Those outside of the education sector might look at teachers working hours - 8:30am to 3:30pm, with half-terms and lengthy summer holidays - with jealousy. But any teacher will know the reality of the hours they put in beyond those that are timetabled.  

In work, teachers are often praised for “going the extra mile” with their working time treated as if it were elastic, stretched into evenings, weekends and holidays for administrative tasks that they know have little benefit to their pupils, says Andrew Foster, head of education at the Tougher Minds consultancy.

Writing in the 1 June edition of Tes, Foster explores this problem and suggests a solution.

“I know colleagues who have had keys cut for the front gates, as they regularly arrive before 6am; newly qualified teachers who feel that a Margaret Thatcher-like sleep regime is the only way to keep their heads above water; and experienced teachers who have resorted to going down to a 0.8 timetable, so that each week they have a 24-hour respite to catch up on marking and admin,” writes Foster. 

The issue is clear: an ever-increasing workload is stretching teachers thin and increasing work-related stress - and student learning can only suffer as a result.

“If [teachers] are regularly, or even occasionally, getting insufficient sleep, and if they are starting work before 7am and finishing after 7pm, with inadequate breaks disrupted by duties, it is a nonsense to suggest that their performance will be anywhere near optimal,” says Foster.

Time is money

But what if we thought about teachers’ time the same way that we do about money? Currently, Foster suggests, the disparity between how we think of money and how we think of time is the issue.

“We would not dream of being so cavalier with a school’s budget,” Foster writes.

“What if the intended, and then the actual, demands being made upon teachers’ time were calculated, recorded and audited by administrative staff, in a similar fashion to the school’s monetary outgoings? A light-touch means of documenting teachers’ hours would give a clearer and more honest picture for everyone involved.

“Everyone plays differently when someone’s keeping the score. It’s time we kept the score on teachers’ hours.”

To read this article in full, pick up a copy of the 1 June issue of Tes from your local newsagent or subscribe to read online