PRESS RELEASE October 2007

 TWO YEARS IN AFRICA NO GOOD TO UK SCHOOLS

- Education authorities fail to recognise value ofinternational experience, new report finds-

 New research from Southampton University has found that education authorities have an inconsistent view of the value of teachers volunteering their skills overseas, despite evidence that it can provide valuable professional development.

 The research, entitled Enriching Education and focused on teachers who have taken VSO placements, found that 74 percent of teachers experienced their first taste of management whilst on VSO placements.  The report found that doing VSO equipped teachers with a variety of transferable skills such as financial planning and budgeting, operations management and strategic planning, as well as softer skills associated with mentoring and encouraging staff and colleagues. Yet many teachers were frustrated that is not widely acknowledged and not accredited.

 Carried out by the University of Southampton on behalf of international development charity VSO, the report shows that while some returned VSO volunteers were actively sought by schools on their return to the UK, many found themselves having to justify their time overseas. It found that too few employers understand the benefits of overseas experience, and respondents were given the impression by recruiters that their efforts to develop since their return were more important than their experience in Africa or Asia.

 Nearly every respondent said their employers did not consider their VSO placement as teaching experience and therefore returned to salaries on the same pay-scale point as when they left, and some even had to return to lower positions to gain employment.

 Judith Brodie, Director of VSO UK said: “The Enriching Education research is yet more proof that VSO is a valuable professional development tool for teachers, but this is not always acknowledged in the UK. It is puzzling that two years spend working in education, often in management or training roles, in Africa or Asia is not worth formal recognition on return to the UK. 

 “We know that British teachers have many skills to offer the developing world, but now the UK system must acknowledge that volunteering overseas is good for the UK too.  VSO’s experience is that too many teachers are put off volunteering by barriers that could be overcome with support from central and local authorities. We are asking the government to introducesabbaticals covering placements with VSO, and to ensure professional accreditation, job security and continuity of pension contributions for teachers who choose to volunteer overseas. And we are calling on local education authorities, schools and governors to support teachers who do VSO.”

 Enriching Education also found that 90 percent of teachers who’d done a VSO placement said it them provided opportunities to rethink their own teaching philosophy and pedagogical methods.  When teachers return to the UK, the research found, they were more confident in their own abilities, were more motivated, and more aware and accepting of the needs of others.

 The research has been endorsed by the major education unions: the ATL, NAHT, NASUWT, NUT and the National Governors’ Association.

 For more information and to view the full report please visit www.vso.org.uk 

For more information please contact Abigail Fulbrook in the VSO Media Team 020 8780 7410 or abigail.fulbrook@vso.org.uk