasn’t in.
If students are doing what they should be doing, if I feel they are making an effort,
and I think the extent to which I’m enjoying teaching [influence my motivation]. If I
know I’m teaching interesting lessons, then I’m looking forward to it.
Generally I feel quite motivated. I do despite the fact that I’ve been very critical. I
think I am critical because I can see that we can be so much better than we are.
The one thing that would impact negatively on my motivation to come to work would
be the amount of paperwork and admin. But teaching and students, no, that’s what
makes me want to work.
You go into a class thinking this will be difficult to teach and you come out thinking
they understood it and that’s fantastic.
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2.5 The main challenges of teaching
As part of the interview, teachers were also reminded of the challenges they spoke about in
the first interview and ask to comment on whether these still applied and whether they had
come across any new challenges. Overall, teachers did not feel they had come across new
challenges, but were dealing with the same issues that were raised during the first set of
interviews. Some teachers also commented on various practices or policies within their
department or the college. One teacher however said she had not had time to reflect on the
main challenges.

Motivating students and raising achievement
Motivating students in the classroom, getting them to do homework and hand in assignments
remains a central challenge for most of the teachers. This was mentioned by seven of the ten
teachers, although a couple felt they had seen some improvements.
I think it’s still the case, especially with my tutor group. When they came, they were
used to working very slowly and I expected them to get a lot more done in that
space of time. I need to constantly keep them going and motivated. They’re starting
to experiment and get motivated but that resistance is still there.
I still have to push them and that’s still very stressful.
They still need a lot of motivation and you have to push them, but I also think
they’ve become more independent and know more what to expect over the last few
months.
It’s still hard work, it’s a motivation factor. I need to give them time to write in class,
as they’ they’re not doing it at home.
In X [course] a lot of students they don’t have high literacy skills so they loose
motivation, so that has been tough.
Five teachers also spoke about the need to raise achievement. Teaching was seen to be more
demanding because the students require a lot of support from teachers. Some questioned
whether students were at the right level due to their low ability. Teachers felt their planning
had to involve structure and differentiation to cater for the differing needs of their students.
15
They’re sometimes on a course higher than what they can handle and that can be
because of language problems and they find it hard to understand certain concepts.
I think also another challenge is that the girls are not afraid to admit that they’ve a
language problem, while the boys are adamant that there’s no language problem.
I’ve got some weak students who are border line about if they should be doing Alevel which I find quite challenging.
What has been a problem, a lot of students are on a level three course when they
should be on a level two course so the differentiation is so huge, so it is constantly
making resources for these different students that should be on a lower level.
Their verbal skills are fantastic but when it comes to written work, only a few can do
it. I’ve to work on strategies for that...it’s differentiation and making sure they are
going to pass.
I do feel some of the level one students should have a tighter timetable so that it
feels like school for them. If you have a level one that has come straight from school
and they have a 9 am until 10:30am session and then they have a gap until 2pm.
They’ll not come back for 2pm because they don’t take on that responsibility.
One teacher felt that there was a need for students to feel appreciated and when she gave
students rewards (in the form of chocolate) their contributions in class improved. Three
teachers also spoke positively about the use of recommendation cards in their department.
These are given to students who are doing particularly well, making progress or are attending
all lessons. Each teacher recommends such a student to the head of department who signs a
recommendation/praise card. Students collect them and the one with the most number of
cards gets a prize at the end of the year. One teacher did however question the impact of such
a policy while another although happy with the policy felt there was a problem with
implementation.
The recommendation cards are working well…it makes a difference in my classes,
students want the cards.
There is the reward system that works well. They like it. Does it make a fundamental
difference? Probably not but it’s nice to say well done.
The congratulation cards that X has initiated are brilliant, but then X says I should’ve
handed out 15 over three weeks and I’ve only given six. It feels a bit of pressure as I
only give to those that deserved them.
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
The need for intensive pastoral support for students
The need for more pastoral support for students was mentioned by five teachers. Two teachers
spoke about this in the context of tutorials as there was not enough time to deal with all the
issues, and the time taken up by pastoral support outside of this period was not factored in by
the college. The amount of paperwork related to chasing students up and putting them on
contracts was also seen as burdensome.
I’m concerned about the pastoral care because we only get an hour for tutorial and I
think it should be longer so you can spend more time with students. I don’t see how
I can do one-to-one with my students.
We only have one hour a week for the tutorial and we’re expected to do so much
more outside of that to help students.
I can’t cope with the pastoral issues. More so then last time we spoke. Often the
admin and workload doesn’t allow you to do everything and often the pastoral
issues slip. There are so many conflicting priorities. I don’t have time to keep in
contact with their social workers. When it gets to a certain level, it becomes too
much and you can’t give enough time to effectively support that young person and
so you fail that young person.
I’m still struggling to know what peoples’ roles and responsibilities are with this
cross college tutorial/pastoral issues. I don’t know who to go to for support. I’m
working with one learning monitor but that’s it. It’d be useful to have a list of who to
approach about certain issues. In my department it’s not the case that other people
know.

Workload
Workload was related to preparing Schemes of Work (SoW), lesson preparation, marking
papers, collecting resources as well as student administration. Of the ten participating
teachers, two teachers felt the volume of work was ok, while eight teachers felt they
constantly had a heavy workload.
For some teachers, this related to developing new resources, teaching new subjects,
organisation of coursework and having to deal with different expectations with regards to
planning. Three teachers also commented that the workload meant they lacked time to be
creative with their lesson planning. Three teachers did however feel the process was getting
easier and they were managing to cope better.
17
It’s still a lot of work, lots of things to do, but I think I’m managing my time
better…I’ve adapted better.
It’s been hard because you get different information from different people. One set
of people say you don’t have to do detailed schemes of work and certain people say
they need to be detailed, so you are kind of not sure exactly where you fit in.
It’s been hard and quite challenging for lots of reasons, especially being an NQT
and having to do all the resources from scratch.
