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Professional Teachers vs. Teaching Professionals

professional teachers vs. teaching professionals

31 July 2012

The DfE have announced that, in line with Free Schools, new Academies can hire people who do not have qualified teacher status (QTS) to fill teaching roles. This will be reflected in academies' funding agreement going forward.

This change is opposed by unions who fear that unsuitable people will be able to teach students and that this represents further "dumbing down" of the teaching profession.

In making an appointment, Academy governors must consider their duties to the school, as directors and trustees under company and charity law, and must “believe” that the teacher is properly qualified, even without QTS.

Children may benefit from being taught by professionals with practical experience. Governors may choose caution and the majority of times deem only a person with QTS as properly qualified to teach, but this change is an important flexibility, especially for traditionally hard to fill positions, such as Technology, or subjects which gain clear benefits from access to professionals, such as languages or engineering.

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