ACTS welcome being consulted upon the new suite of Standards, and specific members valued being invited to join the writing group for The Standard for Career Long Professional Development (SCLPL). It is clear from our reading of the new suite of Standards that there is a very close relationship between these and the Standard for Chartered Teacher. The focus on teacher leadership and leadership for learning and the aspirational nature of the standards is to be welcomed.

Overall, these standards align very well to promote a coherent and connected approach to delivering effective teaching and learning in Scottish schools. The clear definitions of how each area of responsibility meshes should encourage stronger self-evaluation, critical enquiry and improvement processes for all. With regard to the role of Chartered Teachers within this framework of standards, we share the following observations, alignments with our standard, and points to note.

The Standard for Full Registration

The emphasis on interdisciplinary learning, learning across the curriculum, using contexts for learning effectively and pedagogy is welcome. The statements regarding working with others – for curricular reasons and to enable links with individuals and groups out-with school are also advantageous.

Effective use is made of diagrams throughout the standards – see note below regarding SCLPL. The organisational use of Professional Values and Commitments, Professional Dispositions, Professional Knowledge, Understanding, Skills & Abilities and Professional Actions throughout helps to unify aims and responsibilities for all.

The Standard for Career Long Professional Development (SCLPL)

There are many aspects of this standard which echo elements of the Chartered Teacher programme and overlap with our standard:

• Reflection on practice which informs self-directed on-going professional development
• The application of self-evaluation processes as part of this reflection
• Clear statements of the ways in which this reflection could be targeted
• The integrated use of professional enquiry to develop and improve impact on learners
• The ability to habitually source and use educational research to inform on-going professional development
• Fostering networks of influence which enhance professional reflection and inform enquiry projects or developments to practice – being collegial is now a defined part of being an accomplished professional
• Encouragement of the active engagement with current issues like global citizenship within teaching and learning – engaging with real world, controversial issues including education policy and issues which are topical in society
• On-going academic study

Points to note:

• The additional element of “Professional Dispositions” as set out , unlike the other three elements, has no  actual descriptors  of what it  translates to,  despite it being  part of the diagram (SCLPL , Pg 6)  in a rightful and important place to encircle  “Professional Values and Personal Commitments and  illustrated as being  integral to  developing  “Professional Actions” and “Professional Knowledge,  Skills and Abilities”.    As every quality specified within Professional Dispositions is already shown or implied elsewhere in the Standard, particularly  in Values and Personal Commitments  it comes across as overly complex  to create four separate elements in the Standard when  by incorporating  “Professional Dispositions” into” Values and Personal Commitments” would simplify  the document as a working tool.
• The description of the multiple phases through which a teacher might progress throughout their career is welcome and acknowledges an existing progression familiar to most. However, the brevity of the descriptions of “Accomplished” and “Leading” could lead to misinterpretation of the timescale and relative value of each of these phases. Although the text explains these phases and the need for individual exploration of these very well, it may imply that “Leading” is a progression from “Accomplished”, and is therefore more valuable. This engenders a view of the accomplished role of a classroom practitioner as the lesser of the two. The central aim of the Chartered Teacher programme as a way in which to acknowledge the value and vitality of retaining accomplished teachers in the classroom seems to be contained in these statements. If this standard aims to champion the importance of expert classroom teaching, it needs to communicate this message more strongly. Perhaps another diagram or adaptation of the existing diagram in order to express the inter-changeability or potential pathways through this would be helpful to express this better and to avoid any wrongful prioritisation or assumptions.
• To what extent can the criteria offered be effectively mapped against individuals on their career journey through a balance of PRD/PLD, teaching experience, formal qualifications and evidence of commitment to career long development and indeed by whom?  Will external agencies be involved along with line managers? Greater clarity would be valuable around this and delineation between levels within SCLPL and transition from SCPL to SLM. It will be difficult to quantify because these criteria are qualitative and benchmarking would have to come into this.  More information about the processes or criteria to be applied for a teacher to make the transition to the Standard for Leadership and Management once he or she fulfils or surpasses the criteria of “Leading” re the Middle Standard (SCLPL) is required. According to the elements set out in both documents, working at the upper end of SCLPL and well within SLM at the level of Middle Manager can in fact be inseparable.   That said, it is notable that nowhere in the SLM does the word classroom appear and it speaks of “educational communities” and “teaching and learning”.   It seems tacit that those “aspiring to leadership roles” are seen as on a continuum leading to management.
• How can sustained professional learning as expressed take place unless Universities and access to quality academic interchange and challenge is offered as an entitlement. For example, releasing teachers from classes during the working day to move within their communities to collaborate between schools and across sectors would be a requirement if the elements suggested are to be fairly facilitated and applied.   Systems are not in place to allow this to be universally facilitated in all LEAs for all interested teachers. A recurrent issue for chartered teachers has been that their abilities to engage with a range of literature and research in order to inform and change policy and practice, where appropriate, is governed by budgets for cover, but also by the openness of line managers to facilitate this in the working day.  Teacher professional development as defined by the SCLPL may be vulnerable to the same potential for misappropriation in the allocation of support.
• How can one become accomplished if not offered a role to formally take forward learning?  Will the SLM ensure that HTs govern and allocate opportunity fairly?

