School Staff. How do you feel about summer schools?

[Witchcraftandhokum]

Just watched an ex-Ofsted inspector on BBC Breakfast talk about how important summer schools will be and how they should be staffed by the same teachers students have normally.

This hasn't been mentioned in our school yet but I really don't know how it will be managed. I can't imagine a lot of staff will be happy to give up their holidays. In our school a good number of the middle leaders and TA's salaries are pro-rata'd to term time only. I've worked full-time from home so it's not like I've been on holiday since March.

How would you feel about being asked to work?

@BlessYourCottonSocks

I will not work over the summer. I don't care how much pay they offer or how much they call for 'volunteers'.

I might have done, out of the goodness of my heart and the fact that I care about the kids I teach. Despite the Easter and half term I worked, unpaid.

The thing that has made me absolutely determined to do FUCK ALL anymore that is above and beyond my expected role is the vile, nasty goady abuse teachers have had every single, fucking day on Mumsnet since this pandemic started.

So well done. There are a lot of us teachers now sticking two fingers up to parents and thinking you can fuck off. That's what you've achieved.

Bravo! Totally agree. You've summed up my thoughts exactly. You win the thread.

Absolutely @BlessYourCottonSocks. It's beyond a bloody joke. And they you get the "it's a vocation" line trotted out or the "you'd think, for the children's sake..." with the head tilt. Fuck. Off. I've been teaching since 1992. I know my job, I love my job. Doesn't mean I have nothing else in my life and that I'll be emotionally blackmailed any more. I gave that shit up when I became a mother myself.

There are a lot of us teachers now sticking two fingers up to parents and thinking you can fuck off. That's what you've achieved.

Definitely.

I could name 3/4 posters on here who have been consistently vile about teachers since Day 1 of the schools closing. It’s taken my breath away sometimes the vitriol that they have spewed out.

I’ve worked all through the Easter holidays, 3 out of 4 days of half term (had the BH and one other day off)
I’m paid term time only.

There is no way I’m working all summer for no extra money. What am I supposed to do with my children?

Thank you all.

It’s taken my breath away sometimes the vitriol that they have spewed out.

Me too. And I've decided it's like trying to appease an abuser. It doesn't work and I'm not bothering anymore. I don't need to justify myself to anyone here, but the sad fact is that many students across the country will be reaping the benefits of this bile from parents, media and government.

I think many of us will now be reigning back on the huge amounts of overtime we do without thanks. I won't be killing myself to 'catch anyone up'. I'll be making helpful suggestions about what they could do for themselves.

@Appuskidu agree. Same names spouting the same shite.

The thing that has made me absolutely determined to do FUCK ALL anymore that is above and beyond my expected role is the vile, nasty goady abuse teachers have had every single, fucking day on Mumsnet since this pandemic started.

Agree completely. If I did work in summer the work I did would be criticised

@BlessYourCottonSocks same. I dont need to justify myself to anyone anymore. I know how hard myself and other teachers have been working. Not our mess . Blame the government.

Here's a parent, not a teacher, standing behind you, with you, raising a middle index finger. And she's poking her tongue out at 'em too.

I am a teacher but employed on a support staff contract /role for the last 10 years. So, unlike teachers I get a salary to work 37.5 hours a week.
Up until last year I was contracted full time, so I got paid for 52 weeks a year, 6 of which I could take as annual leave (and had to take this during the school holidays)
I ran the summer school, I ran the Easter study clubs and I worked through most of the half terms.

Last year my school cut my hours and said that I would be term time only. They cancelled the summer schools, study clubs were run ad hoc instead, and the work I was previously doing during the half terms either had to be done in the term or, more realistically, just didn't get done.

For this, I lost almost £4000 of my salary. I have had to take on proof reading and exam marking jobs throughout the holidays just to claw a bit of my previous salary back.
I now work term time. Technically 37.5 hours a week for 39 weeks a year. It is much more like 45 hours a week plus a couple of weeks over the summer, despite me determined to work to rule.

