IMMEDIATE
19 April 2014
Definition of Teacher
Commenting after the debate on Motion 15, Christine Blower, General Secretary of the
National Union of Teachers, the largest teachers’ union, said:
“A teacher is someone who has patience, enthusiasm, subject knowledge and pedagogy. A
teacher has a degree and a teaching qualification. A teacher helps to give children and young
people the confidence, knowledge and skills to start their adult lives and they should be
recognised for the work that they do. A teacher should be consulted on changes on
educational practice on the grounds they are professionals and understand what works and
what doesn’t.
“Teachers love teaching and have one of the best jobs in the world but under this Government
a teacher is stressed, overworked and constantly criticised. Teacher morale continues to drop
and according to Ofsted, 2 in 5 leave the profession within their first five years of teaching.
“Parents’ definition of a teacher vastly differs from the Government’s. As our recent NUT/
YouGov poll showed, unlike Michael Gove parents want their children to be taught by a fully
qualified teacher. 88% of parents think teachers should be able to exercise their professional
judgment to best meet the needs of their children. This is in stark contrast to the 3% of
parents who thought politicians should be able to prescribe what and how teachers teach.
“Michael Gove is determined to downgrade teaching as a profession. This will be a disaster
for state education and pupils. It is a shameful approach to take to one of the most important
jobs any person can do. We are determined to stop him.”
END
pr62-2014
For further information contact Caroline Cowie on 0207 380 4706 or 07879480061
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