It’s still hard work. I’ve many years of collecting background information and
handouts and I still need to reinvent them depending on needs of students. The way
I prepare has evolved, and it can change even by the day. It’s stressful but I’m
getting faster at it.
I’ve so many lessons and so much content to put into them it makes it difficult to do
them well. I think if I had half the amount of teaching hours, I think the quality of my
lessons would improve quite noticeably.
The workload has been ridiculous. It was made a lot worse due to Ofsted. I had to
like work through half term every day. I’ve not had more than one day off in a row
since Christmas. It’s been almost unmanageable.
One teacher had mentioned in the first interview that she had finished all her SoW for the year
and was optimistic that her workload and preparing lessons would not be as burdensome. This
has not however been the case as she found the workload to be an ongoing challenge. A
second teacher felt that she taught more courses compared with other teachers which resulted
in her having a heavier workload.
Finishing the SoW didn’t really reduce my workload because it’s ongoing… constant
lesson planning and having to maintain tutor files. It’s still quite a lot to do. A lot of it
has been in my own time at home so that’s been quite hard.
I think the workload, the way it’s split up between teachers is quite unfair. I’ve more
to do than some people because I’m teaching more courses. Sometimes it is
recognised as they might take me off some duties like when we do enrolment, but it
doesn’t seem to make much of a difference.
18
Three teachers felt that student administration work was the main burden and distracted them
from planning lessons.
I feel there is more paperwork for students than time to think about lesson
preparation and thinking about teaching.
Paperwork is still most challenging aspect. Lesson preparation I don’t mind, but
maintaining files and chasing up students for lateness can be too much sometimes
One teacher commented that enrichment activities were frustrating because in the run up to
Ofsted everyone who was under teaching hours was given workshops to do. Although the
teacher felt this was fair, she felt the process was not led by the needs of the students. The
second issue raised related to the expectation that teachers should offer an array of enrichment
activities outside of their 22 hours of teaching. This however was not seen to be realistic.
It become a timetable issue to make sure everyone gets up to 22 hours, rather than
starting from what type of provision our students need and who could do it.
I’d like to see lots of things happening for our students, but can’t we bring in funding
to employ people to do that? Why is it that teachers have to do everything? If I had
time I would look for funding but that’s not my job.
Teachers were optimistic that their workload would reduce during their second year of
teaching. This comment was made by both NQT teachers and teachers who were new to BSix
but had also taught in other educational institutions. A couple of teachers also pointed out that
had the teachers they replaced left some resources, this would have made lesson preparations
easier and would have reduced their workload.
I think next year it will be very different as I’ll have a resource pack to work from. I
think most people say your first year is the most difficult so it’s expected.
It [lesson planning] will change again, but I’ll have a basis, and I’m starting to get a
feeling of what works with the students.
I think I’m an NQT and there isn’t lots of resources for the things that we are doing.
So everything about this year is new to me, so I’m feeling if next year we do the
same courses and have the same kind of students, it should be easier.
Next year it should be easier to the extent that I’ll have done the preparatory reading
and taught lessons before.
I think if I had some resources there, it might have been easier.
19

Dealing with absences
Student attendance was still raised as a problem by five teachers, although three of the
teachers who spoke about problems with attendance and punctuality during the first set of
interviews felt that things had improved with some of their students.
[Student] attendance is getting better this term, not sure why...maybe due to exams
coming up. We also have a strong ethic on readiness to learn.
I think attendance has got better, due to fear of exams which is a motivator.
Attendance is still an issue but I think it’s not unique to me but college wide. It’s
improving a bit with A2 as they know it getting to the time where they need to get
their grades for university, and I think that motivates them.
With X we have a few students that bunk lessons, so it’s constantly writing home
letters to parents and ringing parents.
A number of teachers commented on the new student disciplinary system. As noted earlier
one teacher mentioned that she did not feel enough consultation had been done on the issue.
Some teachers were positive while others found the new system frustrating. There was some
confusion about who chases and calls up absent students. One teacher mentioned that under
the new scheme, the burden of ringing students was lifted from them, while another claimed
they become more responsible for chasing up students.
We had a revised contract system so when on stage two they get referred to HoD.
That’s nice as it takes pressure off me to chase them up. Nice for some else to
oversee it and take responsibility…It feels like a joint effort to get them to attend and
sort out the problems, rather than just you as a tutor.
I liked it when they had mentors to ring students. The system has changed so they
don’t actually ring them anymore. I’m really happy with the new structure- this is
stage one, this is stage two, three, four and this is what happens at each stage, it’s
brilliant. We needed that structure, but along side that they have taken away the
phoning of the students and that needs to continue parallel with the discipline.
We’ve to go through the discipline stages…it’s a bit tedious. There’s a lot of running
around, and you have to phone them yourself. Others are suppose to help but
sometimes you have to do things yourself if you want it done.
20

Managing student behaviour
This was not seen as a major problem by most teachers or was restricted to a small group of
individuals in a class. For two teachers who had raised it as an issue during the first set of
interviews, both felt that since October/November they had learnt to manage their students
better. During the first set of interviews one teacher also mentioned that the SEAL co-ordinator
was going to do some work with her class, which she felt had a positive impact on the group.
There are still issues around behaviour but I break down the task for them, so they
do something different each hour. I started slotting in breaks where they stay in the
classroom but have a five minute breather and then get back to it. Their behaviour
has improved vast amounts.
I’ve the confidence now that I know if I go into a class, I can manage it and whatever
they come up with I can deal with it, while before I didn’t know if I could. My
confidence has improved and my ability to manage them has improved.
I don’t have issues that I can’t handle. I think that the students and I have a better
understanding so they know what’s acceptable and what’s not… Since the SEAL
sessions the group has gelled and bonded.
In the last interview, two teachers spoke about having to adjust to classes where they had
taken over and carried on with a class from a previous teacher. Both felt they had since
adjusted. Another teacher said learning to manage sixth form students was a challenge during
the interview in October/November 2008. However, four months on, she feels like she is
more experienced to cope.