The Standard for Leadership and Management

The clear definition of leadership in all of its forms is welcome, as is the definition of management and the emphasis on distributed leadership. This standard demonstrates strong integration with elements of the Chartered Teacher programme and standard, including:

• The use of coaching and mentoring and collaborative programmes to improve learning outcomes for colleagues and pupils
• 3.2 Professional Knowledge and Understanding are all reminiscent of CT standard, as are 3.2.1, 3.2.2, and part of 3.2.3
• Elements of 3.3 Personal Dispositions and Interpersonal Skills – self-awareness, questioning of practice through reflective processes and critical enquiry, analysis of current practice used to inform enquiries into improvements, effective communication in order to achieve impact, engagement with the politics involved in education
• Elements of 4.1 Professional Actions relating to self-evaluation
• Chartered Teachers will value the stated commitments to structured and tailored professional development stated in  4.2.3 and 4.2.4
• The term “leadership roles” is open to different interpretation by different HTs.  For example, it is surely different to lead or contribute to a cross- city initiative rather than to lead an eco-group within a small rural school

Points to note:

• The delay in publishing the framework for Educational Leadership and Development is unhelpful in evaluating the efficacy and practicality of both SCLPL and the Standard for Leadership and Management.  Until, this can be held against both SCLPL and SLM any evaluation can only be half informed.
• This standard defines the role of head teacher really well, so that, if adhered to, a chartered or “accomplished” teacher would be encouraged and enabled to very effectively increase the quality and impact of teaching and learning on pupils.
• This standard could be viewed as being intent on closing the gap between leadership and management.  Management is described as being the “operational implementation and maintenance of the practices and systems required to achieve change (and as outlined in the document this is to be first brought about through effective leadership). Many chartered teachers are functioning at this level when given the freedom, right and position to do so and may be perceived, in this respect, as currently functioning as managers within the SLM Standard.
• Some elements of this standard continue to convey and affirm the commonly held impression that educational leadership sustains and maintains a top down process of influence and control.

The Professional Actions of Middle Leaders as described in the standard align particularly well with the Chartered Teacher standard also:

• 5.1.1 Professional self-evaluation methods and processes which impact further
• Leading and influencing others in critical analysis of practice
• 5.1.4 identification and use of knowledge from literature and other sources to inform improvement processes
• 5.3 “To lead and work collaboratively to enhance teaching which leads to high quality learning experiences” – seems to be written for the role of CTs and implies that CTs could contribute greatly to this element of improving educational provision

Points to note:

