You may wonder why Teacher Tapp asks for the name of your school…
We understand that school information is sensitive, and you may worry about your headteacher seeing your responses. Rest assured, though—your school name and URN (unique reference number) sit securely in our database, entirely separate from any identifiable information in our results.
So, why do we ask for this information?
Saving You Time by Avoiding Background Questions
By knowing your school, we can draw on public data, which saves you from answering many background questions! Once we’ve matched your school’s name and postcode, we can look up key information from government databases, including:
- School intake and affluence (using the percentage of students eligible for free school meals)
- School governance (such as trust size, if you’re part of an academy trust)
- Demographic and school size data
- Most recent Ofsted (or ISI) inspection date
With these details, your responses become even more insightful, enabling us to make important comparisons between different types of schools. Here are two interesting insights that this data has revealed:
1. Teachers in the Most Deprived Schools Struggle Most with Behaviour
Since COVID-19, behaviour has been a major challenge in schools across England. However, our data has shown that the problem is especially pronounced in the most disadvantaged schools. This is vital information for policymakers to ensure resources are directed where they’re needed most.
2. Academies Don’t Necessarily Mean More Classroom Influence
While it’s not surprising that private school teachers feel they have more classroom influence, it is interesting that academy teachers don’t always feel the same, especially those in large Multi-Academy Trusts (MATs). One of the original aims of the academy system was to grant more autonomy, making this finding noteworthy.
By understanding your school context, we’re able to provide data that gives a true picture of the landscape teachers are working in—insights that can make a real difference.
