to want to know what parents can do about the teaching crisis?!

[BrightRedSharpie]

I'm in Scotland, btw, but I know there is a similar problem in England.

My DD's school is really understaffed. The P1 teachers have both been off all week, which has caused absolute havoc. They have had different teachers for mornings and afternoons because there are also no supply teachers available. P7 had to be split up for a teacher to come and take the little ones.

2 classroom assistants are also off on maternity leave, which either isn't or can't be covered. That's left 3 classroom assistants for around 300 children.

I know the school are doing their best. I've written to my MP and MSP. Is there anything else a concerned parent can actually do?

OP, the issues you are describing are about the lack of supply teachers prepared to work in Scotland. A few years ago COSLA pushed through a pay reduction for supply teachers meaning they are now paid at the same rate as probationary teachers for the first 3 days.

Most supply teachers are simply unprepared to work at that pay rate. They now only work for longer term supply contracts where they are paid at the rate they have earned through their service.

Short term supply cover for sickness is virtually impossible to find.

You can lobby your councillor and MSP to restore the correct pay rates and the situation you describe will resolve. I believe councils can now CHOOSE to restore full pay from day 1 as part of the last negotiation.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-34143790

IThinkIMadeYouUpInsideMyHead Fri 22-Apr-16 21:12:27

"Corythatwas, that's exactly the nit-picking mentality I was talking about. So what if you wrote a textbook/have a similar degree? I still know what I'm doing and wouldn't be taking notes from a parent who, after all, does not have to teach my particular class, with its own unique dynamic."

I was picking up on the statement that parents shouldn't assume they know more than teachers because teachers have training. Just pointing out that many parents do too.

Of course any given teacher will have specialist knowledge about the dynamics of their class. But then again a parent may have specialist knowledge about their individual child (particularly in cases of SN).

The more both sides respect their particular expertise, the better they will work together.

As for the knowledge side, of course I would never presume to give notes to a teacher: I would bite my tongue. But you can't expect me not to notice e.g. if you are wrong about the facts on your handout, or if your pronunciation of the language you teach (demonstrated at parents evening) is substandard. I will hold my tongue. I always have. The more you talk as if I couldn't possibly understand anything or have an interest in education of my own, the more I will notice, though. Human nature.

It's not that I dislike teachers. Most of the members of my family have been teachers. I am a teacher. I have some wonderful colleagues. As I say, dd had some wonderful teachers. So did ds.

I volunteer at the school for 2hrs on my day off work and DH is a governor. Hopefully that helps teachers and the school.

My friend wishes to be a full time teacher and has all the patient qualities to fulfill the role and to continue for several years

Has several years experience teaching outside school

Has applied for one year teaching course and was not accepted, so unable to apply to be a full time teacher

Currently works on a temporary contract in a school and still continues her classes outside school

I assume there are other people out there in the same situation ?

I believe the lack of teachers and teaching assistants is due to budget cuts

Kreacher - I came on to make that point. My DC attend a private school overseas. The teachers are well paid, have accommodation provided and jobs, when they come up, attract hundreds of applicants. It's not the profession, it's the UK state school context that is the problem. Low salaries and little respect are not going to attract the best candidates.

IThinkIMadeYouUpInsideMyHead excellent post.

I am a teacher currently on mat leave - the thought of returning is horrendous. So much so that I am looking at office admin jobs rather than going back to a job I trained so hard for. Schools are not a nice place to work anymore, the targets, the data, babysitting that happens rather than what I worked hard to do, teach. I want to teach, but not under the current conditions.

Cory, I think we're talking at cross-purposes.

I expect to make mistakes. I encourage my students to point out when they suspect I''ve made a mistake. There'll be mistakes in work I send home (hell, there are several mistakes in my posts on the thread) There are also mistakes in the textbooks, which are produced in much more ideal circumstances and presumably proofread by expert editors. I've never heard of a parent ringing a publisher to point out mistakes, or contact an editor's boss to complain about same.

There are, however, parents who will belittle a teacher's mistake in front of a child. There are parents who will ring a Head to complain about a spelling mistake or error of grammar in a teacher-generated resource. It is petty, selfish and soul-destroying.

