The chief inspector of schools in England, David Bell, this week warned ministers to stop putting pressure on teachers to deliver better results.

He said that government pressure could alienate teachers and produce the opposite result to that intended.

"I have a very real concern that the innovation and reform that we need to see in our schools may be inhibited by an over-concentration on targets," he warned.

Forum Response: Association of Teachers and Lecturers

Gwen Evans, joint acting general secretary of ATL, said: "It is reassuring for teachers to hear David Bell saying loudly and clearly what they have become increasingly aware of in the last few years: the over use of targets has become counter-productive, a case of too much stick and carrots that suffer from invisibility.

"The chief inspector's views are a timely challenge to a government showing signs of target addiction. The trouble is, recovery from target addiction is likely to prove difficult. ATL says targets should carry a health warning: use sparingly".

Forum Response: Professional Association of Teachers

Jean Gemmell, general secretary of PAT, said: "We welcome David Bell's comments. It is important that all those involved in education should strive to raise and maintain standards, but the government has become obsessed with targets - some of which have come back to haunt it when they could not be delivered.

"The government should trust teachers more to use their own professional judgment, and teachers need the confidence to exercise professional autonomy.

"Education should be about learning, and not a production line designed only to meet mechanical targets.

"Pupils are currently over-tested. Back in 2000, we published a survey, 'Tested to Destruction?' which warned that young people were suffering from stress, anxiety and even illness as a result of excessive examination pressures.

"In 2001/2, our survey of Key Stage 2 teachers, 'Blight or Blessing?', found that there were increased pressures on teachers to meet targets.

"Until we start valuing the whole rounded experience of education, these pressures will continue. The problem is that we value examination grades and targets above all else, and to the exclusion of all else.

"Exams and, to some extent, targets are necessary, but they are too dominant a feature of school life. They increasingly restrict teaching time, cost a great deal of money and cause a too much stress for students and teachers."