The former teacher came in and I heard the A2 students say we really like X. It felt
really good as I always felt I was being comparing with this wonderful charismatic
teacher.
They still do occasionally [challenge my authority] but I can manage it now. I now
feel more established in the college and now know what they can and can’t do so
it’s definitely getting better.
21

College facilities and resources
Four teachers were content and expressed positive views about the college resources/
facilities.
Excellent resources, no suggestions for improvements.
Getting better although we are still waiting for some software.
Overall fantastic. I’d love a white board with speakers. I’ve communicated it and it
looks like it will happen over the summer.
Three teachers mentioned that the college got some speakers for classrooms in the run up to
the Ofsted inspection.
Things improved during the week of Ofsted. The rooms that didn’t have speakers,
got speakers. It’s sad that we had to wait until Ofsted to get them.
We got new speakers before just Ofsted! Although some didn’t work.
As with the first round of interviews, five teachers commented on the lack of other resources.
I’m aware of the squeeze of resources in the LRC and I ordered various things very
early on in Autumn term, some of which didn’t arrive.
I still have issues around resources because I don’t think my students are able to
use most of the stuff in the LRC, and that there isn’t enough teaching resources
here.
I have a new course so I don’t have all the resources but really there isn’t many
resources out there even if I was at another college.
We could do with a lot more resources, we’ve had no investment at all. I’ve filled in
request forms to X but I’m not sure what happened to them.
I’d still like to get more tools in my box to use with each student, a more practical
way of motivating and improving their chance of achieving.
22
The Art teacher said that she required access to a classroom when she needed to discuss work
with her students. At present all the rooms along the corridor from where she works are
occupied.
It’s a bit difficult because we’re in an Art studio and it’s open plan. It’s quite noisy in
there so when I want to sit down and talk to my group, or go through some written
work with them quietly, we don’t have a room we can go into.
2.6 Experiences of Ofsted
Teachers had a mixture of experiences and feelings with regards to both the run up to Ofsted,
the inspection week and the outcome.
Seven of the ten teachers described the process as stressful, exhausting or hectic. Teachers
expressed a sense of responsibility about wanting to do well for the department and college.
The possibility of being observed was mentioned as being stressful, and some worried about
how they would perform. Teachers also spoke about a heavy work load which included
planning lessons, assignment briefs, SoW, updating tutee folders etc. Teachers were
particularly irritated by the paperwork as a lot of it was seen to be bureaucratic, rather than to
enhance teaching and leaning. At the end of Ofsted teachers felt they were behind with many
aspects of their job and would need to catch up.
The amount of lessons I had in that time and having to write the plans and not
knowing if they were about to come in or not. Then knowing the results would get
fed back and it would reflect on me. I felt really stressed out and it felt like a lot of
responsibly for the first year of teaching.
I’ve been through Ofsted before here. They seemed to put a lot of emphasis on it
here. A lot of work and there seemed to be a lot of last minute things to do, like
change in templates that we use. I’d wake up at 3am and go home in the evenings
at 8pm.
Hectic, hectic, hectic. I know we need to have SoW, but for Ofsted we were
expected to put in so much detail. It has a knock on effect on teaching and learning.
I think to have an outline of the course is important but it’s not necessary to have all
the activities planned out so far in advance, it’s not practical or desirable.
Even now Ofsted is over, things will probably not improve until after Easter because
there‘s the back log of all the stuff I haven’t done, like I’ve not marked anything for
two weeks and I haven’t planned anything.
23
Three teachers described the process as manageable. One teacher felt that she had a lot of
experience of being observed from her previous job and felt it was a relaxed Ofsted. Two
teachers felt that they were prepared and they did not have to come in to the college to do
extra work, but felt there was of course a degree of pressure that came with the inspection.
I’m used to going through situations like this. In my old place we were involved in a
lot of initiatives with the partnership so they were always coming in and doing
observations.
I didn’t have to work evenings or weekends because we had been through IQR at
that moment and so we were prepared for Ofsted … I just found I was wasting lots
of resources, lots of paper photocopying all these things. It was over the top…There
was the pressure of knowing Ofsted were coming and the pressure of not knowing if
they were going to come into a session or not.
I enjoyed the Ofsted week… I wasn’t working more hours as all the SoW were done
so it was just getting up to date with admin stuff and tracking…For me admin is
really hard. When you are a form tutor and have a large form it’s hard to make sure
you have all the students folders maintained. That was the main thing with Ofsted.
Even if you could be a good teacher in terms of delivering the lesson, your folders
get inspected and if they’re not up to date, or you have missed one or two things, it
will reflect badly.
In relation to the outcome of the inspection, two teachers expressed disappointment at the way
one of the Ofsted inspectors measured the performance of their department. They felt that the
hard work and progress of their department was not reflected accurately in the inspection.
It was stressful and quite negative in the end, because although the college did as
well as could’ve been expected, we as a department didn’t do as well as we hoped
to do. There was a feeling that we were not given a fair hearing by the Ofsted
inspector. I don’t think the process reflected the strengths of our department.
The inspector wasn’t supportive and uncommunicative and came in with a label and
I found that very disheartening as she didn’t recognise our hard work. We were told
that the senior inspector had said that the data doesn’t tell everything but our
inspector was data driven.
Four teachers mentioned that they were happy with the outcome of their department. Of the
ten teachers that took part in the research, seven also mentioned various positive aspects.
These included the experience of bringing the department closer together, team work between
24
colleagues, reflection on their teaching, students behaving well, good structure to the week
and good support and leadership from senior management.
I’ve learnt a lot from hearing about other teachers’ experiences of being observed,
so when it comes next time, in four years, I’ll be ready.
It’s brought the department closer together as everyone is rooting for each other
and being supportive
I think in terms of camaraderie, and support for each other. A lot of us were working
on the Saturday and Sunday leading up and we were all sharing each other’s lesson
plans and being critical and that really helped make us aware of our different
strengths and limitations.
