Advice Corner
Pupil Behaviour Difficulties
We often have to advise on what teachers can be expected to put up with when faced with pupils with behavioural difficulties.
School reps who attended our training day were advised to make use of the 2003 DfES guidance on the issue. It contains a useful model risk assessment form to be completed by the school - and agreed by a parent or carer.
Classroom Temperatures
With temperatures falling, it is worth reminding schools that the minimum legally acceptable temperature for classrooms is 18 ºC
ARE YOU A PART-TIME TEACHER?
Did you know that the latest issue of the School Teachers Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) clarifies lots of questions that part-time teachers have often had to ask? For example:
· Exactly how much should I get paid? (However, the ‘formula’ for calculations is complicated! Ask the NUT Office for further advice).
· Do I have to attend a staff meeting or INSET on a day that I don’t teach? (The answer is NO you don’t! You can come to a voluntary arrangement with your head to be paid extra for such additional work).
IS YOUR MANAGEMENT ALLOWANCE ENDING?
December 31 2008 is the last date when teachers can be paid via a “Management Allowance”. Instead, pay for responsibilities should be converted into a TLR. Make sure that you don’t lose out and that your school has notified payroll of any changes.
BUT WHO IS GETTING A TLR?
The STPCD says that all school pay policies have to set out the TLR structure for the school - explaining who is .getting what TLR and for what post. Ask to see a copy if you aren’t clear
BUT WHAT IF I DON’T GET A TLR?
If you haven’t been awarded a TLR, then you can’t be asked to take on additional whole-school responsibilities. Again, the STPCD (Section 3 para. 65) is clear:
“Teachers are expected to contribute, both orally and in writing as appropriate, to curriculum development by sharing their professional expertise with colleagues and advising on effective practice. This does not mean that they can be expected to take on the responsibility of, and accountability for, a subject area or to manage other teachers without appropriate additional payment. Responsibilities of this nature should be part of a post that is in the leadership group or linked to a post which attracts a TLR”
If - and some primary colleagues may well fit in this category - you are responsible for a subject area without payment then you may want to choose one of these routes:
· Ask your Head for a TLR to cover the work you are doing.
· Inform your Head that you no longer wish to carry out the role without additional payment.
RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION
The STPCD does not say that recruitment/retention allowances have to be ended - it just says that Governors have to review their continuing payment. If you hear that yours are to be withdrawn, call the NUT Office immediately
IS
YOUR
MEETING
CALENDAR
AGREED?
Did you know that paragraph 164
of the School Teachers Pay and
Conditions Document says that
schools now have to “consult withstaff on an annual calendar of
staff meetings, parental consultations
and other activities”. If yourcalendar isn’t clear, or is changed
without consultation, then seek
support from the NUT.
TAKE CARE ON
YOUR COMPUTER!
Lewisham NUT had to support a
number of colleagues with issues
that arose from computer use last
term. This advice might have
helped them:
Careful what you post or email:
Think before you send! It’s all too
easy to send a message - or to
post on facebook - and then later
to realise your comment might be
misinterpreted. The risk is even
greater without the signals you
might pick up from face-to-face
contact. Unfortunately, unlike a
conversation, it may have been
printed or forwarded elsewhere
before you can explain further!
Careful what your students do:
A lot of pupils pick up tricks for
the internet - without recognising
the dangers. For example, filesharing
software like ‘limewire’
can download a lot of unwanted
viruses (and a lot worse). Also be
aware that some students know
how to log on to ‘proxy servers’
that can access sites normally
blocked by the school’s firewalls.
Do you face email ’overload’?
The excessive use of email to
send messages to staff can be a
real workload problem. Some
managers should read the advice
in Lewisham’s ‘wired working
policy’: “It may be tempting touse email because of its ease of
use to avoid other more appropriate
forms of communication”
Laptops - the school insures
We are raising with the Council
our objection to some schools
telling teachers to use personal
insurance to cover home use.
DON’T ACEPT EXAM
RESULTS IN YOUR
PERFORMANCE
MANAGEMENT
OBJECTIVES
The National Union has issued
advice confirming that teachers
should not accept objectives that
set specific test or exam results to
be achieved from their classes.
The national regulations only say
that objectives should ‘contribute’
to improving pupil progress. The
objectives should be about ways
of improving progress, not the
actual results themselves. If this is
an issue for you, or your school,
contact the NUT for advice.
