Do you appreciate teachers more, or less now than in normal times?

[Bluewavescrashing]

Genuine question. I'm a full time infant school teacher. Our school is offering more than most in terms of online education, personalised learning, 1:1 zoom sessions etc. But I wonder how parents feel. Has lockdown showed you how much teachers give to your children through planning lessons, making resources, delivering lessons to cater for all levels of attainment? Do you find it easy to teach your child? When lockdown ends would you carry on with home learning and deregister as they have made more progress 1:1 with you or are you looking forward to sending them back to school?

Nb I have a large group of key worker children, up to 25 each day whom I teach in person in school - this is aimed at parents accessing home learning rather than key worker / vulnerable provision in school.

I appreciate the babysitting service that is “school” but I don’t appreciate teachers anymore than bus drivers or any profession. They are getting paid are they not?
I’d appreciate a volunteer at the school more but why Teachers?

More! Although the class TA seems to be doing way more than the teacher. Perhaps she's going less of the visible stuff.

More, so much more! I'm so grateful to my DD'S school for stepping up. They have been so innovative and that is not a word I ever expected to use about them . Just hugely impressed and grateful.

I appreciate teachers the same as before; some are amazing, some ok and some not so good. Same as other professions.

What I don’t appreciate is the constant refrain from teachers of ‘we’re working so hard/ no-one has it as hard as us’.... etc This from family, friends and online. Yes, some of you might be working hard and so are many other professions that don’t get the same air time. I personally find teachers have little concept of other professions. A close friend, a secondary teacher, telling me in one breathe how they have never worked this hard and then later saying they get to do cordon bleu cooking for 2hours most lunchtimes and takes their daughter out for long walks/ cycles each day - I don’t see my child because, due to Covid, I am working minimum 10hr-12hr days, on screen presenting/ talking for at least 8 of them. My brother and mother telling me how hard it is for him working school hours each day and teaching live for 4 hours - again, try 8 live meeting every day, before MY actual work can be done.

It’s not a race to the bottom nor a competition, but please god, let the ‘teachers have it so hard’ stop. We can all recognise that everyone has it hard right now.

"Perhaps she's doing less of the visible stuff."

I would say almost certainly.

@noblegiraffe

Teachers who have the guts to stand up and admit that not all teachers are perfect are systematically told that they’re ‘pretending’ to be teachers.

Lie.

I had a whole thread about unacceptable patchy lockdown provision and no one said I wasn’t a teacher on it.

Oh I don’t think that anyone is in any doubt that you’re a teacher Noble, given your posting history and your obsessive policing of any education related threads. I’m referring to lesser known or new posters who dare to stick their head above the daffodils.

"What I don’t appreciate is the constant refrain from teachers of ‘we’re working so hard/ no-one has it as hard as us’.... etc"

What you don't appear to acknowledge is that this is only ever trotted out in answer to someone accusing us of only working 9-3 and having 13 weeks of holiday a year. I've not seen or heard of teachers saying it unprompted.

The daffodils were a brief "craze" back in Lockdown One. Not seen any recently.
But don't let that small fact get in the way of you having a go.

You’ve obviously missed a few recently

Definitely more. I have no fucking clue how to teach a 5 year old and totally suck at it. Also the whinging coming out of the other parents is unreal. It's not the teachers fault you're too thick to upload work on zoom!!

I don’t think that anyone is in any doubt that you’re a teacher Noble

Definitely had that accusation thrown at me...

I have seen many, many posters who have fairly expressed concern about what has been provided and been supported by teachers on here, told to complain to the school or been provided with links to e.g. Oak to supplement what is being given.

I have CallmeAngelina

And as another example, this post title, one of 100’s about teachers, you don’t see other professions asking the same types of questions, or bringing their professions up quite as much. We get it, the government has thrown teachers under the bus and it’s terrible, but teachers aren’t the only ones and that is the inference from these threads.

