Teacher strikes are going ahead as planned today (Thursday) – and are set to take place again on Tuesday (2nd May) – but Island teachers have come together to minimise disruption for students facing examinations.
Many Island students will face disruption after the National Education Union (NEU) voted overwhelmingly in favour of striking, with 98% of members rejecting the Government’s latest funding offer.
Instead of going into their schools, many teachers will instead be visiting Ryde today – and Sandown on Tuesday 2nd May – to voice their demands. However, negotiations between schools and unions have offered the possibility of some respite for those Year 11 and Year 13 students soon to face exams.
Commenting on the latest teacher strike days, Peter Shreeve, Assistant District Secretary of the NEU, has said:
“Locally, the NEU has been very aware of the proximity of the next 2 strike days to examinations. Thus, the Isle of Wight district along with the NEU nationally has considered the impact on this year’s exam students (Years 11 and 13).
“With the support of both head teacher unions, there has been negotiation and voluntary agreements with schools to allow minimal disruption to these specific exam students. This means teachers have the option to go into schools to help Year 11 and Year 13 with their exam preparation and practice on both strike days.
“In addition, we have been made aware of long-planned activities in some primary schools, which understandably staff feel reluctant to cancel. However, this does not mean the dispute with national government is over or the staffing recruitment and retention crisis is over.
“Sutton Trust research this week found schools were facing even more cuts by school leaders to essential staff and activities at even higher levels than seen in previous polling. This included 63% of the 1,428 survey responders experiencing cuts to classroom teaching assistant numbers and 71% of senior leaders reporting difficulties in teacher recruitment.
Article continues below this advertisement “Time will need to be spent planning for potential later action this term and the forthcoming re-ballot to permit further action next term, if the Education Secretary fails to make an improved offer.”
Sack the lot of them, these goons are self packed with self interest, the kids needing them during exams don’t matter, this is why our schools are failing, its all me me me with this lot.
Yeah, sack them and… hire who instead exactly?
Immigrants? Can’t do, UK is no longer that competitive, see below.
Educate new teachers perhaps? Good luck finding candidates who would be willing to spend years studying just to get a job with below-inflation pay rises and can be sacked by you if they dare to ask for enough money to live in country with worst inflation in G7 and biggest energy bills on the planet.
snowflake generation..always ok until now, its their lifstyle choice..toodle pip.
Yeah, and now they’re choosing the “lifestyle” of striking and demanding better wages due to rising inflation.
And if you decide to fire them due to that choice the question remains: how are you going to convince people to get into teaching?
Walking around shouting “snowflakes!” is not a viable solution I’m afraid. People will just choose more attractive opportunities, UK is short-staffed.
Yep.
One of the biggest effect of these strikes and the Government’s intransigence is that it is putting people off choosing medicine, nursing, teaching, etc as careers.
13 years of cuts, increased workload, below inflation pay awards are making those professions far less attractive.
Pretty soon schooling and medicine will go the way of dentistry. The NHS and state schools will exist on paper, but nobody will be able to find an NHS doctor to treat them or a non-failing state school for their kids.
Grow up and answer Susan’s question.
If they did sack all of the teachers, who would you replace them with?
Ditto doctors, nurses, paramedics, etc.
Ssshhhh wonkey donkey
Don’t bother replacing them. The islanders have such low academic achievement standards that they might as well not be taught. The lowest in the whole of the UK. Just give them a few tips on running the dodgems, driving delivery vans, and waiting tables. That is the future for most after all.
I did answer the question..read the words or are you a striking teacher, refusing to so as to push a mindless point..its their lifestyle choice, teaching is not real work and it attracts lazy people these days,my teachers wouldn’t be so quick to walk out, this is snowflake stuff..i decided not to be a massive teaching doughnut, I chose a different profession, one that does’nt have six week summer holidays, my choice.
You said “Sack the lot of them”
Obviously they will need replacing or there will be nobody to teach.
So grow up and answer the d*mn question. If you “sacked the lot of them”, who would you replace them with.
“snowflake generation”
LOL.
We are presumably such snowflakes yet it’s mostly old dudes whining about “war on cars” if you remove few parking spaces and how cycling is impossible because “boo hoo it’s raining a little” while kids in Finland cycle at -20C.
And now you’re moaning about other people’s right to strike while at the same time you let your gov run the HIGHEST ENERGY BILLS ON THE PLANET instead of rebelling like the French.
