Incompetent teacher may keep career

Nov 25 2008 by Les Stewart, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

A PERTHSHIRE teacher could become the FIRST in Scotland to be struck off for serious professional incompetence.

Perth and Kinross Council sacked 55-year-old Susan Barnard amid concerns about her performance at Arngask, Coupar Angus and Comrie Primaries between 2003-2006.

Now, in a landmark case, she faces being struck off by the General Teaching Council Scotland (GTCS).

At a hearing in Edinburgh, she admitted a catalogue of charges of failing to plan coherent teaching programmes, failing to communicate clearly with pupils and failing to manage their behaviour.

The hearing has now been adjourned to December 3 when Mrs Barnard will return to hear her fate.

But her solicitor, Andrew Gibb, said she hoped she would be able to return to the classroom.

He explained she was doing supply work for another council and hoped to keep her teaching registration.

He added: “Clearly she's extremely concerned about what the future holds for her.”

He hopes to present compelling evidence in mitigation, which will enable her to keep her registration.

Removal from the register would prevent her from taking jobs elsewhere.

Robbie Burnett, lawyer for the regulatory body GTCS, told the committee on Friday that “despite significant management support” over an extended period of time to address areas of concern, Mrs Barnard had failed to meet the standards required in her performance.

Until now, teachers have only been struck off for serious misconduct, such as pocketing school funds or forming an inappropriate relationship with a pupil.

But a change in legislation in 2006 allowed the profession's regulator to hold disciplinary hearings on incompetence.

Mrs Barnard was born in Manchester but trained as a teacher in New Zealand.

A spokesman for Perth and Kinross Council said yesterday that they didn’t comment on individual cases.

He added: “We are committed to providing excellent education services. This requires the right teachers to be working to the right standards and we give every support to help our teachers do their job.

“However, our priority overall must be to deliver high quality services for our pupils. We take all appropriate action to achieve this.”

Gordon Smith, from the Association of Headteachers and Deputies, called for more cases to be brought regulatory body.

Until now, if a teacher was deemed incompetent, they were merely moved to another school because of the “complex and sometimes Byzantine” process of bringing a case against them.

He added: “I wouldn't wish this on anyone but we have to realise this is an issue in Scottish education that perhaps we've ignored.

“If you were an employer with nearly 50,000 staff, you would probably assume that 1-1.5% had competency difficulties, so for this to be the first case to come forward is surprising for everyone.

“Imagine it was your child that was in that class and a teacher with 10 years' experience will have perhaps ruined the education of 300 children.”

l In England, about 10 teachers a year are charged with alleged incompetence by the GTC.