And I still maintain that I am the expert on how to teach your child in my classroom. Your child's special need has to be catered for within the context of all the other needs that must be met in my class. And I say that as the parent of a child with complex special needs.

Brave post, OP.

as they have lost three today and it's not break yet and I paid for them myself. Feed them breakfast. Limit their cash so they haven't had two monster energy drinks by 9am from the local shop

Yes, please.

Stunning post from Ithink

In answer to the OP's question and because I'm heartsick of the parents who complain when we work our arses off to support, parents could 1) accept that we have lives outside of work 2) accept that your child may have lied/be in the wrong/hasn't actually done the homework required 4) support what we are trying to do by ensuring the child is correctly equipped/has done the homework 5) stop expecting us to parent the children (yes, we have a duty of care, no, it's not our job to teach manners, reinforce, yes, teach, no)

I don't think this is across the board, of course, but I would like every parent to look at their children's books and take an interest in their child's work. One of my hardest working sixth formers told me her parents bug her about school work, yet never look at her books. Breaks my heart.

PS: all parents should petition OFSTED to publish a new mandatory marking and feedback policy which prevents teachers from 'triple marking' or doing 'deep marking' which is the bane of our lives.

Gide : Ofsted already has published guidance against triple marking, it's just heads don't listen

IThink I do agree about belittling teachers, but it can be tricky. How would you handle it if the child himself is too young/ignorant to pick up on a teacher's mistakes but you can see that he is being taught something that is likely to cause problems later on?

For instance, if the spelling lists sent home every week regularly contain spelling mistakes- so not just once or twice, but pretty well every week (happened to ds in primary)? Do you sit down and practise the incorrect spelling with your child (as we are meant to do, supporting homework), do you tell the child it is incorrect (thus undermining the teacher) or do you tell the teacher? Seems like you can't do right here.

Again, dd's French teacher throughout secondary had a really atrocious French pronunciation. Not taking this on hearsay- I heard her instructing dd at a parents evening and it was really bad. Every long vowel was a diphthong (think 'chattow' for 'chateau'). Learning a pronunciation like could cause serious problems for anyone who wanted to do French later in life, I did not want dd to learn it, But what was I supposed to do without belittling the teacher? Didn't see how I could speak to the teacher about it, didn't want to speak to the school (and really didn't know how or what that would achieve- if you speak French that badly at the age of 50+ you are not suddenly going to learn to do it right). I did not speak to the teacher (except to thank her for her trouble). But I am afraid I did speak to dd and I did my best to teach her at home something that was very different from what her teacher had told her to say. Did I do wrong?

I've been a teacher for thirty years; it wasn't the children or the arsey parents that made me leave my classroom and go on FT supply.
Parents have been squarking about cardis and the unrecognised geniousitiness of their child and how everyone else is a mean bully but their poppet for as long as I've been in the job.
The excessive paperwork, the marking requirements and the sausage-factory attitude in primary education is what I couldn't and wouldn't deal with.

Ithink, you talk of parents belittling teachers and yet throughout this thread have belittled and demonised parents, amongst appreciative comments from other members of your profession. This does not gain parental support for teachers, it creates a new enemy.

We vote, we become governors, we hold powerful positions. We could become powerful allies....or not.

Gide : Ofsted already has published guidance against triple marking, it's just heads don't listen

Yes, I know, but it's not mandatory, although it would be impossible to implement such a thing, I know. OFSTED also mention that feedback is one of, the ways, if not the top one, to increase progress/results. Between a rock and a hard place.

Malika, I fear I would have corrected her-must be the teacher in me! These days, we have super technology to support pronunciation, fortunately. It's tricky, I mean, I daresay the Geography teacher didn't start preaching about how to read a map-incorrectly! Whenever I interview, I conduct part of it in the relevant languages and I did stop one interview recently because the candidate's pronunciation was appalling. I gave her very gentle feedback on the need to practise: I suggested time in the target language country.

During virtually every Parents' Evening I've ever endured attended, at least one parent has recounted their experience of languages at school and how they wish they'd learnt it properly. Again, I bet the Geography teacher doesn't get this!

