6/21/2008 10:30:00 AM
The Times 21 June
Headteachers are getting younger. As a generation of school leaders born in the baby boom era retires, a new generation of ambitious teachers under 35 is stepping up to the mark.Amid fears that younger teachers are being deterred from seeking headships by the burdens of public accountability and government micromanagement, figures from the National College for School Leadership suggest that the answer may lie among the profession's newest recruits.Latest figures from the college show there are 35 secondary head teachers aged 30 to 34, and more than 530 aged 30 to 34 in primary schools. The average age of a primary head teacher in their first job is 42, and 45 for a secondary head.Typical of the new breed is Ben Slade, who became head of Manor Community College in Cambridge last September at the age of 30, which is the average age of new recruits to the teaching profession these days. He began teaching drama nine years ago and rose swiftly through the ranks, becoming head of department at a school in Kent, then its vice-principal.Although his school is in a deprived area of Cambridge and does not boast high exam results, Mr Slade said: “It's a job like no other, it's a privileged position because you have a direct effect on lots of people's lives.“Taking a headship is challenging enough but it's even more difficult when you take it on with no experience. But it's been good to dive in. Times
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