DISRUPTIVE PUPIL BEHAVIOUR: THE EXPERIENCE OF MEN AND WOMEN TEACHERS

At its Easter AnnualConference, the National Union of Teachers launched its survey on disruptive pupil behaviour: its causes and effects. The 2008 survey contained questions which were similar to questions used in a previous survey on unacceptable pupil behaviour carried out for the NUT in 2001, by WarwickUniversity. The results of the 2001 survey provide the basis for comparison between teacher attitudes then and now. The key findings launched at Easter are attached for information.

WarwickUniversity has now analysed further the data from the survey. In particular, WarwickUniversity looked at the experience over time of disruptive pupil behaviour on women and men. Since 2001 the experiences of both male and female teachers of disruptive pupil behaviour appear to be diverging.

  • Male teachers have experienced a greater increase in answering back from pupils than female teachers since 2001.

Answering back. On a weekly basis.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 75.5% / 80.0%
Female / 67.9% / 70.8%
  • Both male and female teachers have experienced a drop in pupils expressing defiance since 2001, but for women teachers the drop has been more significant.

Defiance. On a weekly basis.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 54.1% / 52.2%
Female / 43.7% / 39.5%
  • While fewer teachers on an annual basis have reported threats by parents than in 2001, a worrying minority of teachers report an increase in threats from parents with a higher number of men than women reporting those threats.

Threats by parents. No reports.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 69.5% / 75.1%
Female / 78.4% / 82.9%

Threats by parents. On a weekly basis.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 1.6% / 4.1%
Female / 0.5% / 2.6%
  • Male teachers’ experiences of having their lessons disrupted has gone up since 2001 whereas female teachers’ experiences of lesson disruption has gone down.

Disruption. On a weekly basis.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 72.4% / 76.8%
Female / 67.5% / 65.7%
  • While fewer female and male teachers have reported a welcome decrease in pushing, touching or other unwanted physical contact from pupils on an annual basis than in 2001, for a minority of teachers this has gone up more sharply; and within that group, more sharply for male teachers than female teachers.

Pushing forward/touching. No reports.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 56.5% / 60.0%
Female / 65.9% / 68.8%

On a weekly basis.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 10.1% / 15.1%
Female / 8.3% / 10.3%
  • The gender breakdown has also yielded a smaller number of findings which reversed the picture of a minority of male teachers being under greater pressure with respect to disruptive pupil behaviour than female teachers. For example, compared to 2001 there has been a slight drop in male teachers experiencing offensive language compared to female teachers.

Offensive Language. Weekly.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 70.2% / 68.9%
Female / 56.3% / 56.6%

Support for teachers

  • The gender breakdown with respect to behaviour training, support from management, and support for problem pupils is interesting. There has been a greater improvement in the number of male teachers receiving behaviour training than female teachers.

Behaviour Training. On an annual basis.

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 31.8% / 39.9%
Female / 38.8% / 40.3%

Nevertheless, it remains a matter of very real concern that 60 per centof both male and female teachers have not received any behaviour training, although WarwickUniversity reports that ‘NUT training was well received’.

  • Also of real concern is the finding that only a minority of female and male teachers receive excellent support for ‘problem pupils’, although of those reporting excellent support, marginally more female teachers report this quality of support compared to male teachers.

Support for problem pupils on an annual basis. Excellent

Gender / 2001 / 2008
Male / 9.9% / 15.2%
Female / 11.6% / 18.1%

The overall findings of the WarwickUniversity study on disruptive pupil behaviour show that while overall patterns of disruptive behaviour in 2008 were similar to that of 2001, some of the more serious problems had been encountered more severely by a minority of schools in 2008 than in 2001.

What the gender breakdown reveals however is that in a number of significant categories of pupil behaviour within that minority of schools where behaviour has got worse, more male teachers have experienced unacceptable behaviour compared to female teachers. It is also a matter of real concern that high quality professional development and support for problem pupils has not improved particularly for teachers within this minority of schools.

DISRUPTIVE PUPIL BEHAVIOUR_JB129 October 2018

Created: 19 December 2008/BH

Revised: 22 December 2008/CS