WRR: 'Working in education is intensive and pays poorly'
Working in education is becoming increasingly difficult and wages are relatively low. The government must therefore 'value, organize and finance' this work differently. This is the view of the Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR) in its recent report 'The Better Work'. 'As a major employer, the government should set a good example in its personnel policy - practice what you preach'.
Working in education is becoming increasingly intensive, the WRR points out. 'A primary school teacher still spends the same number of hours in front of the class, but has been given many additional tasks. Such as administration, dealing with many different children and, last but not least, the increasingly empowered parents. '
Teachers also have few options to organize their work themselves, just like employees in the care sector or the police. 'And too little grip on work is partly related to the increasing number of burnout complaints,' says the WRR.
At a quarter past five, Miss Marijke turns off her computer. She didn't get to more than half of her to-do list
The report is about jobs in the Netherlands in the broadest sense of the word, but also gives an insight into the daily work of some professionals - from an accountant to teacher 'Marijke'.
Salt
'Differentiation and customization are the magic words in the classroom', says the story about Marijke. "With 29 heads looking at her, that's top sport." They are regularly tested to monitor the development of the children. However, the scores do not take into account the circumstances of the individual child. 'That is why Marijke takes the results with a grain of salt', writes the WRR. 'But the tests take a big chunk out of teaching time and require a lot of administration: everything has to be recorded in digital tracking systems. Marijke does this partly at home. '
Autonomy
And then 'appropriate education' has also been added in recent years. 'The profession is changing a lot. In order for students to perform with all their differences, coordination and attunement is necessary. Teaching is increasingly becoming teamwork and that means the teacher's loss of autonomy. '
It is half past five when Marijke leaves the school, ten hours after she entered
'At a quarter past five Marijke switches off her computer', the WRR concludes, 'and checks her to-do list of today. She did not get around to more than half. Tonight she will do her e-mails at home. It is half past five when she leaves the school, ten hours after she entered. '
Sickness absence
The result of the weight and division of the work is that teachers, of all professionals, score the highest on workload. 'The absenteeism rate is 50 percent higher than the average for all professions,' says the WRR.
According to the WRR, it is therefore not surprising that many teachers work part-time. 'Part-time work, if chosen by yourself, can offer protection against the intensification of work.' In primary education, one of the reasons for part-time work is that being a teacher is too demanding for a full-time job.
Wages
The conclusion of the WRR is that a number of public professions, including education, are struggling with the combination of 'relatively low wages, far-reaching intensification of work and reduction of autonomy at work.' Therefore, this work should be 'valued, organized and financed' differently. 'As a major employer, the government should set a good example in its personnel policy - practice what you preach'.
