§ Mr. Madelasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how he intends to operate the system of teacher appraisal as demanded by the Education Act 1986 and the new conditions of employment for teachers following the decision of the National Union of Teachers and the National Association of Schoolmasters and the National Union of Women Teachers to boycott teacher appraisal pilot schemes; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. RumboldI expect preparatory work and training for appraisal to go ahead in the summer term in the six pilot local education authorities with the assistance of consultants commissioned by the Department. It remains our objective to arrive at a national framework for teacher appraisal agreed by the teachers' associations and the local education authority employers. I hope that the trade unions concerned will have reconsidered their recent withdrawal by the time work has progressed to a point where actual appraisals of teachers would be conducted. I believe it is very much in the interests of teachers, from the standpoints of career development, job satisfaction and public recognition of their professionalism, that appraisal should be successfully brought into operation, as well as in the interests of education authorities and of pupils.