Commenting on the report by the National Foundation for
Educational Research about teacher autonomy, Geoff Barton,
General Secretary of the Association of School and College
Leaders, said:
“Schools are highly structured working environments because
of the demands of timetables and consistency in the delivery of
the curriculum, and this can create a tension with teacher
autonomy.
“However, this report shows that giving teachers a greater
say and more influence over their professional development may
pay dividends in terms of improved job satisfaction and teacher
retention.
“This would be a useful insight at any time, but it is
particularly important now because schools are experiencing a
severe shortage of teachers which is likely to become more acute
over the next few years with a projected increase in the number
of pupils in secondary education.
“These shortages are caused not just by the fact that the
government keeps missing its targets for recruiting trainee
teachers, but also because about one third then leave the
profession within five years of qualifying.
“We have to stem this exodus and this report provides some
important thinking on action which schools might take. We also
need system-wide action by the government, most notably in
reducing the crushing weight of performance tables and Ofsted
inspections.”