I swear, this whole shouting about ”snowflakes” from old gens must be some Freudian slip!
wtf are you on about pmsl?
That happens a lot at your age, I believe.
I believe the people who make Tena Lady do something for old farts like you, too.
Yet another day we have had to take time off work or find childcare for 2 children, yet we’re also being fined for one of our boys cause our holiday runs a few days after half term !!!!!!
Go on holidays on strike days, bam, problem solved.
Get back to work u lazy bums
Get back to work you greedy teachers. The rest of us aren’t getting pay rises and you are paid well enough for the few hours you work over the year. All those holidays and you have the nerve to ask for more money. It makes my blood boil.
Sounds like you could become a teacher and get all those lucrative perks yourself.
Would you say teacher’s current salary is tempting enough for you to consider a career change?
Other commentators wanted them sacked so perhaps you could step in and that way we wouldn’t have to give you a pay rise?
Too busy designing gardens and writing terrible books thanks.
Don’t worry, folks!
We sure have the worst inflation in all of G7 but Bank of England said Brits should just accept we are poorer – sounds good to me!
And in even more positive news Rees-Mogg said obviously all those Brexit promises wouldn’t materialise right away (it’s been only 7 years after all) but he ensures us Brexit will start bringing benefits in 2050.
So only 27 years of misery, including such strikes, and we may be back on the track to economy growth from 2015!
Just accept being poor for next 27 years and we’re good!
Shortage of staff = employees would be stupid to not force for pay rises.
Of course pay rises have to beat inflation, otherwise it’s not a real rise.
Totally rational and I 100% support all workers. No other choice.
Just current dynamics in the market. Use it! It’s not like companies won’t use power if it shifts their way!
And I say that as a person working for the City 😉
Government of course could ease that – we are THE WORST hit by inflation country in the whole of G7: perhaps we shouldn’t Brexit or something? And our biggest energy bills on the planet? Perhaps we could solve that somehow, hmm?
However, Tories are busy fighting with “wokeness” – I’m certain that’s more important than inflation or energy bills ;)))
Spot on.
The pure irony that the Brexit many of IE’s swivel-eyed commentards voted for has actually led to the lack of skilled staff in industry that is fueling inflation.
Recently jumped ship myself from an Island business paying me £39k to a fully remote position for an Edinburgh based business paying me £65k.
It’s a buyers market for skilled staff these days. Can almost write your own pay cheque if you have the right skill set.
Why would anyone work as an IT teacher, getting grief and, sometimes, being attacked by kids and parents for £28k when you can get three times that sat on your backside at home.
My daughter went to college today.
She rang me to say her teacher hasn’t gone in, didn’t tell any pupils so they have waited over 1hr
Disgusting
Another sad episode of selfish greed rather than service to the community for the benefits of those in need. What a world we are building for the future! Rather than working together to overcome the cost of living we are all only keen to feed our own belly and who cares for anyone else!
Please miss, can I have a job that gives me 12 weeks paid holiday a year, work 9 to 5 and have every weekend off, they do not they are born.
If those perks are so tempting for you then become a teacher yourself? What’s the issue?
People need to wake up and understand that the 13 years of pay being squeezed by the Tories, followed by Brexit, the pandemic and the huge increase in the cost of living has caused a perfect storm of angry public sector workers realising they have real power.
Doctors, nurses, teachers, border force, passport office, civil servants, paramedics, etc.
All p*ssed off. All irreplaceable ( massive staffing and recruitment crisis because nobody wants thes jobs because of the pay and conditions that are causing the strikes in the first place).
They have found they have real power and a real voice and they are using them.
Who do these jumped up people think they are? What a disgrace! They should take their pittance and be thankful for it! Thank God I didn’t have to send my kids to one of these state schools, that’s all I can say!
Most people who left the profession already wouldn’t go back even on a double salary. Brace yourselves for 4 day school weeks in the next couple of years.
Conservatives. The worst of humanity in a suit. While they line their pockets our country goes to rack and ruin. It happens every time they near the end of their last term. Years of hitting everything normal people require to live a reasonable life, ie, health, justice, education, welfare, energy and it ends like this. This is conservative groundhog day. Expect much much worse if they are re-elected. I support anyone with balls enough to stand up for all workers, professional or not.
As if they haven’t missed enough school already since covid . They need to put their students first.