INTRODUCTION
As an introduction to the article, we felt that there should be a few notes on the work in the National Union of Teachers.
1) One of the problems that is faced in any work amongst teachers is that of large numbers of unions (some disguised under the title 'association') which represent fragmentation [illegible] teachers' [illegible]
NUT:- National Union of Teachers. The only union which attempts to repre[sent] [illegible]
NAS:— National Association of Schoolmasters, Traditionally a male superiority stronghold, although this has been played down due to TUC affiliation. Militant but predominantly concerned with the pay and conditions of the career teacher at the expense of the younger and lower paid,
AAM:— Association of Assistant Mistresses.
AMA:— Assistant Masters Association.
[illegible]:— Main support in grammar schools
There are also various head teachers associations Although there is representation on most committees from all unions, they have very diverse interests and consequently little unity of action.
2) Within the NUT itself there are problems of fragmentation. The smallest unit is the school and communication between it and the union depends on the tenuous connection of the school representative — a voluntary position, usually self-appointed, often very [illegible] (in [illegible] schools the need effectively blocks [illegible]) [illegible] to give his permission to the visit.
STRUCTURE OF THE N.U.T.
Area Associations — members elected from the local associations. (In London ILTA [Inner London Teachers Association], the area association meets once a month; in some areas the association meets only once a year, in some cases once every two years.)
Local Associations — committee members are elected by the teachers in the schools; but at this level there is a small amount of Participation, which is partly due to a high proportion of married [illegible] in the union who find it difficult to attend union meetings after school, not at their place of work.
School — many of the members are in small schools where there may be only one or two in the NUT. (Problems of contact and support for action.)
Union policy is of course directed by conference and by the EC which is controlled by head teachers. (On the present EC all are head teachers bar one, the one being a deputy head!)
Work is possible in some of the area associations, eg in ILTA in London, but more importantly there are openings in the work of the local associations,
At present the main work in the union revolves around the fight for an interim pay award in 1970 — the lead for this was given by the action of over 1,000 London teachers on July 9th, with a half day strike and march. The issue of oversized classes will be very important in this academic year, although we must be very conscious to remove this fight from that of salaries, It is possible that the reduction in class size will be used as part of a pay deal, as were school meal duties before,
In the near future, Short will try and foist a Teachers' Council on to the NUT and from the prevailing mood in the schools, it is likely that it will be received with pleasure by many teachers, The whole concept of these councils must be exposed and fought against, although teachers have always wanted the label 'profession,' (The Young Teachers Conference this September had a motion starting: 'Conference believes that in the interests of education and salaries, the NUT must seek all means available to achieve recognition of teaching as a profession ...') However, there is a growing number of teachers who are becoming unionised and [illegible] of themselves as members of a trade union. It is [illegible] able part in giving some cohesion to the work of militants in a union where it is very easy to feel and be isolated,
RANK AND FILE AND ITS ROLE AMONG [illegible]
The half-day strike of 7,000 London teachers on July 9th was significant in two ways: it showed that teachers are angry about the level of their wages and are prepared to act; and that coordinated work by militants can have an important effect. In London, at least, one of the functions of the journal Rank and File is to do this coordinating work. It is a journal concerned with raising NUT [illegible] changing the policies of the union, It specifies its [illegible]:
1. To increase democracy both in the NUT and in schools.
2. [illegible] NUT into a militant union, [illegible] of fighting [illegible]
3. To examine the role and priority of education in society.
(Quoted from Statement of Principles and Aims of Rank and File.)
This statement was drawn up in response to the Militant Teachers Group who had thought out a programme and were working for its acceptance by Rank and File, At the same time this compelled us to examine the nature of our work in the union and our attitude towards education.