• “Middle leaders have line management responsibility” and therefore this implies that only those prepared to accept this will be encompassed within this standard.
• The fact remains that many head teachers have themselves not undertaken formal academic studies, many colleagues choose to simply tick along (due to pressure of different home/work pressures)  while others are dedicated  to a fault. Yes, these standards  are indeed “aspirational” for those who have not already aspired to and successfully undertaken academic studies at a high level , who have “deep subject/curriculum knowledge and pedagogical expertise and  have, already developed the dispositions necessary to be “knowledge  creators curriculum, developers… etc ”
• Chartered teachers may vary in their desire and motivation to operate within the Standard for Middle Managers. Some will relish the opportunity to access their entitlement to lead professional dialogue and teams as the SLM suggests.  Some will feel that being defined as accomplished teachers will not allow them to demonstrate their knowledge, skills and ability to promote learning for pupils and colleagues effectively.  Is there a way in which to allow CTs a choice in which standard they wish to meet? Can we gain some clarity over where and how the Standard for Chartered Teacher now fits?
• The role of chartered teachers within any standard remains dependent on the leadership and dynamics in their schools and establishments and they cannot be judged or assessed on their efficacy in this role within the constraints which may be imposed upon them.

Whether what is set out in the Standards is a practical and attainable representation of what can be achieved by all teachers , the vast majority of whom are class committed, and subject to constraints such as access to quality CPD and PR to facilitate this, will be tested as these Standards embed in practice. These standards should enable teachers in the classroom to realise that they are the future – the makers and shakers of learning, responsive to change, sharing values as a priority, taking on challenge and meeting it.    This suite of standards is aspirational,  a continuum, and as human nature dictates,  will no doubt allow many to exercise their own limits and progress as far as they wish to at any given time in their career.  They define the formal requirement of accountability for all involved in education and it is in full awareness of their importance that ACTS offer these comments which we hope will be helpful before finalisation of the suite.

Colleagues,

I am delighted to announce that the ACTS committee has agreed a 12-month deal with The College of Teachers at the Institute of Education in London, to provide ACTS members with free access to the education research resource, EBSCO Education Research Complete (click here for information).

It will be for individual ACTS members to decide whether they complete, or give permission to the ACTS committee to complete on their behalf, The College of Teacher’s pre-access registration process.

I can confirm that present ACTS members, and those who renew their ACTS membership for 2013, will not be required to make any payment for this 12-month access to EBSCO Education Research Complete.

I would like to thank Matthew Martin, CEO of The College of Teachers; and Tony Luby, ACTS committee member, for their work in securing this innovative arrangement.

I intend to issue full details to members on Friday, 12th October regarding registration and how to begin using the resource.

Please contact me if you have a query.

David Noble, ACTS Chair

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ACTS received a reply from Drew Morrice, Assistant Secretary of the EIS and Joint Secretary of the SNCT, at the beginning of October (click here to open the letter).

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[START]

The committee of the Association of Chartered Teachers (ACTS) wish to thank each of the three parties to the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) for reaching an agreement on Chartered Teacher (click left to open SNCT Circular 12/35) that will enable all those on the Chartered Teacher Pay Spine to continue to play a career-long role that makes an enhanced contribution to the quality of teaching and learning in Scotland, whether in school or across the wider educational community. We support the expectation of the SNCT that Chartered Teachers be “leaders of learning” (Updated Code of Practice on the Role of the Chartered Teacher). ACTS recently envisioned the ongoing role of Chartered Teachers as such.

The committee recognise that the SNCT have a full work schedule and we are grateful that agreement has been reached by the end of school session 2011/12. This enables Chartered Teachers to begin to envision their own future role and contribution, for example through building on established relationships with school managers and leaders, or utilising new systems of Professional Review and Learning (or Development) (PRL/D).

The newly published Updated Code of Practice on the Role of the Chartered Teacher (detailed in the SNCT guidance on the Role and Enhanced Contribution of Chartered Teachers) and the existing Standard for Chartered Teacher requires to be fully understood by management as they engage in trusting and respectful dialogue.

We note that the “SNCT continues to recognise that Chartered Teachers and those who were working towards achieving the Standard (for Chartered Teacher) bring benefits to the school or wider educational community through the impact of their professional actions”, and that such individuals “remain primarily classroom teachers and should not be regarded as part of the school’s management structure.” (SNCT guidance on the Role and Enhanced Contribution of Chartered Teachers)

The ACTS committee welcome the updating of the 2009 Code of Practice on the Role of the Chartered Teacher. We believe that The Role and Enhanced Contribution of Chartered Teachers document, contained within SNCT Circular 12/35, is fit-for-purpose and complements the Standard for Chartered Teacher.

