A leading teaching union has warned the introduction of a faculty structure in Dundee schools will create roles that are “too big to manage” and could force educators to take industrial action.
Dundee City Council is the only local authority in Scotland still using the old system of principal teachers for individual subject. Councillors agreed to push ahead with the change as part of a range of budget cuts announced earlier this year.
The new system will see one educator given responsibility for a group of subjects.
Schools have been asked to submit proposals for how their faculties would look by June 21.
Educators have repeatedly questioned whether the change will deliver any substantial rise in attainment in Dundee schools and hit out after it emerged council bosses were unable to say how much the plan will cost.
The Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association (SSTA), the city’s second largest teaching union, is expected to release the results of a consultative ballot of Dundee members on the proposal on Thursday.
General secretary Seamus Searson said he anticipated the “vast majority” will reject the move and warned it has already led to “disillusioned and demoralised” teachers in Dundee.
He said: “The proposed restructuring exercise is a crude attempt to dismantle and reduce management structures within secondary schools without any educational foundation and a total lack of understanding of how secondary schools operate.
“The existing system of principal teacher of subjects in secondary schools has been under attack in many parts of Scotland for a number of years purely to reduce school expenditure with little regard to the important part subject specialist principal teacher’s play in supporting teaching and learning”.
Mr Searson said the union would consider industrial action if Dundee City Council does not meet with leaders to discuss the findings of the ballot.
“I don’t think the council are taking this seriously but it has caused a great deal of concern for our members,” he said. “If they are not prepared to meet with us, we will consider industrial action.”
Stewart Hunter, convener of Dundee City Council’s children and families service committee, said: “The policy and resources committee agreed at its meeting on February 21, when the council’s budget was set, that there would be a change to the structure of secondary school management.
“In common with every other council in Scotland we want to introduce curriculum leaders who will cover a family of subjects with enhanced whole school leadership responsibility.
“This will be phased in over three years when opportunities arise and compulsory redundancies are not part of the plan.
“The new model will allow teachers to teach and give school managers more time to lead on the many complex issues associated with the day to day running of schools.
“The council has met with trade unions to discuss the implementation and those discussions will continue.”
