Schools should close early on a Friday

I’m not teacher bashing, I have even more respect for them since my kids started school. I know it’s a really tough job.

If you're not teacher bashing, why the snarky remark about finishing early every day, when you claim to know that teachers do not generally finish early even when the kids do?

Our school finishes early on Tuesday, at 2:15, but it's 3 Tier High School, so they are 13+, so no worries about childcare

Yes I’m sure it is, but I think mainly in terms of higher SEN and more disruptive pupils.

I don’t believe my dad (primary school) got given any PPA time and he certainly never had a TA.

He also ran the school orchestra and put on a Christmas and Summer concert every year pretty much single handedly and so whilst I don’t think he had the behavioural challenges, he certainly worked a ridiculous number of hours.

We also went camping in Europe for 5 weeks every summer so not all bad, whereas my kids spend most of the summer in holiday clubs.

It is a requirement in schools that follow teachers pay and condition. It is not a requirement in all schools.

Was that to me?

Oh shut up.

In the early 90s I was a teacher in a school that had planning time on Friday pm. This was well before PPA

Friday pm had a longer lunch till approx 1.15 . Support staff did register. HT did an assembly for 30 mins (so approx 2pm) . Support staff and outside led clubs for 1 hour. Support staff and SLT did end of day. School finished 30 minutes earlier than usual at 3pm with free out of school for 30 mins if needed

We all had to be off site by 3pm (same time as school day ended on Friday).

A lot longer than the PPA time you are allocated, which is why you also do it after 3:15 also, but people in other professions are also working after 3:15 as a matter of course.

PPA is time that is legally required to be given off-timetable for Planning, Preparation and Assessment.

The poster posting about the early finish is clearly after a rise from others as most people know it's an easy dig.

Kids are in my primary class at 8.40, so I'm required there by ten mins before they are in, but get in at 8 each day.

Directed time is usually an amount of time after the kids finish, where we are expected to still be on site and available. When it's not a meeting night, it runs until 4. Today I left at 5 and it wasn't because I was writing reports or anything special, just still planning for next week - after losing half of my PPA due to staffing shortage!

Why should children lose 2 hours of education to resolve an underfunding crisis?

I'm a TA. I do need to plan and I am not a babysitter.

Your problem is SLT not respecting the need for good planning and suggesting TAs as child care is not the answer.

I would love this and I say this as a full-time working parent. Having Friday afternoon for sport or hobbies would be dreamy so as not to take up the whole weekend!

(And totally see the benefits to teachers as well)

Our local sixth form finishes an hour later and then does a half day Friday. It seems to work well.

What I meant was you finish being responsible for the kids much earlier than an average job finishes, so then working to when an average job is contracted to finish gives some planning time as part of working an average number of hours per week. I don’t think an even earlier finish on a Friday when other jobs don’t get that benefit (and the childcare expense / difficulties that would cause) is fair.

Can I ask a honest question? Most of the teachers in my children’s primary school (and mine albeit a long time ago!) taught the same class year in year out.

Do you not just recycle the previous years lesson plan?

Do you have to do an entire new lesson plan for the whole year, every year?

Genuinely interested and 100% not trying to downplay a teachers work load- I could not teach a fish to swim! Just curious how ‘planning’ works year to year.

My secondary school finished early on a Friday by 45 minutes, it was glorious! Primary would be hellish for me as no wrap around childcare in the area.

So not finishing early at all then. They did their contracted hours and then went home.

Then did more work.

FFS.

@Itsmyshadow

The job your parents did is unrecognisable from the job teachers do today.

Teachers don't forget that other people work long hours or extra hours.

Pointing out the hours teachers work simply tells you how many hours teachers work. It doesn't say anything about other jobs.

Edinburgh gave schools a half day finish in the 80's. Some schools hold their CAT sessions then.

What's PPA?

when I worked as a teacher the teaching staff rarely left before 5 usually closer to 6

Edited to add, how long do you think it would take to plan 5 lessons for the next day, get resources ready, mark the current days work, contact parents and speak to other teachers?

You say that children are tired and behaviour takes a dip on a Friday and then expect a very low paid TA to care for the children whose parents can't collect them. Okay.

I'm a primary teacher and I wouldn't want it. You'd need to extend the other days to make it work and personally I think 9-3 is long enough for young kids' attention spans. When I was in school we were in until 4pm but we had a longer lunch time.
I don't think finishing early on a Friday would be that great as it would be such a hassle for parents needing childcare (which I know is not what we're there for but we need to realistic). I also don't think it's useful for all teachers to have planning and preparation time at the same time because everyone will be trying to use the shared printer, photocopier etc at the same time.
I also think councils would use the excuse of the pupils having done home to close the buildings early to save money on heating, janitor staff etc and teachers would have no choice but to take their work home. I prefer to stay late and get my work all done so I only take the bare minimum home, others prefer to come in early. Some working parents need to take their woke home due to childcare issues and I think we are very lucky to have that flexibility in our job.

We need that in early years too. We open from 7am until 6.30pm. The building is occupied with children constantly between those times. We have to squeeze planning in around looking after the children. I know we don't have to do lesson plans in the way needed for older children but we still need to write up reports, plan, organise, deal with SEN needs (ie writing EHCPs) while technically looking after the children. It is very hard work trying to do it all while doing 10/11hr days and always having children to care for.

We did this post covid to allow for "enhanced cleaning" but it wasn't sustainable, it didn't work for us

It happens in my area of Scotland but it's rally not so kids can do their hobbies! It was a compromise agreement after a sustained period of industrial action (that lasted for my whole high school life) to shorten teachers' hours while paying them the same money. I want to say it's called the McGlone agreement but I might be making that bit up.

It is ridiculously hard to get p/t hours with a Friday off in consequence and most kids do end up doing hobbies, but that's to cover childcare.