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New book shines a light on teacher retention
31 March 2022
A new book by Professor Jane Perryman from IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society, examines the crisis in teacher recruitment and retention, and the impact that a culture of performative accountability plays in this.
The book, published today (31 March), looks at data from three of Professor Perryman’s research projects over the past two decades and brings together literature and theory to analyse how the values, purposes and practices embedded in education impact teachers’ working experiences over time.
In particular, Professor Perryman argues that throughout the world, teachers’ working lives are being increasingly affected by the rise of a culture of performativity and accountability in schools. By insisting that teachers’ work focuses on assessment, exams, and preparing for inspections, they have less time and autonomy for more individualistic and creative aspects of the job. This is a key reason why so many teachers are leaving the profession, the book argues.
Professor Jane Perryman said: “It is not so much workload which drives teachers out of the profession as many believe, but the nature of that workload. Teachers go into the profession wanting to work with young people and communicate a passion for their subject(s), but they are driven away by what they perceive to be pointless tasks, ‘box ticking’, form filling, constant measuring of progress, tasks which divert them from the purpose and pleasures of teaching.
“Teachers used to dread occasional episodes of performative accountability such as Ofsted inspections, but in-between times had some sense of professional autonomy. Now, their professional lives are consumed by the need to account for all their actions. Without systemic change to the culture in which teachers work, the discourse of disappointment is here to stay.”
‘Teacher Retention in an Age of Performative Accountability: Target Culture and the Discourse of Disappointment’ was published on 31 March 2022 by Routledge.
Links
- ‘Teacher Retention in an Age of Performative Accountability: Target Culture and the Discourse of Disappointment’
- View Professor Jane Perryman’s research profile
- Department of Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment
Image: Phil Meech for IOE