It made me do some things that I should be doing. It was a good reminder for best
practice so made me re-read all the things that should go into a perfect lesson.
I‘ve already commended my students because they proved during that week of
Ofsted that they could be well behaved and punctual, so that was good for the
department.
Support form SMT…you can see why we needed all the staff development. X
[senior manager] has such a lovely way of enthusing everyone. Ofsted was
exhausting and frustrating but management have been fantastic.
We had a lot of information about the inspection beforehand and I think X was good
in terms of briefing all the staff and letting us know what to expect.
It was quite good because there was a really good structure for that week, so we
knew where everyone was and what was going on.
One teacher had a very negative experience of the process and could not think of any positive
aspects.
Horrendous, absolutely horrendous. I found the whole process to be pointless. I
think the whole system is flawed. I think my teaching suffered during Ofsted
because I had to spend so much time getting lesson plans produced instead of
thinking about what I was teaching. I think the paperwork and admin work that they
require is not manageable. Now Ofsted have gone, for the past two weeks I’ve been
absolutely exhausted. It’s draining and at the end of the day I don’t think Ofsted’s
provisional feedback was useful for the institution to develop.
25
2.7 Experiences of being a tutor
Teachers were interviewed about their experience of being a tutor and asked about their views
on the college tutorial system. The teachers noted that they still enjoyed the responsibility of
being a tutor, although one teacher felt she did not get much satisfaction out of the role. As
with the first set of interviews, seven of the ten teachers still had concerns about how tutorials
operated across the college. This included lack of time for pastoral support in a one hour
session, activities not always being relevant or useful, or lack of information.
It’s still a very pleasant part of the job… it’s good to have the bulletin and activities.
I still enjoy being a tutor but there isn’t enough time for pastoral support.
I enjoy the role it but the activities are not always useful.
We’ve been given more guidance in terms of what we should be doing each week. I
find the one-to-one in tutorials a bit odd. I think if you do that, the other students do
not use time productively. Doing it for a couple of tutorials is quite nice, but not
regularly.
I’ve really enjoyed bring a form tutor. One thing I’d like would be for there to be a
head of tutorial, well I don’t know there might already be one. Having a folder for
tutorial activities that you get at the beginning of the year that you work through. The
emails are quite good, but some activities are not relevant, so I do my own activities.
One thing I would say with tutorials is that we get fantastic bulletins (for tutors), but it
isn’t made teacher/tutor friendly. We have to research through it to find bits that are
relevant for tutees. Sometimes there isn’t enough explanation of why that activity
needs to be done and it all feels a bit last minute. It just seems a bit lumpy
I’ve been ignoring the cross college tutorial stuff. I’ve been giving out information
when it’s relevant, but not all the activities you can use with my students. I think I’ve
been doing good tutorials even if I haven’t followed the college system because it
does allow me to do relevant tutorials.
It’s ok, but I don’t get that much satisfaction out of it to be honest because I only
have one hour a week, and I don’t feel like I know my tutor group better than other
students. One hour a week doesn’t make much difference.
Two teachers spoke about the recently introduced BSix Baccalaureate that is being piloted
this year with Level three students, and has been introduced into the tutorial. However they
had different opinions on the issue. One teacher praised the idea for providing students with a
professional structure, while the other teacher felt there was not enough consultation and it
was not introduced during the right time of the year.
26
The BSix Bac has been a fantastic initiative. We just started it last week. It was the
idea that they are consolidating all their arguments and research into a fantastic
looking document, and it’s looking very professional. It gives them a scaffold and a
structure from which to work. We’re doing all the things we would’ve done, but
because it’s done professionally, it motivates the students to learn.
I’m a bit critical as I think it [BSix Bac] is the wrong time in the year to introduce it. I
can see logic behind it. The idea is to give students breath of experience. I see it as
partly symptomatic as to the way some policies are introduced without consultation
and I think that is damaging.
2.8 Teachers’ work/life balance
Teachers were asked about their work/life balance. They were also asked to comment on the
extent to which Ofsted had an impact on their work/life balance.
Only two of the ten teachers interviewed expressed contentment with their work/life.
Work/life balance is fine – I’d say 50/50. I did work over weekends before Ofsted
but I don’t feel I have to come in over Easter.
It’s alright. I work as hard as I possibly can and I do have a very healthy social life.
When I’m at home I choose to do work, but I don’t have to as I’ve time during my
day at the college.
The other eight teachers did not feel they had a satisfactory work/life balance. Teachers spoke
about working at weekends, half terms and holidays. Although we might expect Ofsted to
have had a considerable impact on the work/life balance of teachers, six teachers felt that the
workload was still high in the post-Ofsted period.
Everything is work and there’s no time for anything else. It’d be nice to have two
days off in a row for example.
I seem to be mostly working even on a Saturday and Sunday, even late at night on
weekdays and weekends. It’s been like that since I started in September.
The way it works is like I will have Christmas off and Easter, but it seems to be the
pattern that I need to work over the half terms to be prepared.
Not good. With Ofsted gone, it is a different level of stress. I still go home late and
work weekends.
It’s work at the moment. Very little going out. It’s Ofsted but also just general
exhaustion from the week. I’m looking forward to Easter just to become me.
To be honest I’d have to work though half term even if we did not have Ofsted.
There is still a huge amount of work to do.
27
One teacher decided that she needed to put a time limit on how long she stayed at the college,
even if that meant her lessons would be less creative.
I made a decision at Christmas and the New Year that I was going to leave at 5:30. I
wasn’t going to spend evenings at work. That slipped around Ofsted, but I feel now
that because I’m not prepared in terms of work/life balance to stay later, my
teaching is less creative. I’m doing what is tried and tested and what works,
because it is about getting through the day and not being too overburdened.
