National training entitlement for teachers would close attainment gap, report finds

A £260 million investment over the course of the current parliament would reach 75 per cent of teachers, it found, with professional development the most cost-effective and empowering way to achieve high-quality teaching.

Currently, most teachers in England take part in fewer than 30 hours per year of professional development, less than half the 62 hours average across other OECD advanced economies - and dwarfed by the right to 100 hours in Singapore, widely seen as a global leader in educational excellence.

The report’s authors underscore that more teacher training will also help tackle other major challenges that have brought many schools to crisis point - including meeting the complex needs of children with special educational needs and disabilities, and the rising number of teachers leaving the profession.

Under the proposals put forward, all teachers would be guaranteed free access to a core set of professional qualifications, including a new suite of short courses designed for busy mid-career teachers. These would generate a common body of knowledge and effectively serve as a training ‘passport’, from career entry through to leadership.

Crucially, the report says, the new training entitlement would make teaching a more attractive profession, with teachers feeling better invested in and more able to progress.

The government’s election manifesto included a commitment to introduce a new teacher training entitlement to ensure teachers stay up to date on best practice and continue their professional development.

Empowering schools and teachers is a prime example of how public services can become more efficient through investing in the expertise of their workforces, rather than through top-down target setting and ever tougher regulatory compliance, the report says.

The report’s lead author is Loic Menzies, an IPPR associate fellow and a visiting fellow at the Sheffield Institute of Education, as well as a a former teacher

He said: “Investment in the expertise of all teachers and the wider education workforce is the best way to unleash a powerful cycle of improvement. “

“Right now, schools face a workforce crisis alongside a growing attainment gap.

“If we want schools to serve children of all backgrounds better, we need to invest in teachers and others in the classroom.

“That doesn’t just mean pay – important though that is.

“We also need the Government to make good on its pre-election commitment to continuous professional development.

“Free access to a ‘golden thread’ of high-quality training opportunities should sit at the heart of that commitment and would empower teachers to provide the world-class education our children deserve.”