Frederick Hess, a professor at the University of Virginia, has written a paper for the Progressive Policy Institute arguing that teacher-licensing ought to be stripped to the bare essentials.

ECONOMIST: It's getting easier to change your mind and become a teacher

"We've worked out what it would cost - not just to reduce the amount of paper we're producing every day but to wipe it out, " says Caroline Kimbell, head of licensing at the National Archives, the official archive of the UK government.

BBC: Is the paperless office possible?