The Teacher Gap

Bridging the divide in teacher quality and recruitment

Rebecca Allen author Sam Sims author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd

Published:11th Jun '18

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

This hardback is available in another edition too:

The Teacher Gap cover

This book explores the challenges teachers face and offers insights on how to improve recruitment, training, and retention in The Teacher Gap.

Teachers play a crucial role in determining the quality of education within schools, making their development a priority for the overall improvement of the system. However, recent years have seen a troubling trend where teachers face an overwhelming amount of bureaucratic demands, constant curriculum changes, and a culture of audits that require meticulous documentation of their work. This environment has not only deskilled many educators but also left them feeling demoralized. Instead of supporting teachers, the education system appears to be undermining their efforts, creating significant barriers to their professional growth.

The consequences of this situation are evident, with a stark gap emerging between the number of qualified teachers needed and the actual quality of those in the profession. In The Teacher Gap, authors Rebecca Allen and Sam Sims delve into this issue by examining the latest findings from fields such as economics, psychology, and education. They aim to uncover the root causes of this disparity and propose actionable solutions to bridge the gap.

Through interviews with both current and former teachers, as well as practical guidance for schools, The Teacher Gap emphasizes the importance of creating a supportive and rewarding career path for educators. The central message of the book is clear: to improve education, we must ensure that teaching becomes a profession that is both respected and valued, providing teachers with the career they deserve.

"This is a powerful book that deserves to be very influential. Readable and searingly thought-provoking, The Teacher Gap offers an alternative view of professional learning and leadership at all levels to finally address the standards agenda. An absolute must-read for all those interested in the future of our profession." - Professor Dame Alison Peacock, DBE, DLitt, Chief Executive, Chartered College of Teaching

"The Teacher Gap has the potential to be one of the seminal works of our time. The impact of the book will be determined by whether we are willing to collectively rise to the challenge within it." - Stephen Tierney, CEO BEBCMAT, Blackpool, author of Liminal Leadership and Chair of the Headteachers’ Roundtable

"This is one of the most important education books written in this country in recent years because it gets to the heart of the biggest challenge our system faces. If you’re a school leader or policy-maker and you’re only going to read one book this year make it this one." - Sam Freedman, Executive Director of Participant Impact and Delivery, Teach First, UK

"I found The Teacher Gap optimistic and inspiring! It reinforced a conviction that we can and must make a difference in how we train, grow and support brilliant teachers within the structure of a "career worth having"." - Caroline Barlow, Headteacher, Heathfield Community College, East Sussex, UK

"I read The Teacher Gap in one sitting and genuinely thought it was coherent, well-written, pragmatically idealistic (or idealistically pragmatic) and very, very relevant." - Keven Bartle, Headteacher, Canons High School, UK

"The Teacher Gap is a fascinating and important book. Sam and Becky’s reflections represent an entirely novel and very significant contribution to the debate." - Leora Cruddas, Chief Executive Officer, Freedom and Autonomy for Schools National Association (FASNA)

"I think it is an excellent account of the state of the teaching profession expounded engagingly through narrative and analysis, with a strong overlay of good research to support the conclusions. It resonated with my own direct and indirect experience as a teacher and a headteacher in many places." - Ian Bauckham CBE, CEO Tenax Schools Trust

ISBN: 9781138730885

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 317g

166 pages