Many teachers 'not up to the job'

Under half of teachers in secondary schools are teaching the subject they studied at university while only 45% of new primary school teachers have two good A-levels.

The report from the right-wing think-tank Politeia blamed Government policies for focusing on increasing teacher numbers with no regard for quality.

But the Government's teacher training agency insisted that "teaching standards have never been higher".

The Politeia report was written by specialists including academics from the Open University, Plymouth and Buckingham universities, and controversial ex-chief inspector of schools Chris Woodhead.

The think-tank said: "There is a crisis of recruitment which the official figures mask. At each stage regulations and targets undermine the recruitment of good teachers and their retention. The emphasis at recruitment is on numbers not quality; as a result many trainees may not be up to the job.

"The assessment system fails to act as a check and allows even the weakest candidates through. The employment system rests on a myriad of regulations and different books of rules which bind both teacher and school.

"But they do not allow for what really matters to the able and dedicated teachers: the freedom to teach their subject their way and inspire their pupils."

There are shortages of language and physics teachers and high vacancy rates for headteacher jobs. Most science lessons are taught by staff with biology degrees and shortages are set to worsen as more teachers retire, the report said.

But Graham Holley, chief executive of the Training and Development Agency for Schools, said Ofsted inspectors rated the current generation of teachers as the "best ever".