Teacher Questioned Over Filming Poor Pupil Behaviour

A teacher who secretly filmed appalling classroom behaviour "carried out a positive investigation" of the schools where she taught.

Alex Dolan, from Cambridge, who made the recordings for Channel 4, is appearing before a panel of the General Teaching Council (GTC) in Birmingham.

Schools in London and Leeds featured in the July 2005 documentary.

The programme's executive producer, Allen Jewhurst, told the misconduct hearing it was in the public interest.

Kevin Sutcliffe, the commissioning editor of the Dispatches series programme Undercover Teacher, said: "We do not take the decision to film undercover lightly.

"I would like to express my view that, as a whistle-blower, Alex Dolan carried out a very positive and worthwhile investigation.

Mr Jewhurst said: "We were not setting out to humiliate children or teachers.

"We wanted to show the public the real face of what was going on in some of our schools."

Broadcast in July 2005, the documentary showed pupils fighting in class and running on tables, while others swore in the face of teachers and refused to work.

It also captured alleged attempts by teaching staff to "hoodwink" Ofsted inspectors during a visit to a Leeds school.

Mr Jewhurst told the panel: "We were very keen to expose any such dishonesty by teachers in whatever form it took."

The producer also described Miss Dolan as a woman of integrity and defended the use of hidden cameras as a "last resort" in the public interest.

"There was clearly skullduggery going on. Children were being sent out of the school to help get through Ofsted," he said.

"We had an agenda to see where the truth was... to see whether the pupils were being taught properly."

At an earlier hearing before the GTC panel in Birmingham, Miss Dolan said she wanted to expose poor classroom standards and the deception of inspectors.

The documentary was broadcast after clearance from a High Court judge who refused to issue an injunction sought by Leeds City Council, ruling instead that it served important public interests.

The hearing was adjourned until Tuesday.

With thanks to BBC News bbc.co.uk/news for this news item.