Press
Let pupils interview teachers, say guidelines
Publication: |
The Telegraph |
Link: |
|
Author: |
Graeme Paton |
Date: |
8th May 2008 |
Schoolchildren should be able to question teachers applying for jobs, according to new official guidance.
The pupils could question candidates, help write job descriptions and provide feedback to head teachers and governors.
They could also observe teachers in the classroom and report on their performance to senior staff, it was suggested.
Ministers said giving young people a "voice" over the running of the school made pupils more positive about education.
But the move has been condemned by teachers who said it "undermines their professionalism".
Chris Keates, the general secretary of the union NASUWT, said: "It is completely unacceptable. It is a failure to recognise the balance of responsibilities in the relationship between pupils and their teachers.
"We support the idea of the student voice but these recommendations are a complete distortion of that concept."
The document, published by the Department for Children, Schools and Families [DCSF], said pupils "value the opportunity" to contribute to the appointment of staff in schools and local authorities. It did not recommend age groups, although a spokesman for the DCSF said it should be focused at secondary schools.
Jim Knight, the schools minister, said: "Giving young people a voice in decisions that affect them has a positive impact on the school environment and the local community."
Traditional school catchment areas should be scrapped in favour of a "first come, first served" system, according to a new report.
Parents should be allowed to put children's names down, irrespective of distance from the school, up to two years before they were due to attend, said the joint report by the think tanks CentreForum and Policy Exchange.