Teachers also related the heavy workload to this being their first year in teaching (ie being an
NQT teacher or a teacher new to BSix). They anticipated that the workload would reduce
during their second year at BSix. They felt that while they would have to adapt their planning
to the new intake of students, they would have a basic template to work from so the work
would be less time-consuming, especially if they taught the same courses. They would also be
more aware of how the systems in the college work.
I think it’s understandable because this is my first year of teaching, and I think the
first year is always the hardest. Other teachers that have been here some time have
a better work/life balance. Next year I can use same materials so it should be better.
First year and Ofsted fell together. I think work/life balance will improve. Hopefully,
next year, or it might be the year after, my aim is to get more work/life balance, with
working at the weekend being the exception and not the norm.
Next year the systems are in place and it’ll be ingrained in me and I’ll know what I’m
facing.
I’d like to have holidays as holidays. I think it’ll be easier next year. In half terms I’ve
had to research and write SoW, it has been catching up with stuff other teachers
had in place from the beginning. Once that’s in place, assuming I’m teaching the
same subject, I can adapt the foundations. I’ve accepted that it has been a hard
year and it has been a hard year.
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2.9 Overall satisfaction levels among teachers
As with part one of this research, teachers were asked to rate their overall job satisfaction
level on a scale of one-to-five, with five being a very great deal satisfied and one being not
at all satisfied. The results are presented in the following table, alongside the results from the
first round of interviews:
Teacher number
Score give during first
Score give during
Change
interview in October
second interview in
in
2008
March 2009
attitude
Teacher 1
5
4
-1
Teacher 2
5
5
0
Teacher 3
4.5
4.5
0
Teacher 4
4
3.5
-0.5
Teacher 5
3
3
0
Teacher 6
4
3
-1
Teacher 7
3 (Based on four weeks at
4
+1
BSix)
Teacher 8
1
Resigned and no longer at
BSix
Teacher 9
1
2
+1
Teacher 10
3
4
+1
Teacher 11
4 (Based on four weeks at
4
0
5
+1
BSix)
Teacher 12
4
Overall teachers were satisfied with their job. On a scale of one-to-five, the mean (average)
job satisfaction was 3.5, the mode was 4 and the median was 4. This is positive to note despite
teachers’ sentiments about a heavy workload, both in general and due to Ofsted, as well as
saying they had a poor work/life balance.
29
Of the eleven teachers who answered this question, seven teachers rated their satisfaction as a
lot (4) or a very great deal (5). Three teachers were fairly satisfied (3-3.5) and one teacher
was only satisfied a very little (2).
When we look at changes in job satisfaction between October/November 2008 and March
2009, we find that the level of satisfaction among four teachers remained the same (Teachers
2, 3, 5 and 11). Three of these teachers remain to be a lot (4) or a very great deal (5) satisfied
and one teacher remains to be fairly (3) satisfied.
Reasons for choosing their satisfaction level were similar to the factors mentioned during the
first set of interviews. Teachers that remain a lot (4) or a very great deal (5) satisfied stated
reasons such as the students, support, enjoying teaching, and college vision.
Enjoying teaching, being happy with the institution in terms of the bigger picture.
I enjoy what I do, nice department, although I hope I’ll not have to work as much
next year in terms of work/life balance.
One teacher was however thinking of reducing her job satisfaction from a very great deal (5)
to a lot (4) due to stress and tiredness, but decided that overall the score five better
represented how she felt.
Four or five I guess. I’m thinking of all the stress that I’ve been through due to lots of
work and not much rest, but then again I’m very happy working here so I think I will
say five.
One teacher who was fairly satisfied felt that her situation was the same as in
October/November 2008. She talked about a heavy workload both in general and partly due to
Ofsted, as well some disorganisation in her department.
I enjoy teaching but I always have to work outside of hours and can’t go home at
5pm. The work/life balance isn’t good. Sometimes I feel I’ll lose my good practice
the way the department is sometimes. I still need help with dealing with a lot of the
student admin.
30
The job satisfaction level of four teachers improved (teacher 7, 9, 10 and 12). One teacher’s
satisfaction level went from a lot (4) to a very great deal (5) because she was really enjoying
her job at the time of the interview.
Two teachers increased their job satisfaction level from fairly (3) to a lot (4). One teacher
noted that she had chosen a three (fairly satisfied) initially because the department was going
through an Internal Quality Review (IQR) and preparing for Ofsted which she found stressful.
Now she chose a four (a lot) because she felt more settled in various aspects of her work and
is enjoying being in her department. During the interview she had noted that Ofsted had not
been a big burden and also her work/life balance was ok.
I’d say four. I’m settled. I’ve got to know everyone in the department really well.
Everyone is really supportive. I’ve good relationships with the students and the way
they are performing now is really good. I know which direction I want to take the
course and how I want to improve it, so I’m settled now.
The second teacher who had initially said she was fairly satisfied (3) based this on the fact
that while she enjoyed teaching the students, she did not feel the college was equipped to help
her students and she did not have the relevant resources. However she relates the
improvement in her satisfaction from fairly satisfied (3) to a lot satisfied (4) to a change in her
own attitude, by focus on the positive side of teaching her students and having to adapt to
difficulties in the college, rather than positive changes in the college.
My job is teaching and that’s the main reason. I’m focusing on my students
because I love teaching my students and spending time with my students.
Everything else I’ve come to recognise that I really don’t care if I don’t have the
resources, I’ll create my own resources and bring my own things in. I no longer
depend on the college for anything. I came here expecting lots of stuff and my
expectation hasn’t been met, and maybe that is how it’s in other colleges, so I’ve
learnt to create and get my own stuff and adapted to the situation.
One teacher increased her satisfaction level from not at all (1) to a very little (2). In October
2008 she was contemplating leaving the college and in February 2009, she handed in her
resignation. In October she was not at all satisfied due to various factors including a heavy
workload, unrealistic expectations, and feelings of ‘just surviving’. Since then her satisfaction
level has only increased to to a very little (2) and this is primarily because she enjoys teaching
31
the students. She does not feel the workload has changed and this has resulted in a poor
work/life balance.
