How does a TKT certificate give an advantage in lesson breakdown?

Question

There are two English language teachers working at our school. Problems arise every year when teaching hours are distributed. My colleague recently returned from maternity leave.

Her child is currently 6 months old. She holds a first qualification category. She previously had a B2-level certificate, but its validity period has expired. She also has a C1 certificate in the Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT).

I have a second qualification category and a valid B2-level certificate. There are a total of 29.5 English language teaching hours at our school. How should these teaching hours be distributed between the two of us, and how many hours should each teacher receive?

This year, the methodological association allocated 18 hours to my colleague and 11.5 hours to me. However, my colleague is demanding that 1.5 of my teaching hours also be allocated to her.

In previous years, her various achievements and performance indicators were taken into account when distributing teaching hours, and she was given more hours. Her diploma, however, is related to translation studies, whereas I have a qualification specifically in English language teaching. In addition, I now also have a qualification category and a certificate.

Therefore, I would like you to explain which teacher should be given priority when distributing teaching hours, how the available 29.5 hours should be distributed, and whether my colleague’s demand to take 1.5 of my teaching hours is justified.

I would appreciate your assistance in resolving this matter on the basis of the legislation. Thank you in advance for your response.

Answer

In general education schools, teaching hours are distributed according to the priority sequence established in paragraph 15 of the Regulation on the Procedure for Forming Class Compositions and Preparing Tariffication Lists in General Education Institutions. According to paragraph 19 of the Regulation, teaching hours for teachers returning from maternity leave and childcare leave are also distributed based on the priority indicators established in paragraph 15.

In this situation, since both teachers have relevant certificates, it is appropriate to distribute teaching hours based not on their qualification categories, but specifically according to the levels of their certificates.

This is because paragraph 15 of the Regulation on the Procedure for Forming Class Compositions and Preparing Tariffication Lists in General Education Institutions establishes priority for teachers who have national or internationally recognized certificates used for determining additional allowances for teaching the relevant subject. In this regard, teaching hours are distributed taking into account the specified level and validity period of such certificates.

In the situation described above, the teacher holding a C1 TKT certificate was allocated 18 hours, while the teacher holding a valid national B2 certificate was allocated 11.5 hours. Therefore, the requirements of the Regulation on the distribution of teaching hours have not been violated.

This is because the TKT certificate is considered an international certificate and has a higher priority than a national B2 certificate. Currently, according to paragraph 9 of Presidential Decree No. PF-134 dated May 11, 2022, “On Approval of the National Program for the Development of School Education for 2022–2026”, teachers who have an internationally recognized certificate in the subject they teach are paid an additional allowance of 50 percent of their tariff rate. Teachers holding certificates obtained through a national assessment system that meets international standards are also paid an additional allowance of 50 percent of their tariff rate.

For pedagogical staff working in general secondary education institutions, a Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT) certificate is accepted together with a CEFR certificate at B2 level or higher, and the relevant allowance is paid in accordance with the established procedure. In this case, the period of payment of the allowance does not depend on the validity period of the B2 or higher CEFR certificate, but is determined based on the validity period of the TKT certificate.

In other words, even if the national B2 certificate of a teacher holding a TKT certificate has expired, payment of the allowance for the TKT certificate does not stop. Therefore, the TKT certificate is also considered to have priority when teaching hours are distributed.

In addition, in this situation, the qualification categories of the two teachers are not equal in terms of priority. Specifically, if the fact that the first teacher has a first qualification category while the second teacher has a second qualification category is taken into account, the teacher with the first qualification category should also be allocated the maximum number of teaching hours.

Is it appropriate for a teacher who has been provided with the maximum number of teaching hours to demand additional hours?

It is known that the Regulation on the Procedure for Forming Class Compositions and Preparing Tariffication Lists does not specify exactly how many teaching hours should be allocated between the different priority levels. In other words, a teacher with a higher priority is provided with the maximum number of teaching hours, but the exact number of hours to be allocated is determined by the Pedagogical Council.

At the same time, pedagogical staff have the right to apply for an increase in the number of teaching hours allocated to them. As is known, the teaching-hour schedule is distributed by the Pedagogical Council of the general education institution.

Therefore, a teacher who has been allocated 18 hours may apply to the Pedagogical Council requesting an increase in the number of teaching hours.

However, the Pedagogical Council should consider the applicant’s active participation in educational, moral and educational, scientific-methodological, and experimental activities, as well as other performance indicators, and then decide whether to increase the number of teaching hours or leave the existing allocation unchanged.

Likewise, a teacher who has been allocated 11.5 hours also has the right to apply to the Pedagogical Council for an increase in teaching hours. In this case, the Pedagogical Council should take measures to distribute the teaching hours fairly, taking into account the work results and performance of both teachers.