@chocolateisavegetable - I don’t think teachers are criticised more than any other profession. It’s mumsnet- mums are going to come on to discuss education. It’s right abs proper they should be able to do so without bullying from a small number of posters.

Swearing, silly games like “teacher bingo”, daffodils, etc. add nothing at all to any debate. Nor do constant spurious claims of victimisation.

No group should be beyond criticism. Some teachers on here do act as if it’s the hardest job in the world without much appreciation of what the rest of the world of work is like. Teaching is not a uniquely difficult job and it certainly does have its perks.

And the attacking of a pp for raising issues with her foster kids education by some of the bullying teachers (or at least posters who claimed they were teachers) on the other thread was disgraceful. Mn should not permit it. We are after all not school children ourselves.

I get the teacher bashing must feel relentless and personal if you’re a teacher but not all teachers are brilliant. I have kids at 2 schools, one is great one not so much. Some teachers are great, some not. Just like any other profession.

"It’s right abs proper they should be able to do so without bullying from a small number of posters."

Bullying? You should either back that allegation up or, better still, report anything you see to MN and it will be removed.

@CallmeAngelina

The daffodils were a brief "craze" back in Lockdown One. Not seen any recently. But don't let that small fact get in the way of you having a go.

It is very disingenuous to refer to it as a "brief craze" Threads where the replies were simply daffodils haven't been forgotten about, and it reflected badly on the profession. Posters may think it was just a bit of a laugh but it just made some / many posters cement their feelings that their children were being let down.

Depends if you want me to be truthful?

Before covid I admired teachers, from nursery to secondary. Suppose I kind of thought of them as something special. When my first child went to school after a few months she was reading and writing and my mind was just blown!

Now....not so much if I’m honest. I no longer admire teachers at all. Probably lovely individuals I don’t doubt, but as teachers, no.

I. Have. A. Job.
I can't do your jobs too!
2 kids. Accessing the online teaching provided by school. By the teachers who are being paid to teach them.
They have 15 mins a week with their whole class & teacher online. They just have to do the best they can.
It's breaking my heart.
They have been thrown under a bus.

So unimpressed with the school's provision.

@Bluewavescrashing

I'm so glad to be a key worker myself so I can palm my two off 😁

I think a lot of what we do behind the scenes is still unrecognised. Making a 5 min video may take a few takes, then uoading, converting to the right file type etc.

Then certain parents complain that 8 minutes of content doesn't babysit their kids enough to give them a break, even though it's over and above what they need to complete their task for that lesson.

It’s post like this that piss parents off tbh. I think most teachers are putting in more than 8 mins of content tbh. Maybe you need to up your game if parents are complaining about you.

My kids are in school a few days a week whilst I work. They have an interactive zoom lessons where the class and kids at home can join in too. Full day of lessons - with no pressure to attend them if at home and definitely not 8 mins of upload with a work sheet.

Are parents who are not qualified teachers struggling to teach their kids? Yeah. But then I’m a sonographer and wouldn’t expect someone unqualified to be able to give some one a ultrasound scan either. You don’t need a pat on the back love your just doing you job and in your particular case - minimally!

More definitely and I appreciated them before!

Can some one explain the daffodil threads? What did I miss?

Maybe appreciate them the same. I understand they work hard and the job is stressful. They will never win no matter what they do.
However I can say that for many jobs. I have worked in very stressful jobs, jobs people didnt know existed or understood and therefore felt like nobody understood how stressful it was.
My point, teaching is difficult but so too are many jobs.

I appreciate my dds RL teachers more. They've done a fantastic job and have stayed positive and just generally brilliant.

The teachers on Mumsnet are generally a nightmare however.

Well I have a friend who does three days a week with 15 children and a teaching assistant and has done since April nothing extra on the other two days and has had god knows how many holidays since then so my hearts not bleeding for her. I do think it’s down to the leadership and individual teachers. Some are great and some are coasting like every job.