To expect a French teacher to be able to speak french

[SandyY2K]

Why would a school get a supply teacher to replace the French teacher who can't speak the language?

My DD mentioned that prior to her GCSEs last year, they had some lessons with a supply teacher and he didn't know a thing.

Same thing with my other DD. She's mentioned having a chemistry teacher and a teacher for another subject who didn't know the subject and just handed out worksheets. When anyone asked a question, the teacher said they didn't know the answer.

Would it be unreasonable of me to contact the school about this? Any teachers? What do you think?

True trifle.
And then go on like it's a holiday for us losing a days pay to try and ensure that their child gets taught be someone who knows what they're doing.

And when we strike the holidays get brought up "well you get paid for your holidays". No we have our term time only contract pay divided by 12. We are not "paid" not to work. But any parent who's been to school knows everything about schools.

Don't forget the classic "Why can't teachers do INSET during the holidays?"

Oh yes, as if INSET isn't during the holidays!

And the 'I've looked at the pay scales, they are pretty decent, and you get huge holidays, why don't you try working in the REAL world'.

Well, if teaching's that awesome, why can't we hire any teachers?

Thanks for your posts Noble. I had no idea that teachers could only strike for pay. To be fair though, if we see teachers striking about pay, that's what we think it's about.

Very sad so many teachers are quitting.

OP - most of my GCSE year were supply teachers who didn't know the subjects. Used to piss me off as a student.

I don't know what the answer is. Only the Tories will no doubt make things worse

It might be something to do with being called a "cunt" on a regular basis by students? Perhaps with parents calling up accusing us of picking on their kids because we request that they don't talk while the lesson is being explained, or that they don't chuck their fidget spinners across the room, or that they arrive to lessons on time?

Bloody hell Trifle, that sounds like Borstal, not a normal school

Totally average comprehensive in the Home Counties.

I honestly think most parents would benefit from shadowing a reasonably well-qualified, well-performing teacher for a week. See things through their eyes.

Unfortunately, whilst it is a minority who behave that way in most schools, it is very much the reality in 'regular' schools - and too often condoned by teacher-blaming parents. I think those not involved in education have often have no idea what teachers are expected to deal with on a daily basis. It isn't just teaching - it's all the other issues you must try to balance and remedy in order to be able to teach. Behaviour and lack of parental support for teachers trying to manage behaviour (both to that they can teach and because they genuinely care about not failing their students - and not dealing effectively with negative behaviour or insisting on boundaries IS failing children) is an increasing concern.

I thought Trifle's description sounded pretty tame/run of the mill tbh.

Kitty some schools will use unqualified teachers (pay is massively lower) and may even support you to qualify. A friend has done this and has obtained her degree plus her Qualified Teacher Status this year.

I joined the NAS because I don't think striking is helpful. It's never changed what happens and is detrimental to the kids.

I'm in a very good school, I did years in hard schools, I would hate to go back to one. I like the teaching bit of the job, so despite being advanced in years, I don't want promotion to above head of department because I'd be embroiled in paperwork-more than now! It's definitely not the same job as when I started all those years ago, but what is?

I don't think we can easily resolve the recruitment crisis and I'm sorry to say it, but the rise of feelings of entitlement amongst ^certain* students has exacerbated it. Some parents expect us to spoon feed their little darlings, ring the minute there's a problem yet never look at the children's books to see if they've done what they're supposed to.

I love teaching, but I'm sad to see how the profession is sometimes viewed and how difficult the job has become, mostly due to unreasonable demands from above and constant changes from the government. I don't see how a Labour govt will help. It's not a silver bullet.

It's a vicious circle. The kids aren't stupid. They KNOW they are getting "taught" by people who aren't subject specialists or who were one of only two people in the whole COUNTRY who applied for the post. They get fucked off, and who can blame them, and behaviour goes rapidly downhill. In a big way. New teachers or supply teachers come in and experience the ooor behaviour and don't stay. Why would they? Result: pupils behaviour gets even worse because of the staff turnover, poor quality of some staff....

Awful. Just awful.

I am a parent to primary kids. Both have had a successions of either supply or unqualified teachers. I am now paying for private tuition and trying to fill the gaps myself. Seriously considering moving abroad because of the state of education in this country.

Yep, I'm starting to think that I need to start saving now for my grandchildren's private education. My oldest child is only in year 8 and not a soul in my extended family has ever been through the private system.

Teachers who are still teaching like me are idiots. Ridiculous workload, parents and students alike know everything better and nobody working for the tube or in a hospital would accept to be treated as teachers are treated in every single lesson. SLT are not helping.

