Teachers spend just 43pc of time teaching

TEACHERS are spending more time marking and planning than in the classroom, an Ofsted survey has revealed, as heavy workloads force them to catch up in the evenings and at weekends.

Full-time staff are giving lessons to pupils for an average of 22 hours every week and spending the remaining 29 hours doing “non-teaching tasks”.

This means just 43 per cent of their time is spent teaching, while the rest is used to plan lessons (13 per cent), mark work (11 per cent) and complete administrative jobs (7 per cent).

Teachers are so overworked that they are left with little option but to use their evenings, weekends and holidays to catch up, the survey of more than 4,300 staff members across 290 schools and 67 further education providers revealed.

Ofsted’s report on the findings, published today, pinpointed “challenging behaviour of pupils” and “abusive and disrespectful” treatment of teachers by parents as sources of stress.

Fidgeting, humming and whispering during lessons was reported by 87 per cent of those surveyed, while 32 per cent said they had experienced intimidation or verbal abuse.

Absenteeism was flagged as an issue by 69 per cent of respondents and “mindless vandalism” was another problem raised by staff.

One in 10 respondents said that alcohol or drugs were found on or used by school pupils daily, weekly or monthly.

Meanwhile, aggressive behaviour by parents was found to be among the top causes of undue stress at work.

The report describes parents shouting at teachers, leading to a “mob mentality” as other parents witness the incident and escalate the row.

An “immediate response culture” and open access to staff email addresses means parents expect their queries and complaints to be dealt with instantly.

One teacher quoted in the report said: “My email inbox is like a pit of death … I often receive 50-80 emails per day, even when I am ill.”

Pushy parents are also a challenge, with the report stating: “Expectations become a problem … when parents expect the highest grades for their children despite their lack of effort.”