Many say poor behaviour is making them want to leave the profession, NASUWT finds

One in four teachers in the UK say they experience physical violence from their pupils at least once a week, and many say poor behaviour is making them want to leave the profession, according to figures compiled by a teaching union.

The NASUWT union found that 24% of the nearly 5,000 teachers who sent in feedback said they were on the receiving end of physical attacks each week. Many reported that they had been “shoved or barged”, and a significant percentage said they had been hit, punched or kicked.

Nearly nine in 10 teachers said they had received some sort of verbal or physical abuse from pupils in the past year. Eighty-six per cent said they had been sworn at and 46% said they had been verbally threatened.

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Many teachers said the abuse and attacks made them less enthusiastic about their job. Several said they did not report poor behaviour because they feared school leaders would take no action, while others said they had been warned that doing so would harm their careers.

“Having taught for almost 40 years I have witnessed a demonstrable and seemingly unstoppable deterioration in pupil behaviour,” one said. “Moreover, teachers are, it seems, now expected to tolerate verbal abuse and threats as par for the course and, quite literally, an occupational hazard.”

Another said: “My school has become a frightening place over the last few years and I often try to only go on the corridors at times when I expect them to be quiet, as I simply assume I will be stampeded, pushed or sworn at.”

The NASUWT sought responses from its members across the UK, including Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, suggesting the issue of pupil discipline cuts across national jurisdictions.

The feedback comes in the midst of a public debate over the use of exclusions and school discipline policies that include removing disruptive pupils from classes and other sanctions.

At the annual conference this week of the National Education Union, the UK’s other main teaching union, delegates heard claims that “zero-tolerance” behaviour policies could damage pupils’ mental health.

The Department for Education, which is responsible for schools in England, said: “Teachers and school staff have a right to be safe while doing their jobs and any form of misconduct, particularly violence towards them, is completely unacceptable. The majority of schools provide a safe environment for pupils and teaching staff and it’s important that they remain as such.

“We are committed to tackling bad behaviour in schools, [which] have made great strides in empowering teachers to tackle this issue and have recently announced a £10m investment to support schools to share best practice in behaviour management.”

The NASUWT annual conference in Belfast this weekend will debate a motion that describes pupil indiscipline and violence as “a significant and worsening problem in schools”.

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Dave Kitchen, the union’s incoming president, told delegates that teachers needed to stand up to poor behaviour and poor management in schools, as well as to cuts in special needs provision and a narrowing curriculum.

Kitchen said “incredible” levels of poverty and homelessness were having a major impact within British classrooms struggling for funds.

“Resources for the classroom are being diverted away from teaching to be spent on law firms, accountancy and private companies, to name but a few. We are seeing cases of excessive salaries for executive heads and a lack of financial accountability of taxpayers’ money,” Kitchen said.

Kitchen said “a climate of fear” was being used in some schools as a tool to control teachers.