Teachers’ TV goes live
A 24-hour television channel designed exclusively for teachers goes live on air today.
The £60 million project aims to provide staff with a helpful resource, giving teaching tips and practical advice as well as informal training direct to teachers’ homes.
Following a year of preparation, Teachers’ TV will be launched across all digital and satellite platforms in what is hoped will be a move to make support for teachers more accessible.
Schools minister Stephen Twigg today welcomed the launch of the new channel, which is funded by the taxpayer to the tune of £20 million a year.
He said it was a “highly innovative” way of “ensuring we make full use of digital technology to support teachers, teaching assistants, school governors and others in further raising standards in the classroom”.
Programmes such as “Inspirations – Juggling with Success” and “Ease the Workload” will be run on air, but the channel will also include more light-hearted features such as Today presenter John Humphrys’ attempts to become a teacher.
However, some educationalists have suggested the scheme is a waste of money as few members of staff will want to watch teaching programmes when they come home from a day in school.
But a survey of 515 primary and secondary school teachers in England found that 64 per cent of teachers wanted more training, and the Government is confident that the new programming will be a useful way of filling this gap.
