Scotland's teachers '˜on their knees' due to extreme workload

Scotland's teachers are 'on their knees' with some being forced to work double their contracted hours every week to avoid letting down pupils, the Education Secretary has been told.

John Swinney has been criticised over education/

John Swinney was criticised over teachers’ workload during a fringe meeting at the SNP conference in Glasgow, hosted by Scotland’s largest teaching union the EIS.

National president Nicola Fisher said the problem was not as obvious as other issues with Scotland’s education system, as many teachers simply worked harder for the sake of their pupils.

Other speakers at the event also highlighted issues with the SNP’s school and exam reforms creating extra work for teachers, amid evidence that many are thinking of leaving the profession.

John Swinney at the official opening of Bilston Primary.

Ms Fisher urged Mr Swinney to do more to tackle the issue of overwork, claiming it was “the iceberg of the education system” as much of it was hidden.

“People think they understand the scale of the problem because they can see the tip, but unless you’re experiencing it day in, day out, you cannot hope to grasp the full horror of what lurks beneath the surface,” she said.

“Teachers are working far in excess of their contractual hours, and surveys regularly tell us that teachers are working 50 or 60 hour weeks on average.

John Swinney at the official opening of Bilston Primary.

“That means some people are working more. The contractual hours for teachers are 35 hours per week, so we know there are teachers in this country working double the number of hours for which they are paid.

“Even then, all the work isn’t done. Even if you are knocking yourself out all day, every day, you never ever get to the end of the work. There is always more to do. Believe you me, that’s an incredibly stressful position to find yourself in.”

She also cited research published last month showing that in Falkirk 932 teaching days were lost last year alone due to staff having mental wellbeing issues.

The investigation by TES Scotland also found that in Dumfries and Galloway, £397,000 worth of teaching hours were lost over seven years following absences caused by work-related stress.

Ms Fisher said many teachers were suffering from depression and fatigue, suggesting that the issue of mental health was “coming to a crisis” in Scotland’s classrooms.

One SNP member from the North East said that the crisis in the North Sea oil and gas industry, which has resulted in tens of thousands of job losses, had also had an impact on teaching.

She said that many redundant oil workers were married to teachers who worked locally, meaning that when they left to find employment elsewhere schools also suffered.

Another delegate, Alan Morrison, said his wife was a primary school teacher in Glasgow which was suffering from a shortage of staff. He told Mr Swinney he regularly had to spend his evenings helping her plan lessons.

“She goes to work before eight o’clock in the morning, comes back at five, and she’s still working after 10 o’clock at night. I’m helping her prepare resources for school as well.

“That’s two of us working many, many, many hours a week, every day of the week, and weekends as well.”

Responding, Mr Swinney said the Scottish Government had taken steps to protect teacher numbers and had increased the intakes of training courses over the past seven years.

“The challenge we’ve got is that there are not enough available teachers to fulfil those protected numbers,” he added.

On the opening day of the conference, Mr Swinney announced that cash payments of £20,000 will be offered to people who leave their careers to become teachers in key subjects.

The bursaries are designed to tempt graduates with degrees in the crucial STEM subjects of science, technology, engineering and maths to become teachers, as ministers seek to find ways to plug the gaps in Scotland’s classrooms.