The Significance of the Establishment of a General Teaching Council in England:
For the Teaching Profession
1999 Volume 8 Pages 80-88
Details
1999 Volume 8 Pages 80-88
After 18 years, the Labour party has returned to a ruling position as a result of the British general election of 1 May 1997. The highest priority in the Labour party's programme was given to education reform. There were twelve policies for education in its manifesto. One of them, entitled “Teachers: Pressure and Support”, called for the establishment of a General Teaching Council (GTC) with authority over the teaching profession. After the election, preparation for this started, in order to establish it by the year 2000. The relevant Teaching and Higher Education Bill became law in July 1998.
The history of attempts to establish a GTC in England goes back to in 1860, but serious pressure for it developed in the 1980s and 90s. In Scotland, on the other hand, a GTC has been established since 1966. Its main roles are to advise the government, to register teachers and to control teachers' quality. The Scottish GTC is the chief model for a GTC establishment in England.
All teachers in state schools will have to register with the GTC. It will be financed by teachers' annual fees. The GTC is likely to be composed of 64 members, including elected teacher members, appointed members from the main teacher unions and other groups concerned with education, and members appointed by the ministry of education.
The present government's watchwords, “pressure and support”, clearly underlie the policy of establishing the GTC. Its main functions are to speak for teachers and to enhance their quality, and also to bar incompetent teachers from the profession. The GTC will be independent, and aim to enhance the professional autonomy of teachers. Thus the establishment of a GTC can be understood as leading in a new educational direction in England.
