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TEACHER SEE TEACHER DO

In the limiting case, could not the teachers be said to be modelling themselves on British and Euro MPs? I don't subscribe to this but were it so, our greedy self-serving MPs and MEPs would have no one but themselves to blame, and they could then look to leading by example.

I feel for the govt a bit on the teacher issue, as it really is stuck between a rock and a hard place. I am sure it wants to give public servants better pay; why wouldn't it want to? But if it does, it knows that it will compound the inflationary problems we are facing at the moment, which in turn is a problem in the general economic outlook. So even if the govt did offer say a 4.5% pay rise to all public sector workers, the result would be that inflation would rise faster, the pay rise would have been pointless anyway and the 'stagflation' problem would be made much worse, which would then probably cause a more sharp economic turndown. Of all the people in this country, teachers should understand that sometimes, we can't all expect the pay rise we would like and this is one of those times; there must be some economic teachers out there!

Not only have the teachers done extremely well over the past 10 years, but it must not be forgotten that they get incremental pay rises up to and beyond a threshold on top of the annual inflation rises. At the current rates, this would give them over 5% per year. They also get exceptional pensions, non-contact time for preparation and marking, 5 training days and the longest holidays out of all workers. They cannot possibly compare themselves to any other sector and are setting an appalling example to our children.

The US has at least two unusally different candidates for President. In the UK the tories have now developed an 18% lead over labour in the polls (1); is there really no unusually different challenger to Cameron et al for the next election? I just feel we're sleepwalking into 4 more years of the same boring risk adverse policial leadership we have come to expect from our 3 main parties. Wheres my Hillary or Obama? Instead I just have a bank manager or a elistist toff to vote for in 2009. I can't be alone in feeling this way?

(1)

Parents want to invest in future qualities of life...that takes the kind of preparation they might want to pay teachers for... with Student Opportunity Credit... instead of tax... schooling capacity could be repossessed by banks on behalf of the public...paying for their sons and daughters futures... rather than teachers psychiatric careers


FUNDAMENTAL INTRODUCTION SCHOOLS...to replace primaries...openly available with different ages timed throughout the day and calendar...no behaviourism management waste... instead a Modesty Management system... introductions to logos of companies ..what they do... taking about products and services...talking about what people do for their jobs...topical furthering of the class for their expressed characters

OPPORTUNITIES DEVELOPMENT COLLEGES...to replace secondaries ...opportunities and pursuits advertised ...no behaviourism management waste... instead a Modesty Management system...life accounting...get civilised through job descriptions ...practice.... approaches towards opportunities.. preparations for economic socialism..accounting and case experiences and jobs descriptions...exercises tests ... portfolio development ...discussions of projects they would like to have worked on ..practice of techniques required ..and product service improvements they would each like to have made...advanced teamworking and propositioning... encouragement of options testing ...use of brain in various verbs and views ... encouragement of customisation .. health and safety and systematic sports advice...

PROJECT INVESTMENT CENTRES... to replace higher education polytechnics ...scheduled investments of time in customisation development and optimisation projects for companies of the future...

PUBLISHERS' SHELF CLUBS to replace university degree systems..casual online over the phone and visiting lecture discussion and tutoring opportunities as a recreation and chance to meet people ....

TV TALKOVERS.. emailed talk over TV slots... a chance to team and show off interests to subscribers...

TLC BCD in Bournemouth..

re: Syria.

Newsnight seems to be glossing over the fact that Israel broke international law by bombing a soverign country, Syria.

In addition, the programme has accepted the US intelligence at face value, despite their poor record.

Your expert has no way of knowing that Syria broke IAEA rules. This is for the IAEA.

the schools minister has just stated in plain english that the teachers should accepts the finings of the independent party who decided on the pay increase of 2.5%
I say he should stuff it. why should the teachers go along with a independent pay bodies decision because it suits the government. After all with th police pay awrad the government were the ones who decided to ignore the recommendations!! when it suits they want the pay bodys decision to apply but when it doesn't they ignore it. I back the teachers, the police and all pay bodies especially when the ministers think its acceptable to employ family memebers to increase their income!! And if the ex prime minister can claim a tv licence on expenses its easy to understand why the public are so disillusioned!

This is the NUT that opposed me getting £3000 at the end of my career for passing the threshold and progressing up the scale.

They have opted out of all discusions with the Government especially over the restructuring of the profession. All other unions have accepted that the settlement was below inflation but better than what the private sector has got and they still have a final salary settlement for pensions.

Yes they have a point over the level of inflation but join the real world, so do every other worker in the land. I speak who was a teacher union secretary of 40 years who is fully conversant with the politics of education.

Yes I loved a demo and a rant agaist EVERY Government since 1960. I joined my union and went on strike the next day against the NUT that used to do deals "behind the Chair" on Burnham which my union opposed. This resulted in many below inflation settlements. How time has erased such "victories" the NUT gained teachers.

If it had been left to the NUT my pension would have been £3000 to the less.

However I fully support their right to demonstrate and I wish them every success in getting the Government, especially a future Tory Government, to give them above inflation pay awards!!!???

MAY I REMIND THEM IT IS STILL TORY POLICY TO ABOLISH NATIONAL PAY SCALES. As a chair of finance in two schools I will become an extemely powerful; person!!!

I have just watched your feature about the teacher's strike today and I am extremely frustrated by what has been said by Jim Knight. I am a teacher in my fourth year and I struggle to pay my rent and the encreasing bills for food, fuel and house hold bills. I am looking to buy a house and in order for me to do this I would have to take on a second job; however I would ask Jim Knight how I am to do this when my work load from school is already 70 hours plus a week. We do have good holidays but you show me one other profession where they spend half of the holiday in work or doing work! This is certainly not a profession that you go into for the money however we have to be able to live and this is hard with the state of our pay at the moment.

