The 20 per cent of headteachers who are not up to the job should be forced to take the specialist management training modules proposed by the Government, North Lanarkshire says.
The council agrees that training should be mandatory if a formal inspection identifies management weaknesses but warns that making it compulsory for aspiring headteachers would be costly. There would be no guarantee about ensuring access to courses for staff across the country.
It suggests a parallel with guidance teachers who do not need a qualification in guidance or counselling. “Practice over the last decade or so has led to an expectation that most, if not all, candidates for promoted posts possess such a qualification. Time and experience have determined the status and value of the qualification,” officials report.
North Lanarkshire argues that staff with at least four years’ teaching behind them and those in promoted posts should be able to follow the three-step modular pattern of proposed qualification from certificate through diploma to degree.
The council firmly dismisses any notion that teaching can learn about management from industry and commerce. “Reality informs us that excellent management practice exists in both sectors,” it states.