I’d say a two because in terms of students it is quite good, but overall I don’t have a
life. I get paid which is satisfying but I don’t have time to spend the money. There’s
no work/life balance here compared to my previous job. I feel there are no peaks
and troughs, no respite, the workload is always high despite Ofsted being here or
not.
‘
The overall job satisfaction level of three teachers has fallen. One teacher went from being
satisfied a very great deal (5) to a lot (4). This teacher said that while she enjoyed every
aspect of her life at the college and was getting what she wanted out of the job, her
satisfaction level fell because she was having to juggle a heavy workload. She also mentioned
that the stress of Ofsted had had an impact.
The two other teachers went from being satisfied a lot (4) to being fairly satisfied (3-3.5).
One teacher mentioned that the change from four to a three was due to end of term tiredness,
including the Ofsted visit and having to manage a large number of tutees, and for the second
teacher, the reduction in her job satisfaction level was due to workload.
Work is that much harder. I feel a lot satisfied in the classroom, but once I leave it
and have all this stuff to do I become fairly satisfied.
What makes it not a five is that sometimes there is a lot to juggle, always a pile of
things to do and I don’t feel in control of that.
Some of it would be five but other bits would be two or three. Relationship with staff
and students would be five and support in terms of general issues would be a four,
but workload would be two - not satisfied, but I guess I have to do it. I just don’t
have the time to make classes as high quality as I would like…overall I’d say 3.5
2.10 Teachers’ training and support needs
At the time of the first set of interviews, the college was delivering compulsory staff
development sessions. These were held bi-monthly on a Friday afternoon. Since then the
format for staff development has changed, so that while various training sessions are still
offered, these are voluntary and are held at different times during the week. Overall, eight of
the ten teachers were happy with this approach. One teacher said that she had not wanted
Friday staff development to stop, but wanted the content to change, while another teacher felt
that team meetings should be used more for professional development.
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It’d be useful to revisit teaching theory through team meetings. Sharing good
practice should come naturally out of a team meeting, like a discussion of
questioning technique that staff have found useful.
To be honest the only thing I got out of them [Friday Staff Development] was being
able to speak to people. It’s a shame we’re not doing them. I don’t think we should
stop doing them, only that the content should be different.
Five of the teachers had chosen to go to some of the voluntary training based on their own
support and training needs. Sessions mentioned by teachers included lesson observations,
scaffolding and Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) programmes.
Yes I’ve been on a few [sessions] on scaffolding, lesson observation and one on
motivating students. I though they were quite nice and you get teachers that want
to be there so there’s no negative feelings. I don’t go to some because I feel I don’t
need to.
I went to one run by Paul [SEAL co-ordinator] on motivating students which was
alright.
I went to a session ran by a teacher on scaffolding which was good.
I’ve started attending peer observation sessions run by X for students to observe
teachers. It’s about attending what you are interested in.
I’ve been to some SEAL sessions (on-going) where we discuss issues…that’s been
helpful.
Four teachers had not been to staff development, in some cases because the time was not
convenient or the session was cancelled. They all felt they would attend a session if
something relevant came up in the programme. However, one teacher felt that since starting
in September 2008, none of the training has been useful.
I’ve not had a chance to go to any of the voluntary sessions. I did put my name
down before Ofsted for lesson planning and then the session didn’t happen.
I haven’t attended any of the voluntary sessions...I will attend them if they’re
relevant.
There was one that I’d have liked to have gone on but I was on a trip that day.
I wasn’t able to complete the lesson observation training as I had too much work to
do. I couldn’t spare the 1.5 hrs due to workload.
Even now I don’t feel like I’ve been offered any relevant training since I’ve been
here.
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One teacher still felt that staff development sessions were not voluntary as she felt obliged to
go.
It’s not voluntary as we still have to go even when I’ve better things to do.
Teachers were asked about their support needs. Three teachers did not feel they had any
particular support needs at that moment in time. The other seven teachers mentioned various
issues including help with coursework, training in a specific subject, classroom management
and how to support students with particular needs.
I’d like some help with marking the course work. I can cope with amount as I’ll mark
in Easter, but it’s more about experience. X came and worked with some of my
students in the classroom, so she was very supportive, but I don’t want to put too
much on her.
I need some training in X subject. When I’ve looked in the past there hasn’t been
any such training on offer because it’s a minority subject.
I’d like to do something around dyslexia and how to support my students. I‘ve been
on a taster course which was helpful. I’d like to do more to recognise the issues my
students face.
I’ve just been on an EdExcel course on Friday which was really helpful. I’ve been
speaking to X about some mini courses that I want to do to improve in my
specialism.
I’m interested in stuff on classroom management and assessment of coursework.
I’d like to do training on subject specific classroom techniques.
It would be more external training but they don’t give you remission.
2.11 Teachers’ perceptions of their career development
Teachers were asked if BSix is still the best place for them and how long they envisaged
working at the college. Nine of the teachers were still happy that they had chosen to work at
BSix college and enjoyed the challenges of working in Hackney. One teacher, although glad
of the experience, had decided to leave the college due to an external opportunity.
In terms of how long they envisaged staying at the college, one teacher had yet to decide if
she wanted to stay on next year. Three teachers could see themselves working at BSix for an
average of ten tears. Five teachers had decided that they would like to teach at BSix next year,
or for a couple of years, but they had not planned or thought beyond that yet. One of these
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five teachers had been questioning whether BSix was the right place for her in
October/November 2008, but was now more positive about her job.
Four of the eight teachers also hoped to take on more challenges or staff development while at
BSix. Opportunities to develop, and to take on more responsibility was an important factor
that might influence how long they ended up staying at the college. A couple of teachers also
felt that their work/life balance would need to improve for them to stay in the long term.
At the moment BSix is good for me. I might stay for around ten years. It’s a good
place to work. Personally I don’t like moving around and want to stick to a job.
