Teachers work average 11 hours beyond contract terms

The Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) released the results of the Teacher Workload Research Report 2024 on Thursday.

Commissioned by the EIS, the work was conducted by a team of researchers from the University of the West of Scotland, Birmingham City University and Cardiff Metropolitan University.

The research saw over 1,800 teachers across all 32 local authorities take part in a one-week workload diary-keeping exercise, with a further 40 teachers taking part in in-depth follow up interviews.

One of the report’s key findings is the amount of time that teachers spend working out of hours, on weekends, and beyond their contract terms. According to the 2001 Teachers’ Agreement, teachers should expect a 35-hour working week.

But the new research showed that participants worked an average of over 46 hours per week, 11.39 hours beyond their contract.

Some of the major contributors to increased workload for teachers found in the report included:

• Conflicting pressures on non-teaching time that mean that core activities - planning, preparation and marking - cannot be accomplished in contractual hours
• Increased pupil behaviour and attendance issues
• More diverse learner needs requiring personalised planning
• Increased and more complex Additional Support Needs
• Reduction in support for learning Insufficient funding to support increased job demands

Classroom-based teachers reported spending two-thirds (68%) of their teaching time on learning.

Meanwhile, a combination of “minor disruptions and significant behavioural interruptions” took up between 14.7% - 28.6% of all face-to-face teaching time in schools.

Teachers said that they were forced to spend extra time on at-home lessons for students who were persistently absent.

The Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research (BISSR), commissioned by the Scottish Government in 2023, found most teachers reported “generally good behaviour among most or all pupils in the classroom (65%) and around the school (85%).”

But the report also highlighted concerns of how the behaviour of other students was having a disproportionate impact on classroom experience and teacher workload: 38% of primary teachers and 48% of secondary teachers spent between one and three hours dealing with the same pupils who present challenging behaviour.

Read more: MSPs pan 'plan for a plan' to tackle Scottish school behaviour

According to the Teacher Workload Research, teachers “consistently reported greater use of teaching time to address low level and serious disruptive behaviour.”

Teachers who took part in the research said that added pressures and responsibilities during class time and the course of the regular school day is causing them to spend more time working out of hours.

The tasks accounting for the most out-of-hours work were planning and preparing lessons (2 hours and 15 minutes), preparing resources (1 hour and 50 minutes), and marking and feedback for pupils (one hour and 30 minutes).

The report found that work beyond contracted hours, especially work at the weekend, was the “strongest predictor of perceived stress,” and added that there is a direct relationship between job satisfaction and the amount of work done in the evenings and on weekends.

Professor Moira Hulme from the University of the West of Scotland, who led the academic research collaboration said that Scotland’s schools are dependent on the wellbeing of its teachers. 

But the report found evidence that increased workloads are threatening that wellbeing, Prof Hulme added. 

“Teachers in Scotland work well beyond their contracted hours and working hours are rising.

“The workload of teachers has intensified as they address diverse learner needs and escalating behavioural and attendance issues with contracting resources.”

Dr Jeffrey Wood, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Birmingham City University, said:

“The biggest issue is teachers not getting time for planning and preparing resources while at school. They’re consistently working hours they shouldn’t be, and that fact is dictating how stressed they are in all aspects of their daily lives – not just at work.”

Gary Beauchamp, Professor of Education at Cardiff Metropolitan University, said that the study highlighted teacher workload as a growing concern.

“This study highlights the urgent need to address the escalating workloads and resource challenges faced by teachers.

“Despite these challenges, the research shows teachers are working hard in their own time to overcome them to ensure quality education for all students.”

Read more: EIS annual conference to discuss teachers’ concerns

Commenting on the results of the research, EIS General Secretary Andrea Bradley said that schools should be nurturing places for students and staff. But the evidence from the report suggests that “unmanageable workloads” are affecting health, safety and teaching time at schools, she added.

“This must be taken seriously and tackled immediately, by local authorities and Scottish Government, to ensure that teachers have manageable workloads and can stay well at work.”

“This research, and successive published reports, show that teacher workloads are influenced by a number of growing concerns that need urgent action.

“The impact of reduced teacher and support staff numbers, combined with an ever increasing diversity of learner needs, escalating pupil behaviour and attendance issues, unnecessary bureaucracy, a cluttered curriculum, and extended pupil wellbeing duties, are cementing the workload crisis in teaching.

“The Scottish Government manifesto set out a number of actions – in particular an extra 3,500 teachers, and a reduction in class contact time to 21 hours – but these promises are yet to come to fruition.’’

"We will be sharing the results of this independent research with the Scottish Government and with each of Scotland’s local authorities.

“Teachers, and all those working in schools, have the right to expect action to address the workload challenges outlined in this research report.”

At this week’s Annual General Meeting in Dundee, EIS delegates will discuss a set of 70 motions, many of which will cover concerns arising from increased teacher workloads.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said:

“The Scottish Government is committed to working with the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) on progressing the commitment to reducing class contact time and is determined that planning for this is based on robust evidence.

“Scotland currently has the most teachers-per-pupil in the UK and school education spend per person is higher than in England and Wales. Additionally, overall pupil teacher ratios remain their lowest level since 2009 and our teachers are the highest paid in the UK.

“Councils are also being supported with an additional £145.5 million this year to protect increased teacher numbers.”