The committee appreciate the intensive work of The General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) and partners to produce the new ‘suite’ of Professional Standards. Two ACTS committee members have been involved in writing the (presently-titled) Standard for Career-Long Professional Learning. ACTS will contribute to the Standards consultation later in 2012. Presently, the committee believe that the Standard for Chartered Teacher; with its focus on Educational and social values, Critical self-evaluation and development, Impact and evidence of sustained enhanced practice, and Collaboration with, and influence on, colleagues; remains relevant to the professionalism and practice of teachers on the CT Pay Spine.

The ACTS committee are comfortable with the following list of professional actions, expanded upon in the Updated Code of Practice on the Role of the Chartered Teacher:

(a)        Leading and/or contributing to focused projects to initiate change at school, cluster or authority level;

(b)        Supporting, advising and mentoring colleagues in developing their skills of professional reflection, self-evaluation and continuous improvement;

(c)        Developing and evaluating aspects of the curriculum and leading curricular change and assessment in the school;

(d)        Leading in-service on research work on educational development; and

(e)        Promoting and developing effective relationships with pupils, parents, stakeholders and the wider community.

We note that the SNCT state an individual’s contribution “must … reflect the Chartered Teacher’s own expertise which will take account of their teaching experience, interests, Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and programmes of study undertaken.” (Updated Code of Practice)

We request that the SNCT, LNCTs, national bodies, school management, and teachers on the CT Pay Spine engage with the updated Code, and that national and local leaders assist in its promotion and implementation through committing themselves to the Code’s principles.

The ACTS committee are deeply disappointed that it appears some Chartered Teacher candidates may be unable to complete their studies within the Chartered Teacher Scheme at a point which they had ‘set out’ to reach. Early responses to Circular 12/35 from ACTS members and others indicate some confusion regarding the circumstances, up to 30^th June 2013, under which current Chartered Teacher candidates will gain recognition for recent, ongoing or future professional learning; or successful resubmission of earlier assessments or ‘claims’.

With a deadline of 21^st September 2012 for the SNCT Joint Secretaries to consider ‘exceptional circumstances’, ACTS will be advising current Chartered Teacher candidates to contact the SNCT at the earliest possible opportunity. Those successful in applying for dispensation to continue their studies up to 30^th June 2013 will need a lead-in time to arrange study opportunities with their Chartered Teacher provider. ACTS intend to contact the GTCS and all Chartered Teacher providers over the next two months, in order to gain an impression of how the updated Code is ‘playing out’ nationally for Chartered Teacher candidates.

ACTS will continue to make key contributions to the “advancement of education” through the enhanced professionalism and practice of Chartered Teachers working in Scotland. We aim to improve networking between Chartered Teachers and other educationists, through attracting to the association many more teachers who are on the CT Pay Spine. The ACTS committee are working hard to organise our 2013 Winter Conference, where we will continue our work around sharing and co-constructing excellent professionalism, through Chartered Teachers engaging with practice, policy and research. The theme and details of this event will be announced in September.

Members of the association have been involved in some of the work of the National Partnership Group, taking forward the recommendations of ‘The Donaldson Report’. One focus that we have engaged with is the successful implementation of future systems of PRL/D. In light of the updated Code, we will continue to contribute to discourse around this and hope that others, such as local authorities, will share ‘good practice’ around PRL/D for Chartered Teachers.

