Newly Qualified Teachers
Education
3:00 pm
John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin)
I am keen to ensure that newly qualified teachers are afforded every opportunity to obtain full-time positions. The number and type of vacancies for which newly qualified teachers may be eligible to apply is primarily influenced by decisions made by schools on the basis of the funding that they receive under the local management of schools (LMS) common funding formula arrangements.
Data from the General Teaching Council in January 2012 shows that 70% of teachers who graduated here in 2007 have gained a permanent or a significant temporary teaching post; that is, employment for one term or more. My Department has taken measures to ensure employment opportunities for newly qualified teachers, including reducing intakes to courses of initial teacher education by almost 32% since 2004-05 and discouraging the re-employment of prematurely retired teachers through provision of employer guidance and changes to pay, premature retirement, and LMS funding arrangements.
I am interested in the Minister’s definition of “permanent employment”. He said that 70% of teachers have been employed for one term or more, and that equates to a permanent position. I do not think any bank lender would equate that to being the case. Will the Minister assure us that teachers who get employment will have their needs met for their professional development in their early years, post-qualifying?
John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin)
I do not think that this is the time to be taking advice from any of the banks, given some of their practices.
What I said was that data from the General Teaching Council in January 2012 show that 70% of teachers who graduated in 2007 have gained a permanent or a significant temporary teaching post, meaning that they have been in employment for one term or more. Clearly, we want to ensure that young and older people who go through teacher training achieve employment in teaching. However, we are dealing with one of the worst economic downturns in modern history. That is reflected in my budget, in the schools budget and in the opportunity that graduates and postgraduates in all fields have to gain employment in their respective areas. However, I am continuing to examine ways and means of ensuring that we have teaching personnel in our schools.
I am looking at how we train our teachers. As part of that, I am also looking at how to give our newly qualified teachers access to the workplace. I note that the Scottish Government’s report into the provision of one year’s training for newly qualified teachers has been completed and has gone back to the Scottish Executive. I believe that it was recommended that the course that they have in place should continue. It is estimated that that would cost the Executive here between £10 million and £17 million a year, but I will study the report to see what, if anything, we can learn from it.
Michaela Boyle (Sinn Féin)
Go raibh maith agat, a Cheann Comhairle. As a result of the recent changes that he introduced to their terms, how successful has the Minister been in reducing the number of retired teachers re-entering employment?
John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin)
We have made it significantly less attractive for retired teachers to come back into the workforce, given that their pay rates have been reduced. We have also emphasised the need for boards of governors to take on board the view, expressed in the Assembly and by the public, that newly qualified teachers should be given the opportunity, through substitute teacher and other cover, to increase their employability by making their CV more attractive. We have been successful, but, at the end of the day, boards of governors are the employing authorities in schools. They make the decisions about who they will employ and who they will take on board even on a temporary basis. My role is to set policy. As I said, I have made it more difficult and less attractive for retired teachers to return. I encourage boards of governors to take on board the views of the House and the public.
Tom Elliott (UUP)
Given what the Minister said, is he content with the number of teacher training places that are being funded through local universities and colleges?
John O'Dowd (Sinn Féin)
I have recently made my views on teacher requirements for the next year known to the Minister for Employment and Learning. There has been a reduction of 63, and that affects our universities. I am content that we have made the right decision at this time. I am aware that the Minister for Employment and Learning is to bring forward a review of the viability and sustainability of our teaching training programmes, and I await the outcome of that before making any further decisions.