There are a number of points which need some clarification in this statement. Militancy alone is not enough (we can appreciate this by looking at the NAS). If this is accepted, then the immediate issues with which we concern ourselves in order to make the NUT into a fighting union have to be approached with a very clear idea of what we are trying to do, Aim 3 is fundamentally political in nature, and a genuinely democratic system of education can only be achieved in a socialist society, Thus the short term goals must be seen as steps on the way to the long term goal and it is this that must guide our general lines of approach. Bearing this in mind we would criticise the loose use of the word 'democracy' and the lumping together of the struggle for democratically run schools and a democratically run Union. The two issues are different, and on the schools issue there is not one issue but many, Strong staff associations whittling away the power of the Head internally and demanding effective representation on governing bodies is of a different order from discussion of the LEAs, which on the face of it are part of the 'democratic' local government structure, At the same time the Union machinery is very 'democratic' on the surface. The use of umbrella terms may well confuse the issue,
Section 2 on the need for NUT militancy is acceptable, and is probably all official policy of the Inner London Teachers' Association, if not of the NUT nationally. The crucial point is pushing for its implementation, This section also states: "... we must no longer see ourselves as superior to other working people, but seek their support by publicising our case'. There are two ideas here and it would be more in place perhaps in Section 3 because we would not only be making teachers conscious of their class, but we would also be emphasising the role of education in our society — its discriminatory attitude towards working-class children, Government policies, cuts in building programmes etc. We have to face the fact that the education system has, over generations, effectively brain washed many working class people as well as teachers. Its function is to do precisely that.
In order to clarify rather than obscure all the complicated issues, it might be possible to see them in two distinct but closely linked perspectives: on the one hand the immediate priorities such as the basic scale, interim award, and class size: on the other hand the raising of socialist consciousness.
The Union determines the amount to be pursued for the basic scale and the way in which it is to be fought for, Here we should not specify amounts in our general programme, but emphasise the priority of the basic scale (and possibly the sliding scale idea) We should also work for the most militant action possible and be aware of all the implications of trying to use the sustentation fund, The idea of regional differentials would, we consider, hamper the long-term perspectives, It would be urging the value of militancy for its own sake, and would divide the Union and would encourage the employers to buy off the militant sections without making the struggle for the basic scale any easier, Would 7,000 London teachers come out on strike for a better basic scale if they were given a really substantial London weighting?
Class size is a pressing issue and will become more so. Government and LEA cuts and sackings of part-time teachers make the present NUT policies important, Issues of control by teachers of their work situation could be raised here rather than the militants setting a specific numerical target. The class teacher should say how many children they can teach effectively.
Strong staff associations are necessary. But what should our attitude be to the position of the Head and demands for representation on governing bodies and LEAs? What are the principles behind these issues? Do we really believe that given the present social and economic system that teachers would really be granted control, and if they were would it be in the interests of achieving the education system we want? If it were being put forward as a transitional demand, we must be careful to link other ideas with it, eg without a fully effective school council, a strong staff association could be a bastion of reaction. The main problem at the root of this confusion seems to be a tendency to examine only the structure of schools, and not to relate it to the aims and methods of the sort of education it provides in the more formal sense. External pressures on the secondary schools will not be limited by changes in the internal structure, nor are these pressures only exercised by boards of governors, LEAs, or even the Government. There are the obvious pressures of higher education, and also the wider factor of the 'technological revolution', the demands of employers for some sort of indication of the leaver's level of formal education, not to mention the demands of pupils and parents for the same sort of thing, Teachers become frustrated and cynical because of how and what they have to teach.
Rank and File have published a pamphlet — 'The Teachers' Charter' which expands many of the ideas put forward in the Aims and Principles document, Most of the criticisms put forward here remain equally valid for that, but we will examine it in more detail in a future issue. Meanwhile, we would see the role of Rank and File as a means of coordinating work in the NUT to raise the standard of militancy, changing the policies of the Union and pressing for the policies of which we approve. The journal should be an open forum for discussion of policies and action, and must question the nature and quality of the content of education. Readers of International who are teachers should take this journal and the groups growing up around it seriously. A weekend school was held on October 11th and 12th in preparation for a national conference to be held in January. Copies and subscriptions are obtainable from Rank and File, 87 Brooke Road, London N16,