I’m happy to consolidate next year. After that I may feel I’ll be ready for a new
challenge of some sort, but I think that would be here, or I’d take another
qualification. If all goes well maybe I’ll stay for ten years.
Once I decide to be someplace I will stay, so I view to be here in the long term as it
is a very exciting place to be. There’s a lot of charisma here. I’m happy to do staff
one-to-one or small group development.
BSix is the place for me. I’ll be around for a couple of years quite easily. I’d like to
do a masters in my specialism… I’d like to take on some more responsibility within
the department, otherwise I’m happy where I am.
I’d definitely stay another year. I’ve been teaching X for a long time now and unless
I can teach another subject then I wouldn’t stay after that. I’d be happy to stay here
and work in another area.
I’ll be here, but I guess it depends if they’ll take me back…. In the long term, I don’t
know how long I’ll be in BSix. Depends on my own personal life and where this
college will be. I’m not sure to be honest, this is only my first year.
I don’t know yet. I think because this is my first year and it was also Ofsted, it should
be better next year. I need to be able to manage my time so I can go home on time.
If it doesn’t get better next year then I don’t know.
One teacher who was fairly satisfied (3.5) with her job was not sure about how long she
would be at BSix. She wanted to have the opportunity to work with other people who
specialised in her subject areas.
I’ve been having quite a long think about this recently…I really like the college and
I’m happy to be here but in terms of my own personal development as a teacher, I
don’t feel like I am developing much because there’s no one working with me in
terms of my subjects, and I’m only learning general things. There is no time for
example to take my work to someone and say I’m teaching this topic, how best do
you think I could do it. I think I need to be in a X department, where there are three
or four other teachers and a head of X, then I’d be observing and learning from
them, which I’ve not had here. Equally though it’s been nice to take responsibility
myself, so there are two sides to that.
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One teacher who was having second thoughts about her job in October/November 2008,
handed in her resignation in February 2009, and is due to leave her job after Easter. She
mentioned being given a great opportunity outside of teaching for a few months. She felt that
the opportunity was too good to miss even if BSix had been the perfect working environment.
She will be reapplying for teaching in September 2009 but has not done any further research
on where she might like to teach.
While she accepted that being a teacher is hard work, she felt that the workload was often not
manageable and this was exacerbated further by working in two departments that operated
differently. This also translated into a poor work/life balance. Recently her manager has
allowed her a bit more flexibility which has included her working from home during a
morning before her teaching starts at midday. She feels this flexibility would have made a big
difference if it had been offered earlier on in her contract. When she first started at the
college, she was observed and given a grade one. She feels that this resulted in her being
sidelined rather than pushed further to develop her skills as a teacher. Overall she feels that
BSix has been a good challenge for her and she has enjoyed working with the students.
I got another job which was quite exciting. I think it pushed me, otherwise I’d not
have left BSix…It was not an ideal situation to be working under two departments,
especially when you’ve an equal weighing under both… I think if I was going to stay
next year I’d have pushed to work under one umbrella, rather than two.
Before I was working every weekend, getting home late in the evenings and going
to bed at really ridiculous hours….Today I came in at 10am as I don’t teach until
11am, so I arranged with HoD to work at home for that one hour and that’s been
really good for me. If I’d done that from September, more planning and marking at
home, that would’ve made my life better.
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Section 3: Discussion of main findings
This research study set out to develop a better understanding of the experiences of new
teachers working at BSix and to highlight the factors that promote positive learning
experiences and job satisfaction among this group. This paper is the second part of a threestage longitudinal study and the main findings are presented under the following themes:
Support structures and sharing good practice
During the first set of interviews that took place in October/November 2008, all new teachers
spoke very highly of their departmental colleagues. Teachers continue to speak positively
about their colleagues and can still turn to them for support. Working across departments, as
in the case of two teachers, has however been challenging, and for one teacher she has only
been able to seek support from colleagues in one of her departments. Consequently she was
the only teacher who did not feel like a valued member of one of her department. Heads of
departments also continue to be seen as supportive by all teachers, although one teacher felt
she could only approach her manager ‘sometimes.’
Research elsewhere has found that mentoring is important, especially in the case of NQTs
(e.g. Totterdale, 2008). In the first set of interviews teachers mentioned that they tended to
receive support from their departmental mentors informally. All three NQT teachers seem
happy with the way this support continues to be delivered with informal chats in corridors and
the occasional meeting. However, one NQT felt that the support she required was subject
specific and there was no one in her department who had the capacity to help in this respect.
NQT teachers continue to express positive sentiments about having an SMT mentor as
someone they can rely on, if they had any problems.
At the start of the college term, BSix set up a New-to BSix- Teachers’ Group to offer support
to all new teachers in the form of group meetings. In the last set of interviews most of the
teachers said they would prefer not to attend such meetings, and hence they have been
discontinued. It may, however, be worth evaluating whether such a group would benefit next
year’s new teachers if the content and the delivery were adjusted to what new teachers feel
they would benefit them.
Back in October-November 2008, teachers said their busy schedules meant that they tended to
only mix with teachers in their own department. Four months on, this continues to be the case.
Busy schedules means that cross-departmental conversations and sharing best practice is
limited.
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Management
Overall teachers were happy with the management of the college and the direction taken by
the senior management. However two teachers felt that there remained some disconnection
with the realities of teaching, and a third teacher felt that senior management needed to be
more visible. Two teachers felt that their departments were too big and this meant that while
the heads of each department were described positively, they were seen to have too many
responsibilities. Other issues raised by teachers related to lack of or poor consultation with
teachers, and various changes within the department/college. Individual teachers had concerns
about the sick policy, A-level meetings and anti-discrimination policies for students.
Experiences of working at BSix
Teachers continue to enjoy teaching at BSix. When asked to rate the amount of time they
enjoy teaching out of 100%, teachers rated this between 80 - 95 % of the time. Furthermore,
the main factor motivating teachers to come to work was students. Teachers said they were
motivated by feeling responsible for students and wanting students to achieve. They also felt
motivated when students made an effort and did well in their studies.
