On 24 November, as members of the EIS teaching union and primary leaders’ body the AHDS took strike action over pay, another small group of teachers – members of NASUWT Scotland – also went on strike, but for a different reason: pupil behaviour.

Staff at Bannerman High in Glasgow had decided to take a stand against “violent and abusive pupil behaviour”.

The council says it does not recognise this characterisation of pupil behaviour at the school. Nevertheless, 25 teachers at the school made plans to strike for 12 days in the run-up to Christmas because they said the council wasn’t doing enough to “ensure teaching staff’s safety” and “restore order”.

These teachers were not alone in speaking up about behaviour in Scottish schools. At Northfield Academy in Aberdeen, the EIS teaching union revealed in November that 89 per cent of members at the school had voted to take industrial action over pupil violence and threats of violence, on a turnout of 69 per cent. The initial focus was on action short of striking, including refusing to teach certain pupils or classes.

The big question for the Scottish government is: are Northfield Academy and Bannerman High exceptions, or is there, as NASUWT Scotland is claiming, “a behaviour emergency” in Scottish schools, catalysed by the pandemic?

This all comes as the latest Scottish government statistics – published on Tuesday – show that more than a third of pupils have additional support needs.

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