I always wonder why doctors not get the same kind of public scrutiny as teachers? Teachers have trained to do the job- trust them to get on with it! Parents should be getting on with dealing with the home lives of children - not emailing teachers at every opportunity nitpicking

I'm a secondary supply teacher in a shortage subject.
Apart from when I get odd days here or there the majority of my work is covering for teachers off I'll with breakdowns and stress. I went supply because I was close to breaking.
The hours and pressure are simply unsustainable for many teachers in your standard comp - especially in grammar school areas where a large proportion of pupils with involved and motivated parents get into the grammars.
I won't say it's the parents that are the problem. But often they don't help - for example saying their child doesn't have to do detentions. Ringing them in lessons. Passing on the attitude that it's the teachers that have to put ALL the work in for their child's exam results, and not the child. Not ensuring the child/teen actually goes to sleep before 3am instead of playing on their phones all night.
I love it when you get that rare parent who thanks you however :)

You talk of parents belittling teachers and yet throughout this thread have belittled and demonised parents, amongst appreciative comments from other members of your profession. This does not gain parental support for teachers, it creates a new enemy.

The thread is about what parents can do, so responses will start from a position of a deficit, therefore appear critical.

echt, a 'things to do' list does not have to include criticism. It makes me despair if people automatically think it would. It is just a 'things to do', a 'ways to support'. It should not be taken as an opportunity to moan and berate.

It should not be taken as an opportunity to moan and berate

I don't know which bits you find unacceptable.

I absolutely agree with you OP. Parenting is a privilege. Not everyone is lucky enough to have children. We are lucky to have free education. If parents backed the teachers their children would benefit as they would be ready to learn and embrace the school ethos and it would instil respect for their teachers.

Sadly a lot of parents feel that their child is the ONLY child that matters and that the world revolves around their child. When these children see their parents remonstrating with the teachers about how "little Johnny" has been treated unfairly for being excluded for hitting his teacher, or swearing, or smashing up the classroom, what does it teach the child? Certainly not respect for the teacher. It instils a sense of entitlement. We have now the "me" generation who are not ready to listen or learn but know how to complain and get their own way.

When I was at college I wanted to be a teacher so badly. Glad I went into office work.

I don't know which bits you find unacceptable.

This saddens me. Ironic that the teachers on this thread are seeking empathy from parents.

It's the absolute entitlement, and perceived view of teachers as soft targets that will drive me out.

I teach in a very nice high school. One girl just kept repeatedly shouting in my face 'why won't you let me go to the toilet?' over and over today, at 5 mins until home time bell.
I invited her to step outside the classroom, where I told her that I would not and should not accept being shouted at in any other part of my life. She scowled and flounced off to the toilet.

Please, please remind your children that we are humans (and often mums) too. Mutual respect costs nothing and counts for everything.

Thinnestofthinice Fri 22-Apr-16 22:55:13

"I always wonder why doctors not get the same kind of public scrutiny as teachers? Teachers have trained to do the job- trust them to get on with it! "

Are you sure that doctors do not feel equally under scrutiny?

Anyway, you have not answered my question: what should you do as a parent when you realise that your child is being taught something (regularly, not as a one off) that is likely to negatively impact part of their education? You can't complain to the teacher, you mustn't complain to the head, you must not undermine the teacher in the eyes of the child by telling them the teacher is wrong- so what do you do? No amount of teacher training is going to make it right to pronounce a French long vowel as if it were an English diphthong.

I do realise that I may be coming across as negative of the teaching profession. I would just like to assure posters that I have never encouraged my dc to be rude, their school reports have always mentioned how polite they are, and if they have come home with complaints about a teacher my initial response has always been "are you quite sure?" with a raised eyebrow.

Exactly my point Leccy.
Under what circumstances does a child feel entitled to be so rude? If you did that in a meeting at work you would be sacked. Why is it ok for a child to be so rude in a learning environment?
It is without question the role of a parent to pass on the skills of empathy, good communication and respect, both self-respect and respect for others.
It is not the role of the teacher.