One of the most frequent challenges noted by teachers in October/November 2008 was the
recognition that students should be independent learners, yet they required a lot of motivation
in the classroom. This remains a central challenge for most of the teachers, although a couple
of teachers felt they had seen some improvements. Teaching was also seen to be more
demanding because the students require a lot of support from teachers. Teachers felt their
planning had to involve structure and differentiation to cater for the differing needs of their
students. Rewarding students for doing particularly well, making progress or attending all
lessons appears to be a positive strategy that was mentioned by some teachers, although this
would need to evaluated further to determine the extent of the impact.
From the start of their contracts in September 2008, teachers acknowledged that they would
have more teaching preparation to do given this was their first year at BSix. A heavy
workload was mentioned by the majority of teachers in October/November 2008. This
continues to be the case with eight of the ten teachers. For some teachers this related to
developing new resources, teaching new subjects, organisation of coursework, and having to
deal with different expectations with regards to planning. Three teachers felt that student
administrative work was the main burden and distracted them from planning lessons.
Teachers also mentioned problems around attendance and dealing with absent students as
well as managing student behaviour. These were not, however, seen as major challenges and
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teachers had also seen improvements in some of their students since the interviews in
October/November 2008. Furthermore, teachers felt that they had learnt to manage students
better, and were more experienced to cope with some of the challenges.
The need for pastoral support was once again mentioned by five teachers. For some this was
related to lack of time outside of tutorials to have students. For others, the amount of
paperwork related to chasing students up and putting them on contracts was also seen as
burdensome.
At the time of the interviews teachers had just been through an Ofsted inspection. Seven of
the ten teachers described the process as stressful, exhausting or hectic. At the end of Ofsted
teachers felt they were behind with many aspects of their job and would need to catch up.
Positive aspects of the inspection included good outcomes, bringing the department closer
together, team work between colleagues, reflection on their teaching, students behaving well,
good structure to the week and good support and leadership from senior management.
When asked about work/life balance, eight teachers did not feel they had a satisfactory
work/life balance. Although we might expect Ofsted to have had a considerable impact on the
work/life balance of teachers, six teachers felt that the workload was still high in the postOfsted period.
In the last set of interviews, eight of the 12 teachers complained about lack of resources. This
continues to be a problem for teachers as half of the current sample (five) commented again
on the lack of resources. Teachers did however acknowledge that they had got whiteboards in
classroom in the run up to the Ofsted inspection.
Although teachers continue to enjoy the role of being a tutor, seven of the ten teachers still
had concerns about how tutorials operated across the college. This included lack of time for
pastoral support in a one-hour session, activities not always being relevant or useful, and lack
of information.
Overall job satisfaction levels
Teachers were asked to rate their overall job satisfaction level on a scale of one to five, with
five being a very great deal satisfied and one being not at all satisfied. Although individual
teachers changed their level of satisfaction, the overall findings are the same as those recorded
during the first round of interviews with the mean job satisfaction being 3.5, the mode being 4
and the median being 4. This is positive to note, despite teachers’ sentiments about a heavy
workload, both in general and due to Ofsted, as well as saying they had a poor work/life
balance. This is a good indication of teachers’ dedication to their work and students.
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When we look at changes in job satisfaction between October/November 2008 and March
2009, we find that the level of satisfaction among four teachers remained the same. Three of
these teachers continue to be a lot (4) or a very great deal (5) satisfied and one teacher
remains to be fairly (3) satisfied. Reasons for choosing their satisfaction level were similar to
the factors mentioned during the first set of interviews.
The job satisfaction level of four teachers improved. One teacher’s satisfaction level went
from a lot (4) to a very great deal (5) because she was enjoying her job. Two teachers
increased their job satisfaction level from fairly (3) to a lot (4). For one teacher, this related to
feeling more settled in various aspects of work. The other teacher increased her satisfaction
level because she is focusing on the positive side of teaching her students. However, she feels
that the college is still not equipped to help her students. One teacher increased her
satisfaction level from not at all (1) to a very little (2) primarily because she enjoys teaching
the students. She does not feel the workload has changed and this has resulted in a poor
work/life balance. She has also handed in her resignation.
The overall job satisfaction level of three teachers has fallen. One teacher went from being
satisfied a very great deal (5) to a lot (4) and two other teachers went from being satisfied a
lot (4) to being fairly satisfied (3-3.5). Reasons included having to juggle a heavy workload,
term tiredness and the Ofsted inspection.
Teachers’ training and support needs
At the time of the first set of interviews, nine of the 12 teachers interviewed expressed
negative views about the compulsory, bi-monthly staff development sessions, held on a
Friday afternoon. Consequently, staff development has changed so that sessions are now
voluntary and held at different times during the week. Overall, eight of the ten teachers were
happy with this approach, and five had managed to attend some sessions based on their needs.
Once again, teachers were asked about their support needs. Three teachers did not feel they
had any particular support needs at that moment in time. The other seven teachers mentioned
various issues including help with coursework, training in a specific subject, classroom
management and how to support students with particular needs.
Future at BSix
Eight of the ten teachers hope to be working at BSix in September 2009, one teacher has yet
to decide and another has handed in her resignation. One of the teachers who would like to
stay on at BSix had been questioning whether the college was the right place for her in
October/November 2008, but was more positive about her job now.
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Of the eight teachers, three teachers can see themselves working at BSix for an average of ten
tears. The other teachers had decided that they would like to teach at BSix next year, or for a
couple of years, but they had not planned or thought beyond that yet.
The teacher who resigned had been thinking about leaving BSix during the interview in
October/November 2008. While she accepted that being a teacher is hard work, she felt that
the workload was often not manageable and this was exacerbated further by working in two
departments that operated differently. This also translated into a poor work/life balance. She
is leaving BSix to pursue an external opportunity.
End.
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