Schools spy on teaching staff with CCTV, survey finds

Schools spy on teaching staff with CCTV, survey finds: NASUWT, a UK teaching union, has found that teachers are becoming more and more concerned that their lessons are being watched by their employers, using CCTV and video equipment.

Schools spy on teaching staff with CCTV, survey finds

Schools spy on teaching staff with CCTV, survey finds

The survey of 1,476 teachers discovered that 8 per cent had a CCTV camera in their classroom and of these, 87 per cent were unable to turn the device off.

84 per cent said that the CCTV camera records their lessons constantly.

When looking at why schools are installing CCTV cameras and video equipment in their classrooms, 63 per cent said that it was to keep pupils safe. A further 52 per cent said that the cameras are installed for the safety of staff. On the other hand, 7 per cent said that they were used for monitoring staff performance.

The NASUWT have branded the use of CCTV cameras to spy on teachers as “professionally demeaning”.

When looking at what the recordings have previously been used for, one participant said that a CCTV recording had been used against them after they were forced to restrain a pupil who was physically attacking them.

Another participant said that a recording of a private conversation, in a pigeon hole room, had been showed to the head teacher by a colleague.

NASUWT’s general secretary, Chris Keates, said of the findings: “Which other professionals go to work knowing that day-in and day-out their every move doing their job is being filmed, not for their safety and protection, but to catch them out?”

A separate piece of research by NASUWT found that nearly a quarter of the teachers surveyed had brought in food for hungry pupils.

As well as teachers giving out food personally, 56 per cent said that their school had given out food to pupils in need.

69 per cent of the teachers said that they had seen a child come into school hungry.

The findings also revealed that 32 per cent had taught schools living in temporary accommodation.

One teacher who took part in the survey said: “We are in a leafy rural area and still have children whose families depend on food banks. Changes to benefits have had a major effect on local families and a direct impact on children’s ability to access education.”


 

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