Some of my newer colleagues' knowledge of the language they are supposed to be specialists in is absolutely shocking, but we can't get anybody better.

I want out. I'll see if going part time from September will make it more bearable, but I doubt it.

And you only have to look on some mumsnet threads to see the sheer contempt some parents have for teachers usually based on 'I didn't like school/was bullied so all teachers are evil and hate kids'.

OP, it's not just the childless NQTs who are off on their toes abroad, either.

I'm mid 40s with 3dc. I did exactly this after 16 years teaching in the UK. It's bloody great. Our school is staffed with mostly British expats, all basically feeling like Black Beauty when he was turned out in the field to run about after dragging a taxi for years.

Fantastic education for dc, nice house, tax free salary & yes drivers & associated perks.

Great for us (& our kids). Completely shit for UK education, of course.

I think those not involved in education have often have no idea what teachers are expected to deal with on a daily basis. It isn't just teaching - it's all the other issues you must try to balance and remedy in order to be able to teach,

this with fucking flashy knobs on. One of my current year 7 sets who by some kind of miracle is a random class full of angels with the power of independent thought, I get through about about 4 times the amount of work - at greater depth - than I do the same supposedstandard of class in my other year 7 set. I can measure it lesson by fucking miserable lesson. It is gob smacking. It has nothing at all to do with my ability to crowd control manage behaviour and everything to do with a general cross-class poor attitude lead by a couple of choice individuals. If my child were in that class, I would be mumsnet apoplectic about just how little content we are able to get through.

Some of my newer colleagues' knowledge of the language they are supposed to be specialists in is absolutely shocking, but we can't get anybody better
This as well. It is frightening. Really frightening. But then I'm the graduate of 'O' levels not GCSEs and there is a huge, huge difference. I've worked with a Teach First teacher with a first in her language and her knowledge of what I consider to be basic grammar was truly appalling. She didn't last. But still.

I am in my early 40s. I am hoping I can hold on in teaching until my daughter does her A levels and then I am going to try and get a job abroad and take my youngest with me.

I used to love my job. I want to love it again.

Yep teachers are only allowed to strike about pay. Now, you could certainly argue that with the shit that teachers put up with, they deserve to be paid a lot more than their seemingly reasonably good salaries. But the point is that pretty much every teacher I've met in the last 10 years would a million times rather take a reduction in the shit rather than an increase in pay.

In our GCSE year the maths teacher had a nervous breakdown and we got an art teacher as a cover. She regularly burst into tears as she was rubbish at maths

At my school it's more low-level disruption that's an issue than being called a cunt. By low-level disruption I mean calling out, chatting when they're meant to be listening, not getting on with the work, just generally needing to be cajoled into every sodding little thing, although I do have one particular class where fidget-spinners would fly around and some of the kids are actively rude and unco-operative.

Workload is the main issue in my school. Constant testing and marking. Every mark from every test needing to be entered onto a spreadsheet (and I mean every mark for every question, not just the total). At sixth form we are now supposed to have to have regular meetings with each student in our classes (of 20+ students) in our own time to check they are actually doing any work at home ("you're a bit shit at quadratics, hadn't you better learn the formula?") then ticking it off on paperwork. Because sixth form students can't be allowed to fail any more and if they do fail, it's our fault for not nagging them enough.
It's getting worse and worse. I'm part time and I can't see me ever being able to go back full time, even though part timers aren't allowed promoted posts in my school. I can never become head of department, or even in charge of GCSE or KS3 maths, stalling my career and completely wasting 11 years of teaching experience to the school when they have to hire someone who won't be as good at the job as me, but who is full time.

Having spent my university days tutoring students in both French and German, je ne suis pas vraiment überrascht, that this is ein Problem, parce-qu'il me semble that die Schüler whom I taught at times made fewer erreurs by pure accident than were to be found in the Kommentare by the person correcting their homework.

Then again, I was taught at university by a lecturer who was supposedly a leading light in his field. Didn't really help me much, seeing as he didn't really speak anyour English. I'll admit to my Chinese not being particularly good, so I really would have preferred a less competent teacher whom I understood.

I work insane hours knowing that the children have been set up to fail anyway

This is it in a nutshell for me really, and that's why I'm getting out.
I'm a good teacher, I love the kids, I (really) love planning and delivering creative and inspiring lessons, don't mind doing extra curricular, but it's all gone to shit, the actual children are just figures on a spreadsheet, and like another previous poster said, you'd have to be an idiot to stay in teaching these days. Bugger that, I'm taking my 14 years of skills and experience elsewhere.

I think low level disruption is getting worse because teachers are knackered, stressed and fed up and the same could be said if he students - but that could just be my lessons.