In England, nearly 20% of teachers report being physically assaulted by a student in the past year, a poll released Thursday reveals, as schools deal with a decline in behavior following the pandemic.
The results follow comments from education leader Amanda Spielman, who attributed the rise in disruptive classroom behavior to the lack of social interaction caused by Covid lockdowns. The outgoing head of the UK’s school inspection agency Ofsted mentioned that this issue would take years to solve and was consuming a disproportionate amount of headteachers’ time.
The poll, which surveyed around 9,000 staff in February and March using the Teacher Tapp survey tool, also discovered that 30% of teachers had witnessed students fighting in the previous week. Additionally, 15% of teachers working with 11-18 year olds reported experiencing sexual harassment from a student while at school.
The NASUWT teaching union is currently considering new strike action due to what it sees as high levels of stress faced by staff.
In 2023, teachers, along with other professionals such as doctors and train drivers, went on strike several times amid a national rise in the cost of living, before accepting a 6.5% pay increase last July.
The union has been seeking input from its members on potential industrial action related to pay, workload, and well-being, and is expected to announce the outcome soon.
NASUWT general secretary Patrick Roach stated, “Teachers in the UK are dealing with exceptionally high workloads and stress related to their jobs.”
He added, “They cannot continue without changes to their pay, workloads, working hours, and employment rights.”
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© Agence France-Presse