Returning to the contents of Circular 12/35, the committee find the illustrative (and not exhaustive) examples contained within the updated Code to be helpful. However, the following points have been raised:

• We are not comfortable with the suggestion that Chartered Teachers might “assist in supporting underperforming teachers”, and ask if this is materially different from established notions of “supporting” or “mentoring”.
• ACTS have continually highlighted difficulties with teachers “access(ing) relevant research” once academic programmes of study end. To fulfil this specific role and contribution, Chartered Teachers must be provided with wide access to research literature.
• We agree that Chartered Teachers “develop relationships beyond the school”. However, post ‘McCormac Report’ there is concern that it will become increasingly difficult for teachers to be provided with sufficient time or permission from school managers.
• In relation to PRL/D processes for Chartered Teachers, there may be a need in some educational establishments to raise awareness or build capacity and time for school managers to discharge their role effectively.
• The updated Code appears to differentiate, according to the point on which they are placed on the CT Scale, the degree or amount of ‘role and enhanced contribution’ a teacher will take on or make. Clarification will be required around how such differentiation ought to be made by Chartered Teachers and managers, where there is a general expectation that all on the CT Scale continue to be ‘class committed’ for 22.5 hours within a 35-hour working week. This matter also raises the question of whether teachers on Points 1-5 of the CT Scale will be known as, and considered to be, Chartered Teachers.
• We would like to ask the SNCT if there will be an appeals procedure for teachers on the CT Pay Spine who ask the Joint Secretaries for consideration of ‘exceptional circumstances’ and who are, in the first instance, refused dispensation to continue their studies up to 30^th June 2013.

In conclusion, the Updated Code of Practice on the Role of the Chartered Teacher and Circular 12/35 are supported by the ACTS committee. This SNCT agreement ensures that all teachers on the Chartered Teacher Pay Spine will be visible in their school and/or authority, having negotiated with their managers how their enhanced professionalism best improves teaching and learning, and outcomes for young people. The Association of Chartered Teachers Scotland will, as ever, work with a wide range of individuals, national and government agencies, and professional organisations to support the effectiveness of Chartered Teachers and the quality of education across Scotland.

David Noble, ACTS Chair, on behalf of the ACTS committee

1^st July 2012

[END]

The ACTS committee will fully respond once the exact wording of the SNCT agreement on Chartered Teacher is published later this month.

[Beginning of statement]

I thank the parties to the SNCT for reaching agreement, thereby ending the uncertainty for the over one thousand Chartered Teachers working across education in Scotland.

The agreement will allow each of us to continue to make an enhanced contribution to teaching and learning, planned and agreed through respectful and collegial PRD dialogue.

With regards to “exceptions to no further salary progression”, I ask that the SNCT respectfully consider the position of those Chartered Teacher candidates who are in the latter stages of their long and committed ‘journey’.

Following publication of the final version of the agreement, I will communicate to the SNCT issues and potential issues around implementation as ‘flagged up’ by ACTS members and others.

ACTS continues to play a relevant role in the advancement of education and I look forward to the association engaging with future discussions around ‘The Role and Enhanced Contribution of Chartered Teachers’.

David Noble, ACTS Chair

1st June 2012

[End of statement]

Dear colleague

I would like to invite you to attend the next ACTS event, to be held at Hilhead High School in Glasgow on Saturday 26th May. Please email actscotland@yahoo.com if you plan to attend.

9.15 (for 9.30am) – 11.30am: ACTS engagement meeting with Education Scotland around the matter of ‘Moving forward with teacher professional learning’ (pre-event notes will be issued upon confirming attendance). An ACTS committee meeting will follow this meeting, to which all are invited.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Regards

David Noble

The Association of Chartered Teachers Scotland (ACTS) present the following points, to be considered by the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT), regarding matters of pay and conditions of Chartered Teachers and teachers on the Chartered Teacher Pay Spine.

This statement has been developed from views recorded during a specially convened open meeting of Chartered Teachers and other educationists on 3^rd March 2012, and opinions submitted to the ACTS committee.

ACTS’ aims include supporting our members and making representation on matters affecting them. Therefore we present the following points, intended to ensure fair and just treatment for all Chartered Teachers and teachers on the Chartered Teacher Pay Spine, including those currently ‘frozen’ in the middle of their Masters level studies, while maintaining the opportunities for Chartered Teachers and teachers on the Chartered Teacher Pay Spine to make a difference to pupils in schools.

