| The top concern of teachers today is classroom behaviour. But Southwark, despite its challenges, is a popular borough amongst supply teachers. These were the findings of a survey carried out by Southwark agency Renaissance Education. |
| Renaissance surveyed secondary teachers who had worked regularly with the agency in the last six months, and compared the results with its previous survey. |
| The new survey found that classroom behaviour is a major issue. Nearly half the agency’s teachers think it is poor or very poor. And the great majority either see no improvement, or say that standards of behaviour are actually falling. |
| But despite this, teacher morale may be on an improving trend, with most teachers saying that morale is steady. The previous survey suggested that morale was falling, so this represents an improvement. |
| Renaissance agrees with these findings. “Teaching can be tough in any school”, said MD Martin Richards. “Teachers are at the sharp end and have to deal with bad behaviour regularly. The schools we know in Southwark are very motivated to raise standards, and ensuring good standards of behaviour is a key first step”. |
| Teachers also said which boroughs they enjoyed – or did not enjoy – teaching in. Nearly half the teachers had taught in Southwark, nearly 70% had taught in Croydon, and many had also taught in Lambeth. But in terms of preferences, Southwark came out top as the place most enjoyed by nearly 30% of teachers, whereas over 40% said that Croydon was the place they least enjoyed teaching. |
| The survey asked people what advice they would give a fellow teacher. Many stressed the importance of classroom management, with comments including :- |
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Engage pupils as soon as they get in the classroom. This prevents disruptive behaviour caused by inactivity |
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It is a tough job, but someone has to build those children up for the future. So never lose hope |
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Teaching in London requires teachers to be patient with the kids as most of them are of the opinion that 'they are the king' |
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Teachers should endeavour to be supportive and helpful to pupils but assertive in class |
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Tolerant and helpful behaviour will improve teaching and learning |
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Enforce all school rules and regulations without fear or favour |
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Be firm but fair |
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| On an optimistic note, “remember that the majority of pupils in the schools are good pupils and behave well”. |
