Parents Support The Professional Registration Of Teachers In Academies

Four in five parents support professional registration for teachers working in Academies, according to new research by the MORI Social Research Institute for the General Teaching Council for England (GTCE).

As part of the MORI Telephone Omnibus 280 parents in England were interviewed about their views on teachers being professionally registered before being allowed to teach.

Four in five parents (83%) agree that teachers in Academies should be registered with a professional body such as the GTCE before they can teach, including 73% who agree strongly. Furthermore, the research showed there is strong support for the principle of professional registration per se, with 92% of parents saying that all teachers in state schools should be registered.

The research also revealed that just over a quarter of parents (28%) would be likely to send their child to an Academy compared with 60% who said they would be unlikely to choose this sort of school for their child. Asked to think about whether they would be likely to send their child to an Academy if some or all its teachers were not registered, only 12% of parents would consider it.

However, if the academy had a good academic record as well as employing unregistered teachers, more parents would be more tempted to send their child (27%).

Technical details

The survey was carried out between 15-17 April 2005, on the MORI Telephone Omnibus. Interviews were completed by telephone with 280 parents of children aged 0-19, where 16-19 year olds were in full-time education. Data were weighted to reflect the national profile.

Topline Results

Teachers who want to work in state schools in England have to be registered with the General Teaching Council for England (or GTCE). To register, teachers must have Qualified Teacher Status, meaning they have successfully completed an initial teacher training course and met the regulated standards required of a skilled teacher. An individual cannot register with the GTCE if they are barred from teaching because they are a risk to children. The GTCE is also a regulatory body which can discipline teachers for unacceptable professional conduct or serious professional incompetence. Details of any disciplinary action taken against a teacher are recorded alongside their registration details.

Q1 How far do you agree or disagree that teachers who want to work in state schools in England should have to be registered with a GTCE-type body? Is that...?

Academies are a new type of publicly-funded, independent secondary school. The government pays for the building costs and running costs of Academies, but they are privately owned and sponsored by businesses, faith groups or organisations in the voluntary sector. Because of this, they are not regulated in the same way as other state secondary schools, having a lot of freedom in terms of how they are managed, what curriculum they offer and how they are staffed. Currently, there are 20 Academies, but as part of their efforts to improve standards in education, the Government plans for there to be 200 Academies by 2010.

Q2 Based on what you know about them, how likely or unlikely would you be to want to send your child to an Academy? Is that...?

Q3 Teachers who work in Academies do not have to be registered with the General Teaching Council for England (GTCE). How far do you agree or disagree that teachers who work in Academies SHOULD have to be registered with the GTCE? Is that...?

Q4 Assuming that some or all of the teachers employed by an Academy were NOT registered with the GTCE, how likely or unlikely would you be to want to send your child to an Academy? Is that...? Base: All respondents in England with at least one child aged 0-19 (where 16-19 year olds are in full-time education) and where child does not attend an Academy (272)

Q5 Assuming that some or all of the teachers employed by an Academy were NOT registered with the GTCE, but the Academy had a good academic record, how likely or unlikely would you be to want to send your child to an Academy? Is that...? Base: All respondents in England with at least one child aged 0-19 (where 16-19 year olds are in full-time education) and where child does not attend an Academy (272)