ACTS contend that a fair and just SNCT agreement must ensure that:

• full Chartered Teacher status remains for all fully accredited Chartered Teachers,  irrespective of whether, in gaining such status, they followed the GTCS ‘accreditation of prior learning’ (APL) or university Masters route.

• the SNCT’s Code of Practice on the Role of the Chartered Teacher remains the context in which Chartered Teachers work.

• a Chartered Teacher Pay Spine continues to be recognised and applied, where ‘performance review and development’ (PRD) procedures confirm that accredited Chartered Teachers are working within the requirements of the Code of Practice on the Role of the Chartered Teacher or any new, agreed Standard or Code which may emerge.

• those who have pursued their studies beyond Module 1 of the currently ‘frozen’ Chartered Teacher Scheme are recognised and accommodated on the Chartered Teacher Pay Spine. When these teachers gain their Masters, they should be given parity with fully accredited Chartered Teachers in terms of pay and expectations regarding their role.

• PRD discussion should involve professional dialogue between a Chartered Teacher and a senior member of staff who is familiar with the Standard for Chartered Teacher (or subsequent Standard) and the Code of Practice on the Role of the Chartered Teacher. Discussions should reflect on the previous year, in light of the relevant Standard and Code, and plan the following year taking account of individual, local and national priorities. It is the line manager’s responsibility to identify opportunities for the Chartered Teacher to meet or exemplify the Standard and Code through, for example, taking initiatives, leading developments or mentoring others, as appropriate.

• the fundamental difference between Principal Teacher and Chartered Teacher is clearly understood by all who make policy which affects both roles.  Managers need to understand and manage the potential and skills of Chartered Teachers in their establishments in ways which will provide ‘added value’.

Download statement as PDF here.

Following the ACTS committee meeting and open meeting at the Stirling Management Centre on 3rd March 2012, a working group, comprising three ACTS committee members and one ACTS member, was formed to formally respond to the GTCS’ Consultation on a scheme of Professional Update.

The response was sent to the GTCS before the deadline on 12th March. Please click on the link below to open the response in a new window.

ACTS working group – response to GTCS consultation

Please consider leaving a comment, below, or email actscotland@yahoo.com.

On behalf of the association, I would like to thank the members of the working group for their excellent work.

David Noble, ACTS Chair

This statement from the ACTS committee is the association’s response to the Official Report (click on the link to open) of the Scottish Government’s update on next steps in relation to ‘Advancing Professionalism in Teaching’.

——

[START OF STATEMENT]  ACTS welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to rigorous, intellectual professional learning opportunities which assist teachers in improving teaching and learning.

ACTS look forward to working with the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS), Education Scotland, and the National Partnership Group (NPG) to identify the most successful aspects of the current Chartered Teacher scheme, and to then collaborate on creating and embedding a sustainable future model.

ACTS wish to contribute to the creation of frameworks for career development which are available to all teachers; which recognise and develop accomplished teaching and learning, and ensure that young people benefit from learning with Masters-qualified teachers; and which motivate excellent and well-qualified teachers to enjoy a long career in the profession.

ACTS note the Scottish Government’s wish for all new arrangements to be in place for August 2013. ACTS call on the tripartite Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) to agree to ‘unfreeze’ progression on the Chartered Teacher pay spine from April 2012 until August 2013 for those teachers who have not yet completed their journey through the current Chartered Teacher programme. These teachers should be encouraged to complete their present studies and to go on to make an enhanced contribution to the quality of Scottish education. The SNCT must not breach the trust and ‘good faith’ of this cohort of teachers.

In light of the recent successful ACTS annual conference, the ACTS committee has begun work envisioning the professionalism and professional actions of teachers, including Chartered Teachers, who will in the future work at or towards the ‘middle’ Professional Standard, currently being developed by the GTCS.

ACTS will present an initial outline at the association’s next event in Stirling on Saturday 3^rd March, to which the Scottish Government, Education Scotland, GTCS, the NPG and others will be invited.  [END OF STATEMENT – 295 words]

——

The Association of Chartered Teachers Scotland (ACTS) is a professional association for Chartered Teachers and teachers ‘on the route’ to becoming Chartered.

