21 December 2015
The Teaching Council notes the concerns expressed by some teachers, following a report in the Sunday Times (20 December 2015), in relation to the payment of the registration fee prior to the commencement of Section 30 of the Teaching Council Acts, 2001-2015. Indeed, the Council expressed its frustration at the delay in commencing this Section of the Teaching Council Acts over a number of years.
While registration was not compulsory for all teachers prior to the eventual commencement of Section 30 on 28 January 2014, the Council has previously clarified that circulars from the Department of Education and Skills did require registration in a number of instances e.g. when taking up new employment, seeking promotion, being offered permanent contracts or applying for career break (see circulars 0016/2008, 0063/2010, 0010/2011 & 0031/2011).
Since its establishment, the Council endeavoured to ensure that all teachers were aware that the commencement of Section 30 would make registration compulsory, and to ensure that every teacher who applied was registered when Section 30 was commenced. We understand that some teachers found the tone of these communications offensive. Our intention, however, was to ensure that teachers were fully prepared for the commencement of Section 30 whenever that happened. This took longer than the Council wished.
It was important that the Council was established on a secure financial footing to enable it to fulfill its wider statutory responsibilities, prior to compulsory registration being introduced through the commencement of Section 30.
The Council would like to thank the Department and all stakeholders, including the management bodies and teacher unions, for their support in ensuring the smooth commencement of Section 30.
The funding generated through the payment of the registration fee directly enabled the Council to reduce the renewal fee from €90 to €65 (€38 net of tax) in 2013, making it the lowest professional registration fee in Ireland. It also enabled the Council, as a professionally-led body, to be independent of State funding.
While it took longer than the Council would have wished for Section 30 to be commenced, nonetheless we are now in a position where every teacher who is paid from public funds is fully qualified and registered, across all sectors. A fully regulated profession had been called for by teachers for decades prior to the establishment of the Council.
The Council has been working to promote professional standards in teaching since its establishment in 2006, some 8 years before the commencement of Section 30. This extensive programme of work includes:
- Review and accreditation of all 69 programmes of Initial Teacher Education covering primary, post-primary and further education, to ensure that they met the standards set by the Council.
- The publication of these standards of Initial Teacher Education in 2011 – Initial Teacher Education: Criteria and Guidelines for Programme Providers. This was followed by the development of School Placement Guidelines and a policy on an enhanced Gaeltacht placement.
- The Code of Professional Conduct for teachers, the second edition of which was published in 2012.
- The launch in May 2007 of a research bursary scheme for registered teachers.
- The Policy on the Continuum of Teacher Education (2011) which set a new context for policy in teacher education and which continues to inform and support all of the Council’s work in this area.
- The commencement of the Council’s functions in the area of induction and probation of Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs) in September 2012. In line with this legal responsibility, the Council commenced the Droichead pilot which now has over 330 schools involved, and which continues to grow as the enhanced route of induction for NQTs.
- The hosting of an annual event to mark World Teachers’ Day for the first time at a national level. This started with the first annual lecture in October 2012, and led to the launch of FÉILTE, the Festival of Education in Learning and Teaching Excellence, in October 2013. FÉILTE has now grown to be one of the largest gatherings of teachers in Ireland, with over 1,000 people engaging in 2015. This event was also a response by the Council to the feedback from many teachers who felt we should do more to promote the profession.
- The granting to all registered teachers in September 2013 of free access to research articles and journals in the EBSCO Education Source collection. This includes over 1,700 journals and over 200 e-books.
- The establishment of a Research Engagement Group of practising teachers to inform and support the Council’s work in the area of connecting research, policy and practice.
- The launch of a draft framework for teachers’ learning, Cosán, which was based on the feedback exclusively from over 3,000 teachers around the country. This draft is now out for consultation with teachers and also with other stakeholders.
- Preparation for the commencement of Fitness to Teach, which is now expected in early 2016.
- Development of advice for the Minister for Education and Skills on matters such as entry criteria and teacher supply.
- The processing of Garda Vetting for all registered teachers, which now averages 15,000 applications per annum.
- Enhanced engagement with the profession through Twitter, regular e-zines and the opening of phone lines from 9am to 5pm, five days a week.
- The development, establishment and maintenance of the largest register of professionals in Ireland – now over 91,000. Such an operation at a logistical level takes time to do correctly, and it was essential that it be in place in advance of the actual commencement date.
Given the legal responsibilities of the Council since its establishment in 2006, the extensive range of its work programme, the fact that the renewal fee is one of the lowest of professional standards bodies in Ireland, and the forthcoming expansion of the Council’s functions in teachers’ learning and Fitness to Teach, the Council will not be refunding fees previously paid.