HEALTH & SAFETY ADVICE Pregnancy Assessments The employer must, in accordance with the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999: a)assess the risks to the health and safety of the woman concerned arising from her duties; and b) seek to eliminate or reduce those risks. If a particular risk cannot be eliminated, the employer must consider suitable alternative working arrangements You can help by identifying hazards, such as lifting, or the need for more frequent toilet breaks. If you teach a child prone to kicking and punching, management must find a way to reduce or eliminate that risk (e.g., a change of class). A pregnancy audit is a “live” document – it needs constant updating to reflect different stages of pregnancy and different hazards, for example a pupil with rubella, chickenpox or parvovirus (slapped cheek disease). More advice, and a useful guide to preparing an audit, can be found on www.teachers.org.uk – follow links to health and safety, briefing by subject, more, women’s health and safety. At the same meeting, negotiate time off. Under the Employment Rights Act 1996, pregnant women are entitled to time off for antenatal care. This can include not only medical appointments, but also antenatal relaxation (including aquanatal classes) and parentcraft classes. A teacher cannot reasonably be refused time off to attend antenatal classes, provided that she can produce an appointment card for the class and a medical statement confirming her pregnancy. See NUT document “Maternity Matters” for more on this. Be aware that Lewisham maternity leave terms differ slightly from the national ones (in your favour, generally speaking!) Mice, fleas, bats, foxes, cockroaches? Any vermin or pest infestation must be reported to the named person in your school who should contact a Lewisham environmental health officer. For a briefing on the hazards of pests go to www.teachers.org.uk and follow health and safety / briefings / vermin and pest control. Contact the Lewisham NUT Office if the school fails to act. New Guidance on Working at Heights Almost twice as many people died from fatal injuries at work than are victims of homicide, according to a report published by the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies. Thankfully, there are no recent fatal accidents in Lewisham schools, but bones have been broken. Some accidents were simply due to people not following correct procedures. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has updated guidance for schools on working at height, based on real accidents involving staff and students. Look for it at: www.hse.gov.uk/falls/casestudies/ schoolguidance.htm. Feeling Stressed? In 2005, the Journal of Managerial Psychology ranked teaching as the second most stressful job out of 26 occupations analysed. The study found that only ambulance drivers experienced higher levels of stress than teachers. A 2008 TUC survey of safety reps ranks teacher stress second behind central government (81%), education (74 %) with health services third ( 69 %). More worryingly, teachers scored more than anyone for being “very stressed”. Nearly a third of sick days taken were for stress-related illness.
As a result of concerns raised by members about the introduction of Assessing Pupils’ Progress (APP), the NUT has secured agreement that the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) will produce a briefing note for schools on ensuring that APP is manageable for teachers and for schools.
QCA’S ADVICE TO SCHOOLS
· The use of APP is voluntary, not statutory.
· The use of APP should be subject to discussion and consultation with staff before it is introduced in schools.
· APP can be adapted to meet schools’ particular circumstances – not all of the APP materials or approaches have to be used.
· Implementation of APP should take place over time and with support – it should not be introduced for all pupils in all year groups at the same time.
· APP should be used no more than two or three times a year – it should not be used as a daily or weekly checklist.
· APP uses evidence from day-to-day teaching and learning – it does not require any special assessment activities.
· APP can replace other assessment activities, in particular, within-key stage testing and formal assessments such as end-of-unit tests and the optional National Curriculum tests.
NUT ADVICE TO MEMBERS
· The use of APP should be determined by the professional judgement of teachers. It should only be used where teachers believe it would be valuable.
· The involvement of class teachers should be on a voluntary basis only. The identification of APP lead teachers should include consideration of their existing roles and responsibilities within school. Appropriate recognition of any additional responsibilities arising from APP should be made by schools, such as time during the day to undertake these duties or appropriate TLR.
· Where APP is used, it should be reflected in schools’ assessment policies. This should include a review of current formal assessment procedures within Key Stages and the identification of tests or other activities which could be replaced by APP.
· There is no single approach or ‘right way’ to use APP. It is for teachers to use their professional judgement to determine how useful the programme, or elements of it, would be.
· Time should be made available during the school day for in-school APP standardisation and moderation meetings to take place. Teachers cannot be required to use their Planning, Preparation and Assessment (PPA) time for activities related to APP.
· Planning is the professional responsibility of all individual teachers. The use of APP does not require the use of particular planning formats.
· All initiatives are likely to generate additional workload and APP is no exception. Where APP is used, additional time should be provided during the school day for teachers to familiarise themselves with the APP materials.
NUT School representatives and members should:
· hold a meeting to discuss whether and how APP should be used;
· agree a position on APP to be put to the head teacher; and
· if insufficient progress can be made within the school, advice should be sought from the local NUT association office.
· if a school seeks to impose the use of APP in a way which creates additional and unacceptable workload, the local association can seek a ballot for action against the imposition.