ATL: Pupils under intolerable strain
Wednesday, 19 Mar 2008 12:09
School pupils are under "intolerable strain" from an education system that focuses on exam success, the general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) has warned.
Dr Mary Bousted said a survey conducted by the union has revealed that there is an "an increasing number of cases of self-harm and eating disorders brought on by stress".
Testing, exams and family break-up were cited by teachers as the biggest causes of stress in their pupils.
"From an early age, children face the pressure to perform in tests to boost their schools' league tables," Dr Bousted explained.
"Then they take on parental demands to get into their choice of secondary school and later university. They are anxious to fit in with their peers, and then when they don't fit in, are bullied via text, email and social networking sites."
The survey also revealed that just 18 per cent of teachers believe local services to support children with emotional and behavioural problems are sufficiently joined up, a finding Dr Bousted described as "alarming".
"Local services to support distressed children are over-burdened by demand, with some services still not sharing information on cases," she added.
"As ever, teachers pick up the slack, taking responsibility where parents and local services let children down."