Tristram Hunt will reverse the Coalitions "watering down" of teaching standards

In a speech to the North of England Education Conference, Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary Tristram Hunt MP will today declare that a future Labour government will "put an end to David Cameron’s watering down of teaching standards" by:

• Ensuring all teachers in all state schools become qualified, ending David Cameron’s policy to allow unqualified teachers to be taken on in academies and Free Schools on a permanent basis;
• Providing teachers with more opportunities to undertake ongoing, high-quality continued professional development and get revalidated on a rolling basis so their skills are up to date; and
• Creating new career pathways for teachers, with routes for specialism in subject knowledge and teaching skills.

He will say that reform of teaching is "part of a wider story about creating a One Nation economy that enables us to earn our way out of David Cameron’s cost-of-living crisis." In contrast to what he calls "David Cameron’s watering-down of teaching standards", Tristram Hunt will draw a clear dividing line with the Coalition Government. He will argue that "teacher quality is the most important mechanism" – rejecting David Cameron’s "ideological obsession with school structures" – to improve education for all children in all schools and to "equip young people with the skills, knowledge and attributes that they need to succeed in the future economy."

Tristram Hunt will today say: “Reform of teaching is part of a wider story about how Labour will build a One Nation economy so that we can earn our way out of the cost-of-living crisis. We can only do that if we raise standards so our teaching is world class in every school - rejecting David Cameron’s policy of allowing unqualified teachers into our classrooms.

“We have the best generation of teachers ever in our schools. But too many children are still denied the high-quality teaching they deserve. We need to keep improving if we are to deliver for every child and to keep pace. My priority as Education Secretary in the next Labour Government would be to make sure we have the best generation of teachers in the world - a highly qualified, inspiring, self-motivating and dedicated professional workforce.

“International evidence is clear: the quality of teaching – not an obsessive focus on the type of school – is what drives up standards. David Cameron and Michael Gove have watered down standards, allowing unqualified teachers into schools on a permanent basis. Under Labour, all teachers will have to become qualified, teachers will be given greater opportunities to further their career progression and development and, as in other high status professions, teachers will be regularly revalidated.”

Commenting on Tristram Hunt speech, Christine Blower, General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, the largest teachers’ union, said: “It is certainly reassuring to hear that the Labour Party is committed to every teacher in state-funded schools having Qualified Teacher Status. We also welcome the recognition that it is teachers and not the type of school which deliver a good education for children and young people. There is potential for Labour to change the negative conversation that Michael Gove has engendered for the past four years.

“Tristram Hunt says we have the best generation of teachers ever in our schools. The NUT believes that his aspiration for ‘high qualified, inspiring, self-motivating and dedicated’ teachers is already met, but to release the full potential of our teachers they need to be trusted. Teachers here need to be treated as they are in high-flying jurisdictions like Finland. They also need a consistent set of pay and conditions across all types of schools.

“MPs in this country seem to be oblivious to the reality that teachers are held to account at every stage of their career. Newly qualified teachers must satisfy their assessors that they meet Qualified Teacher Status. Ofsted inspects the quality of teaching during school inspections. Teachers are observed in the classroom by heads, other teachers and local council school improvement teams. If teaching quality is not satisfactory, existing processes are available to employers for supporting teachers, intervening and if necessary, dismissing teachers.

“Teachers are very proud of what they do in the classroom but they want it to be measured and shared with others under a fair, not a punitive, system. For too long, teachers feel that they have things done to them rather than being part of the process.”