The association has the following aims:

• To support the community of Chartered Teachers
• to encourage communication and collaboration between Chartered Teachers
• to encourage the provision of appropriate level CPD opportunities for Chartered Teachers
• to develop awareness of the professional identity of Chartered Teachers
• to make representation on issues affecting those in ACTS.

ACTS was formed in 2008 and is run by a voluntary committee. The association’s website is at http://acts.edublogs.org and the committee can be contacted at actscotland@yahoo.com.

Following publication of the McCormac Report, ACTS led the Chartered Teacher Futures campaign to retain and move forward the Chartered Teacher scheme and the work of Chartered Teachers.

The current ACTS committee note the article on Chartered Teacher in The Herald of Saturday, 28th January, which includes the following quote from a Scottish Government spokesperson: “The Cabinet Secretary has committed to discussing the recommendations of the McCormac Review with education partners before taking decisions on next steps … These discussions are ongoing” (http://bit.ly/yhMW86).

We also note the article by Henry Hepburn in the TESS of Friday, 3rd February (http://bit.ly/zNQ5CB).

The new ACTS committee, which will form at the AGM after the conference on Saturday, is likely to await the Ministerial Statement on the Review of Teacher Employment (the ‘McCormac Report’) on Thursday, 9th February (http://t.co/Ph6mFa5u) before issuing its response.

Since inception, ACTS have maintained an open, trustful and cordial relationship with the Learning Directorate and others within the Scottish Government.

Following the brief response, above, of the Scottish Government to the ‘leak’ in The Herald, the ACTS committee is now in a position to confirm that a meeting took place on Tuesday, 10th January at St Andrew’s House, Edinburgh, between a small group of ACTS committee members and the Cabinet Secretary, Michael Russell.

Also, on two occasions during January the ACTS committee met with staff from the Learning Directorate of the Scottish Government.

The specific focus and content of each of these meetings remains confidential, however the ACTS committee can confirm that the Scottish Government wish to consult with the association and others on both the future of Chartered Teacher, and one of the main recommendations of the ‘Donaldson Report’: that teacher education, learning and development policies contribute towards teaching becoming a ‘Masters level profession’.

The ACTS committee wish to stress that between mid-December and the present time, the stance of the ACTS committee in all its communications and engagements, including meetings with the Scottish Government, has remained rooted in ACTS’ formal ‘Response to the McCormac Report’ (http://bit.ly/w6veGa).

Throughout the recent ‘Chartered Teacher Futures’ campaign, ACTS has made a firm commitment to work with all across Scottish education to improve each aspect of Chartered Teacher. The association’s work has resulted in a coherent set of proposals (see ACTS’ Response, above). These are complemented by the conclusions of Professor Brian Hudson in his paper, ‘Chartered Teachers Matter: Envisioning their futures as leaders of learning’ (http://bit.ly/zHXqkX).

Members of the new ACTS committee are likely to make themselves available to take these proposals forward, in partnership with other bodies and policy groups.

Dialogue may also be entered into around others’ proposals.

Remaining at the heart of the work of the new ACTS committee will be the association’s aims, which include making representation on issues affecting members of the association.

ACTS committee members will be listening carefully throughout the conference, particularly during the learning conversations following Professor Brian Hudson’s morning keynote. A brief account of each learning conversation will be recorded by facilitators and made available to the committee and others, prior to the new committee making a formal response to the Ministerial Statement. ACTS members and others will be encouraged to contact the committee after the conference with their current thoughts on the future of Chartered Teacher.

Presently, it is expected that the new committee will make a response on behalf of the association within twenty-four hours of the Ministerial Statement.

ACTS response to the ‘McCormac Report’

‘Chartered Teachers Matter: Envisioning their Future as Leaders of Learning’, Professor Brian Hudson

Dear colleague

ACTS recently published our response to the ‘McCormac Report’ and Professor Brian Hudson’s paper, commissioned by ACTS, entitled ‘Chartered Teachers Matter: Envisioning their Future as Leaders of Learning’. Please click on the links above to open each paper.

Regards

David Noble, Chair of ACTS