Inset days

[Wanstead]

As teacher training days are usually put at the beginning or end of a half term are they classed as holiday?

[Tomatoandbasil]

No

[spanieleyes]

Have you ever sat through a 6 hour death-by-powerpoint INSET day? The last thing it could be classed as is a holiday😭

[solidaritea]

They are holidays for pupils.

They are training days for staff.

[Wanstead]

So what are they? If they’re not at school, must be days off, like holidays!

[Callardandbowser]

Our inset days used to be a nice catch up with colleagues, a bit of diary stuff then off to our classrooms to get organised but our deputy has somehow managed to ruin the past several by planning in loads of that diabolical, flimsy online training where we all sit behind laptops with head phones on filling out multiple choice questions and printing off a certificate at the end of the day.
It’s shit and it infuriates me.

[Wanstead]

So if you’re looking to go away on a Holiday for half term and you see two inset days on the Thursday and Friday before you would try and go from Thursday until they go back to school, yes? So they are classed as holidays. Thought the family courts changed rules and classed them as holidays?

[Wanstead]

I’m not getting at teachers, I’m cross that when these days are put at beginning or end of say half terms, the family law courts deem them not holidays.

[sakura06]

They're holidays for pupils, but not for teachers. Sorry I can't help with the family law aspect as I know nothing about that.

[noideaatallreally]

Not holidays. I bloody hated them - would far rather teach a full day sit in the hall on the most uncomfortable chairs ever made listening to some idiot read out a powerpoint to me. They are supposed to be for training, but as with all things in education they are done on the cheap. Mostly run by senior management (many with very few years actual classroom experience) trying to tell more experienced, far better teachers how to do their job.

Once in a while the school would 'buy in' and expert to lecture us. Only ever saw two decent presentations in 30 years of teaching. These are often people who were sensible enough to bale out of teaching to peddle the latest fad to the rest of us. Good luck on 'em - but what they churn out is either unworkable of so blindingly obvious it makes you want to claw your own eyes out with a rusty fork.

[noideaatallreally]

I was also cross when they tagged them into half term holidays, or often the first two days of what would be the summer holidays in July. It means that teachers can't go away for the full week. In some schools they might disaggregate them - which means you get that day off, but have to pay it back in twilight sessions after the working day. My last head always seemed to managed to turn one disaggregated day into what seemed like hundreds of hours of payback twilight sessions. He for sure made certain to get back every minute (and more).

[Tomatoandbasil]

@Wanstead are you posting here from a parent’s perspective? This is usually for school staff in this section hence why we are all replying that they are not holidays.

Children are in school for 190 days. Teachers are in school for 195 days. So children have 5 fewer school days than their teachers. I hope that helps!

[Wanstead]

From a parent perspective. Not knocking inset days regards teachers. You all are saying holidays for the children, but this needs to relay to court’s deciding that they are not holidays. Family law regards to splitting children’s time with each parent is ridiculous. They are an anomaly to judges, so they treat inset days different! You’re either in school or off school which then becomes a holiday.

[viques]

Inset days used to be holiday for staff too, back in the day. Then one of the many ministers who are given the education brief to cut their ministerial teeth on (“Let’s give them Education, if they mess up it’s only teachers and other people’s children who will be affected”) I’m looking at you Mr Baker, decided to take five days from teacher’s holiday allocation and use it for training. In theory a good idea, if* the training had been focussed , had had real value , and supported teacher and school development there would have been resentment but acceptance.

But unfortunately a potentially valuable resource has by and large been squandered. Many schools abuse it, putting in a few hours of twilight boredom , other schools provide minimally useful inset that often doesn’t address the schools needs.

But, worst of all, because of the way it was introduced it soured the goodwill relationship that many teachers had with their schools. Many teachers immediately refused to run classes, choirs, orchestras, clubs and sporting events outside normal teaching hours and to some extent that still prevails.

• for a further example of unrealistic Government policy that was well meaning but inept , research the history of the introduction of the National Curriculum.When first produced it was published as a series of beautifully colour coded well filled A4 binders, one for each subject area, each one enthusiastically written by people who though their subject should be the priority . There was enough content in each one to fill an entire years teaching time and I think there were about 12 of them. Most schools had to call in emergency carpenters to put up additional shelving. I do hope that someone kept a full set for posterity, but suspect they have all been used as landfill for new motorways!

[Tomatoandbasil]

The law is that schools must be open to children for 190 days a year (or 380 half day sessions).

[StationView]

viques is correct. I am old enough to remember INSET days being called Baker days. Teachers lost five days' holiday to facilitate them. State school (not sure about academies) staff teach 190 days per year + 5 training days.

I get extremely cross when parents ask why INSET days cannot be in the school holidays. They already are. Teachers lost five days' holiday to provide them may possibly have already mentioned that

[Wanstead]

Yes government has a lot to answer to. Let’s change this and that and not give a monkeys to what else it affects. It’s the kids in the middle of split couples and one does not want give and take, plus doesn’t look at things that can be done in a simple way. I just think if 2 days of inset put at the end of the week followed by a week of half term is easier for everyone and less disruptive to the children by saying 6 nights each. Especially if the child was with one parent the Wednesday night to just continue until the six nights done then hand over to other parent. All this to and fro for all children with split parents does them no good, they need stability.

[Wanstead]

Like all seem to agree on here, inset days are holidays for children but not for teachers. Just wish the Family courts would see sense! Too easy it seems!

[Hercwasonaroll]

They have been around for a very long time op. It sounds like you're trying to deal with an unreasonable ex. 5 inset days across a year really shouldn't make this much difference.

Family courts also have to recognise they aren't always attached to a holiday. So if they say kids get half each holiday period with each parent, and inset days count as holiday, would you really want them to spend half an inset day with each parent?

[Wanstead]

Very unreasonable ex. Wants to manipulate and still control. My point exactly, halving days has not worked out in past as won’t give child back. All this does not help children and I know can affect the children’s behavior which rubs off on teachers too.

[Loshad]

You need to post in Relationships OP, probably some folk there who can give suggestions.

[Wanstead]

Thank you.

[Yellowmellow2]

@Callardandbowser

Our inset days used to be a nice catch up with colleagues, a bit of diary stuff then off to our classrooms to get organised but our deputy has somehow managed to ruin the past several by planning in loads of that diabolical, flimsy online training where we all sit behind laptops with head phones on filling out multiple choice questions and printing off a certificate at the end of the day.
It’s shit and it infuriates me.

INSET days should be used for training or development. It’s a useful time for staff to get together to work on something such as the curriculum, or to have whole school training. INSET days shouldn’t just be used for a catch up and non-directed time in classrooms!

[echt]

INSET days shouldn’t just be used for a catch up and non-directed time in classrooms

Why not? this time was taken from teachers' holidays. What is so bad about non-directed time? Don't you trust teachers?

[Yellowmellow2]

Nothing to do with whether or not I trust the teachers @echt. I’m nearly stating the purpose of INSET days. INSET stands for ‘in-service training’. It’s a really useful time for the whole staff to come together to develop their practice in our school. Much more productive than staff meetings when everyone is tired and busy.

[echt]

It's the word "just" for catch-up and non-directed time that sticks in my craw. And, I never forget that this was time stolen from teachers.