Sorry to bother you again, but in the interest of balance and honesty I posted the other day that any "divvy" that wanted to vote Tory or Lib/Dem then let them see if they will give them any better deal from them I don't think!.

However within 10 minutes of that "blog" my wife, who I referred to as a 64 age loser on the 10p tax got her P60 pension statement and she is "FIZZING" and will never vote Labour ever again.

Her tax has doubled from around £10 per month to over £20. She had a £5 increase in her pension to £141 per month but now finds it is only worth £138 per month. So After 4 years of retirement her pension is worse off by some considerable ammount. I hope that the so-called back dating will refer to her. As a Labour Cllr. I will watch this with interest.

You will appreciate Brown has caused some conflict in my domestic arrangements!!

However she is even thinking voting BNP as a protest. How many others is this Government forcing people to vote "in extremis"? A Labour Government recruiting for the BNP-it beggars belief!!!!

Asset inflation good.Wage inflation bad.

Utterly priceless comment. Nulabor will not "take chances with inflation".

So what exactly has taken place in the property market since 1997. Is`nt 200-300% house price rises called inflation ?The resultant bloated overborrowed economy which is now causing pain is nothing to do with nulabor-is that it?

Now that the feeble pound is pushing up prices hitting the consumer wage demands essential to meet the rising household bills are to be kept down. Is that what GB meant by a fair and just society?

Doubtless nulabor will be quick to blame world economy conditions-the ones like imported deflation for which they took credit earlier and claimed as their own success.

Lots of people are under the impression that teachers have a great deal with pay, holidays and pension and at face value we have. What people do not realise is that for an inner city teacher life is hard. We have to deal with physical and verbal abuse with no power to do anything to stop it. Class sizes have grown so much so that it is impossible to meet the individual needs of each child within that class. We get pupils that cannot speak a word of english, that cannot even write their own name, never mind complete GCSES. A typical working day when you have to differentiate for multiple needs is as follows, working til gone ten every night planning work, making resources and marking work and that is including time we are given in school to prepare. A lot of the time we use prep time sorting out fights and supporting members of staff with difficult pupils. It is very difficult to maintain a work-life balance. Lunchtimes and holidays include marking coursework and holding extra classes for pupils sitting exams. Weekends is much of the same.
To top that off we have little budgets with which to teach these children with and sometimes have to pay for our own paper and photocopying etc because the budget has gone and when you are teaching a large amount of pupils this gets expensive, but we do it for the sake of the pupils we teach.
Life as a teacher is by no means easy and people are leaving the profession because of little support and pay to reflect the long hours we work. This is not an 8am - 3pm job this is a life long commitment and people are becoming disillusioned with it. We are blamed for everything from poor exam results to break downs in society. We have to act as teachers, confidentes, parents and social workers. A teacher never stops caring and worrying about the pupils they teach and for people to suggest otherwise, due to the strikes, is the biggest kick in the teeth.

the government is not consistent in its messages and is clearly motivated to penalise the very persons they aim to protect. the low paid honest workers and this includes teachers. its getting to a stage where i understand the reasons for drug abuse and increased crime instead of good hard graft! unless you have a family you are working to supportveryone elses!! teachers go to school to look after your kids but if theyare chidless with the 10p tax issue they are losing money to the childrens families as well!! labour give your head a shake and stop blaming this on the economy its your fault the economy is like this!! where is all the oney we have invested in you i'll tell you 2012 olympics,millenium dome, illegal iraq invasion all your decisions and a waste of our money!

veryhappysandra I would be very interested to know what your experience of being a teacher is. I'm going to assume from your comments regarding holidays and planning time that it is, at best limited. To give you an example non contact time is 10% of teaching time, which works out to about 2.5 hours. I do somewhere in the region of 10 hours of planning a week, about 6 hours of marking. I have to monitor my subject which takes at least 3 hours a week, on average. This is not even taking into account writing IEP's, writing reports, running clubs, monitoring and assesment, meeting with outside agencies, dealing with child protection issues, training that is not included in the 5 day you mentioned. Every teacher spends a large portion of every holiday working. I am aware that the public's perception of teachers is that we work 9:00 to 3:15 and have long relaxing holidays, but that perception is both inaccurate and offensive. As is the fact that for the last 3 years we have had to suffer a real term pay loss and we are being expected to suffer real term pay loss for the next 3 years.

veryhappysandra i would only beware! After all my support and i do upport your plight and agree with the facts you have posted when the goverment dont ack down they may not back date what ever pay award you get anyway! dont trust labour as far as you can throw them and with that overwieght clan leader thats not very far!

moderation takes too long!

Well done Gavin Essler-some real questioning contrasting with supine Radio 4 this morning and probing of shifty Jim Knight.Mark Serwotka contrasted with dignity in his condemnation of New Labour's double standards squeezing the poorest whilst pandering to corporate fat cat greed and compensating for capitalist banks greedy incompetences(£50 billion for their dodgey mortages).Rising global prices of food and raw materials are the real stokers of inflation and we would be wise to ask why.
Newsnight also picked up on my union-UCU's involvement. Yes thousands of our further education lecturers were on strike as well today but there has been little media attention despite the fact we provide opportunities for 4 million people . A brilliant demonstration of public sector workers at lunchtime in Sheffield and angry young teachers. A speech from the heart from a young 24 year old femalerecent starter.

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