A short thread on the #ValueEducationValueTeachers march on Saturday. Since then I have been dismayed to read the comments on Twitter and elsewhere stating that this was an anti-@theSNP march cooked up by Labour and the trade unions to make the @scotgov look bad. 1/11
2/ This was the single biggest mobilisation of union members in recent history. Not all of these 20,000+ people could be in on a Richard Leonard conspiracy. These are committed professionals who are concerned about a job they love and how it is becoming more & more unmanageable
3/ Teachers around Scotland have been meeting '@JohnSwinney to explain their concerns regarding pay, the overcrowded curriculum, teacher retention and issues around a failing inclusion policy.
4/ This does not mean we blame the current government for all of the issues facing teachers at this time. Austerity & cuts in the block grant have inevitably led to reduction in funding across all local government services. Couple this with the PFI hangover from @scottishlabour
5/ & children facing more ACEs due to welfare cuts and what we have now is a perfect storm caused by all political parties. The current inclusion policy was not the brainchild of the @theSNP as it was first laid out in the Standards In Scotland Act 2000. Since then even those
6/ who first advocated for children with ASN to be educated in mainstream schools are calling for a review of how this policy has been implemented. telegraph.co.uk/education/educ…
Teachers want to do the best for the pupils in their care & spend much of their own time & money to ensure
Teachers want to do the best for the pupils in their care & spend much of their own time & money to ensure
7/ all their pupils get the best opportunity to succeed. That is why they marched. We don't believe that we deserve a pay rise more than nurses, policemen, support staff or any other local authority employee, but neither do we agree that it should be a race to the bottom.
8/ The reason the current settlement is unpopular is that teachers at the top of the unpromoted scale will receive a pay rise that will see them earning almost the same as someone in a principal teacher role. That will discourage career progression & we are already seeing issues
9/ with councils being unable to fill promoted posts. So as a card carrying member of the SNP and a fervent #indyref2 supporter I believe it is our duty to bring the issues around education to the government's attention. If you cannot criticise
10/ elected representatives in a bid to build a brighter future for the children of Scotland we, as a nation, will begin to resemble America where anyone with legitimate concerns about an administration being told they are fake news or plant from the Democratic party.
11/ So I will continue to support @theSNP, I will continue to fight for an independent Scotland and I will continue to fight to address the current issues in education and support my fellow professionals who do an amazing job every single day!
