Teaching fails to impress graduates

Graduates like Julie Culverhouse are put off teaching

Graduates have a lower impression of the status of teaching, than non-graduates, a survey has suggested.

And they also believe it is harder work and more poorly paid than do people without degrees.

But graduates are more likely than most to see teaching as a rewarding and enjoyable career.

Chris Keates: "No surprises" in the survey

The study - by the Mori Social Research Institute - found nearly half of graduates questioned thought teaching was badly paid considering the work involved, while just a quarter of adults without degrees thought the same.

The results of the survey have been welcomed by the National Union of Teachers.

The union said it showed what needed to be done to improve the status of teaching and attract new people in.

Two thousand people were questioned for the survey.

Of those with degrees, 80% thought teaching was hard work, while 65% of other adults thought the same.

Graduates on Teachers

80% say teaching is hard work

47% say teachers are badly paid

42% say teachers are not held in high esteem by the public

73% say better discipline would attract recruits

Graduates were also more likely to say that the public held teaching in low regard.

Four in 10 of those with degrees said it was not well regarded, while just two out of 10 of those who had not had higher education agreed.

Graduate Julie Culverton said she had thought she wanted to become a teacher - but was put off the idea.

"Speaking to teachers, they were telling me about all the red tape, the discipline issues and the number of teachers leaving the profession through stress," she said.

"And I began to think there are more exciting careers out there."

Graduate recruitment specialist Debbie Wilson said even people who had trained as teachers were seeking other jobs.

She described why she thought this was happening: "Not a great deal of career progression, threats of violence by children, and they want to use their qualifications in a professional environment."

Status

In the survey, people were also asked how they would improve the status of the profession.

Three-quarters said better class discipline would attract more people.

Graduates were more likely to highlight pay as an issue, with 72% saying higher salaries would help, compared with 58% of non-graduates.

They also said less paperwork and the development of higher social status for teachers were important.

But although graduates were critical of many aspects of the job, they were more likely to say that teaching was probably enjoyable and rewarding.

"They want a more professional environment," says Debbie Wilson

Among the graduates questioned, 48% said this, while the figure for other adults was 34%.

The general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, Doug McAvoy, said the survey showed the extent of the recruitment crisis in teaching.

He said: "The Mori poll could not be more accurate. It identifies the same priorities teachers have for improving the profession, for making it more attractive to young people and for encouraging people to stay in the profession.

"It's a pity that the government hasn't shown the wisdom that the respondents to the survey have," he said.

'Failed gimmcky policies'

And Chris Keates, deputy general secretary of the NASUWT union, said the poll contained "absolutely no surprises".

"Time and again, in poll after poll, pupil indiscipline, workload and bureaucracy are identified as key concerns," she said.

"This poll demonstrates the futility of the government's present policies. The strategy of relying on gimmicks has clearly failed."

Urgent, decisive action was needed to put a limit on teachers' working hours and to cut their bureaucratic burden.

"The policy of unqualified inclusivity, which retains too many disruptive pupils in mainstream classes, should be abandoned,"she added.

Applications have risen

The government defended its record on attracting people into the profession and on improving conditions.

A spokesman for the Department for Education said: "Teacher numbers are now at their highest level since 1984.

"Applications to teacher training courses have risen by 18% since last year and we have received an unprecedented number of enquiries about teaching from graduates, career changers, and those seeking to return to the profession."

He added: "We are working hard to make teaching a more attractive profession for example, by providing extra funding to reduce pupil-teacher ratios, by reducing bureaucratic burdens and by increasing the number of teaching assistants by 20,000 by the end of this parliament in addition to the 20,000 outlined in the Green Paper."