Rodney Kaykreizman writes:
Working Conditions-Conditions of Service-Competency proceedings.
Discipline and Authoritarian Models of Education - Effects on Teachers.
A major problem in Education is the degree of effective suthoritarianism that has now been effectively handed to Headteachers who always wanted to have the extra powers in their hands to stop any criticism of their "Authoritarian Tendencies". It seems the effects of 35 years of Conservative Right Wing reforms of the system has achieved this and given them all the powers they need to effectively deal with any possible criticism of their semi-absolutist rule.
NUT Divisions and Associations are overwhelmed with casework that Regional Officials cannot deal with as their time is limited. They are awash with cases all the time that are really nothing at all. A minor critique, mostly, of something Heads have laid down as policy with minimum discussion or evaluation of the practice of the policy, where it's not been totally and immediately applied unthinkingly and uncritically, is now grounds for Disciplinary proceedings of the teachers concerned.
Nothing more aptly describes the move from a generally applied approximately "Colliegeate Approach" and system of organisation to the Authoritarian model of Management and Workers model of the Right Wing Tories, and their allies New Labour.
Under the old system critical evaluation of all systems and policies was a constant ongoing understood model of working. That is now out the window as one now has to be in fear of coming under constant scrutiny and attack of one's own very professionalism and rights to work- as the new Heads will not have at all any criticism or ongoing alternatives to their "Fuhrer model" I'm right, and, furthermore- if you challenge I'll kill you, strip you of your rights to work, and pretend that your incompetant and unfit to teach- Effectively they've been given the rights to monitor and control any "Recalitrant or Critical or even Rebelious elements" sort them out and get them out.
They are the new Gatekeepers. Most of them love this element of their jobs as it gives them more powers than they've ever had, and at the same time massages their ego's, and assures them that the differentials the've enjoyed for many years and, the cosy chats with Officials, confirms their status as "Managers and Bosses of the system. They don't see themselves "Negatively as Bullies" although the line between what they do, and the actual real act of- Bullying is very close.
Any model of a "Free School" is therefore very suspect- as it doesnt contain this essential element of Tory Control built into the model. Never mind that they work better, are better places to work in, happier in their collective approaches, more thorough, and far superior in all Educational aspects-Never mind that they children learn more that matters, with a much better more sophisticated model of understanding and possible future application.
What is quite astonishing is the New Labour's assumption the Tories are right, and their wrongly placed suspicion of teachers as subverters of all authority and virtual wreckers of the system. Thats how the NUT. and other Teacher Unions. most notable the NASUWT, who together are clearly viewed in this way, by New Labour and the Right Wing of the Tories. Instead of Labour applauding and agreeing with the most radical aspects that are not really very radical at all, of Teachers Policies and appraoches- they go for the Authoritian and Right Wing Tory approaches.
Given that there's so little difference between their approaches to state Education; the completion of the break up of the public sector into ever smaller and differentiated units of competing "business models" mimicking the free enterprise system of the society outside of the area of Education is the ongoing priority of the Tories, and New Labour is doing their bidding, so much quicker and faster than they could have done it.
The break up of the State System is well advanced under the " New Labour Tories"
The whole movement towards Academies has to be seen along these lines. Its the cementing of the marriage of Business and Religious Interests to Educational Institutions- that will ensure that the so called "State System" is totally ideologically kept in line with all the ideology of the "Free Market Sytem of Society" and its managing cohorts the business fraternity. They want to weave the Education system so close to business that there's little possibility of ever actually breaking out and directly challenging their ideological interests.
In that sense its a very "direct defense of the Capitalist system of its very ideology" that it perceived may be actually challenged and brought out into the open. Perhaps it was the fact that what always had been assumed, and hidden, was in their view possibly now vulnerable, and open to attack, by the Left, in the form of criticism and a critical approach by Teachers, and worse by their students- was perhaps too much for them as "where would it all end ", and would the end be a critical understanding of Capitalism and Busness and its Ideology of Control through all the institutions of the state ? Not in thir interests at all. hence the need to shore up, break up the Public Sector, make sure it was totally dependant upon the ideology of Business interests or Religious ones which would not challenge or ever raise any of these questions anyway.
New Labour's compromise with the interests of Capital rather than working directly for the interests of who they were supposedly representing Labour and Working Class organisations like the Trade Unions etc.has meant that they've imported into the Authoritarian model of the Right Wing degree's of political correctness along the lines of Equality- and Fairness, Discrimination, etc rather like the Christian Churches have all sorts of lovely values, which of course stay totally unrealistic a sort of future we are morally obliged to work/move towards, to be good christians in Gods eyes, but as they never are really given concrete form, remain ideals, and actually just part of the " Rhetoric we sort of Recognise". and have seldom ever effectively challenged the dominant interests of Business and the Monopolies Bankers and Finance etc.
These are the interests that New labour have decided have to be supported and extended.Not those of their supporters, their voters, and their natural constituency that finances and supports them,, Not those of their Trade Unions, Not those of the People who finance the system by taxation, not by the interests of the increasingly multi-culteral nature of society as demographically happens in the cities.
This is the process of how we effectively defend and extend the interests of the dominant class as perceived by New labour who are very clearly governing in their(The Dominant Classes) direct interests now.
They are "External Dressing" to make the cake eatable. The iceing etc.Gay rights can be legislated for, along with civil partnerships, along with equality legislations galore, rather making them totally pointless as the Law aand policies that will have virtually no effects in an ever increasingly unfair society where Class interests of the Rich and well off section dominate, and nobody challenges this whatsover. Under New Labour, its no accident that the inequalities in our society are worse now than for the last 40 odd years. In spite of legislation that makes discrimination and some forms of sexual discrimination a crime, sexual discrimation is rife and well ensconsced in Public Institutions and Private Institutions all over our society.
What makes for a more equal society then is not the Law- as its application is haphazard, unequal, and subject to all sorts of possible intrepretations and appeals etc.but a variety of different policies and a sequence of measures which in total, taken together, moves gradually, over the years towards establishing a real basis for less inequality.The measure of which is not just about Income but multi-factoral in any case. Income alone is not a correct or accurate measure. Assetts. Command over resources. Land and Estates in UK and abroad- as Capital is free to move around the Globe now. Assett poor so one is not penalised by taxes, in one country and perhaps assett rich in another is no way to measure what a Govt cannot touch- or get an accurate measure of. Offshore assetts have been around for 40 odd years or more yet no Gov't as far as I can see has ever got to how this will be measured, counted or even understood the amount s of never mind tax it.
This must include Progressive rather that Regressive Tax Policies in the Taxation system. Business Ideology and the Business and Commercial sector always want huge differentials and want to keep huge ammounts of cash and benefits for themselves and their pals as this is their rewards for what they see as "efficiency and PBR. measured by profits" They have to to have more, and be able to keep more, have more rewards, have more advantages,better houses, better holidays, more flights and planes, consume more ahve more eat more and drink more, have better schools and better Education, better lives, than the rest of us, as they are the deserving rich and well off, and you lot are the undeserving poor, and touble makers that cost them so dear, and how they'd love to do without you all ! The people are a pain in the butt to them. However they've concluded the stupid bastards do pay the majority of the Taxes, that keep them and their society going so you horrible lot- the people- do have some point. Whatever the levels of Social Security, in the main,- its the poor that keeps the poor anyhow- and as long as their assetts can be hidden, tied up, exported when they want, and not taxed thats OK isnt it Its all a game isnt it ?
