City head joins calls for teacher timetable cuts to help disadvantaged pupils
GOVT URGED TO FUND TIME TO PLAN HIGH QUALITY LESSONS
PARENTS of pupils eligible for free school meals are more likely to be worried about how much learning their child had lost due to Covid, a survey suggests.
Charity Teach First is calling on the Government to provide funding to reduce teachers’ timetabled hours in schools serving the poorest communities so staff can spend more time on planning high quality lessons.
This is being supported by Ann Donaghy, head at Noel-Baker Academy.
Nearly half (44%) of parents of pupils eligible for free school meals (FSMs) said they were extremely or somewhat worried about lost learning during the pandemic, compared to 34% of parents whose children are not eligible.
The poll, of more than 1,400 parents in July by the Parent Ping app, suggests families in the West Midlands (49%) are also more likely to be concerned about their child’s lost learning than those in London (33%).
It also found the majority of parents (63%) believe teachers are not paid fairly for the amount of work they do – in light of the Government’s announcement of a pay freeze for teachers in 2020/21.
Teach First, which provides support to schools in disadvantaged communities, is calling on ministers to provide funding to reduce teachers’ timetabled hours by 20% in some of the most disadvantaged schools so staff can spend more time on professional development to help improve pupils’ outcomes.
A separate survey of more than 6,500 teachers in April by the Teacher Tapp app, found that 52% said funding to reduce teachers’ timetables would make the greatest difference to support students, while 61% said more funding for and access to social and mental health services would be the best help.
Ms Donaghy, said: “With Covid leaving pupils in disadvantaged communities even further behind in their education, schools like mine had to rethink how best to support their recovery. Knowing great teachers are truly the best resource for this, our reduced teachers’ timetable made a huge difference during this really difficult time.
“It has aided our staff’s wellbeing, given them time to plan their lessons, focus on progression and fully support our pupils. However, schools in disadvantaged areas can’t always make these changes alone – we need ring-fenced funding to do so.”
Teach First’s chief executive Russell Hobby said: “Inequality has been baked into our education system for too long and we need sustained action to tackle it. The pandemic has made the situation worse: affecting some pupils far harder than others. But any plan for the future of education must go beyond ‘recovery’ because where we were before wasn’t good enough. We have an opportunity to break the historical cycle of inequality.
“The policies we’ve put forward would help schools give every young person a fighting chance to get the best possible education. We urge the Government to take on board these suggestions to ensure we don’t leave a generation of pupils behind.”
A Department for Education (DfE) spokeswoman said: “We have taken a wide range of action to address teacher workload and wellbeing and we are improving support and professional development at all stages of their career.”
The spokeswoman added more funding was being pumped into schools, as well as over £3 billion of funding to help pupils make up for lost learning.
Knowing great teachers are truly the best resource for this, our reduced teachers’ timetable made a huge difference. Ann Donaghy