Teacher training to deal with violence

Special training in how to control unruly pupils is to be given to teachers working in London.

London schools have seen some shocking examples of pupil violence in recent years. Earlier this month, the Standard revealed that a 15-year-old youth had appeared in court charged with raping a young female teacher at a school in Westminster.

Mr Twigg was speaking as the Government launched a new breed of London super-teachers who will get a ?1,000 bonus for their expertise in skills including behaviour management.

Ministers hope that creating an elite group of Chartered London Teachers will stop the exodus of experienced staff to less stressful jobs in other parts of England.

Mr Twigg said the super teachers would be adept in behaviour management, tackling bullying and dealing with the disruptive effects of a constantly changing pupil population.

Asked whether all teachers who worked in London should have behaviour-management training, he said: "I think that's a very good idea and one we need to consider."

He added that graduates who came into the profession via the fast-track Teach First programme already had such training, as they worked in "some of the toughest" schools. But teachers who were not part of the scheme missed out on the training. Mr Twigg said: "I think we want to make sure that it is a part of the training that all are getting, whether that is in initial teacher training, or as part of their induction when they arrive in London."

Similar ideas have been introduced in America, with successful results. In New York, schools saw their results rocket after the introduction of compulsory eightweek courses that trained teachers how to work in inner-city and multiracial environments.

Mayor Ken Livingstone has said he would do the same if he had control of the capital's schools, given the fact that more than a third of children were from ethnic minorities.

Surveys have shown that a third of teachers believe they will leave the profession within five years - citing horrendous pupil behaviour as the main reason for going. As the problem is particularly bad in London the carrot of an extra ?1,000 after five years is clearly seen as vital. Many schools are already heavily dependent on short-term agency teachers to keep classes staffed.

Last year, the House of Lords ruled that teachers have the right to refuse to have violent pupils in their classes.