Since lock down, there have been days I've not finished work until 9pm. I start every morning at 7.30.

Unless they reinstate my £4,000 then no, I absolutely will not be working during the summer. Not one day.

There are a lot of nasty bullies on mumsnet, saying vile and disgusting things about teachers.

We know who you are. It’s sad really. Bullies are sad.

Teachers are exhausted. Support staff who have also been working throughout are also exhausted. If they enforce opening through summer with teaching staff, we'll either see a huge drop in the numbers of teachers or see a rise in the number of teachers taking time off for their mental and physical health.

Another thought, the government have said in guidance updated today that schools should only have students in where there is no additional cost.

Whilst I'm sure the anti-teacher mob are itching for any excuse to tell us to work in our holidays, can you please confirm you're also happy for all our site staff, support staff, teaching assistants and cleaners to be directed to work in their holidays for free so not to incur costs to the school. I'm ready to hear the arguments that all these people should be directed to work unpaid in their holidays.

Well, surely all we parents should be more than happy to sort out how we can come in for free, to clean, cater, and assist? For free? Especially those who feel that teachers should prove what good little public servants they are? (Emphasis, I feel, on the word 'servant')

As previous posters have said... teaching staff are not paid for holidays. They are only paid for a certain amount of contractual teaching hours . Their hours are divided into 12 so that they have a regular monthly income .
If they work during holidays then it’s overtime.

And many of them have already worked during holidays. Unpaid.

I’ve already given up my last two holidays, without complaint. I’m working full time still, more so because I’m now teaching my full timetable, and recording it plus looking after keyworker children and doing separate tasks with them.

If they want me to go in during the holidays, fine. But they can pay me my daily wage.

And many of them have already worked during holidays. Unpaid.
And got on with it because they care about students and a pandemic caused a national crisis.

And got on with it because they care about students and a pandemic caused a national crisis.

And thank you, so much thank you, to them.
But this cannot be kept on being asked (demanded?) of teachers, who are also people, parents, carers, suffering just the same as anybody else in this pandemic.
Especially not when they seem to have become the number one punching bag for both politicians and the public.

No chance would I be working over the summer. Some staff might be prepared to work some part time hours but they would expect to be paid. It is never going to happen.

Just seen the idea that former teachers working as Ofsted inspectors would be perfectly placed to do this catch up - great idea. I am sure they would be willing to do this for free.

@LolaSmiles

Another thought, the government have said in guidance updated today that schools should only have students in where there is no additional cost.

Whilst I'm sure the anti-teacher mob are itching for any excuse to tell us to work in our holidays, can you please confirm you're also happy for all our site staff, support staff, teaching assistants and cleaners to be directed to work in their holidays for free so not to incur costs to the school. I'm ready to hear the arguments that all these people should be directed to work unpaid in their holidays.

I'm pretty sure this would take them below minimum wage - therefore illegal.

mbosnz
I absolutely agree with you!
I was just emphasising that teachers have been getting on with it throughout this, so it's a bit much to start demanding they are directed to lose their holidays as well.

In the schools I know, nobody put a gun to people's heads for Easter and May half term. People genuinely volunteered. In my school a number of us on maternity leave have used some of our KIT days to help support the key worker provision.

It's a kick in the teeth to see the amount of vitriol on here that really scrapes the barrel of nastiness. One particular one that stood out to me recently was that teachers don't care about children's education or mental health. It must be a horrible and bitter state of being to be so invested in kicking a whole profession the way some on here carry on.

BitchyHen
So it's just teachers who should be directed to work in excess of their contracts then? Good to know

Just to clarify:

• who will be running the IT provision whilst teachers are directed to work beyond their contracts?
• who'll be providing the catering?
• who will be ensuring that EHCPs are followed because many children are entitled to a set number of hours 1-1 and you've just said yourself their teaching assistants can't be made to do it?
• who will be keeping the site clean and minimising the risk of Covid transmission?

See the DfE have now said that schools can only open to more if they don't incur any costs, so if all those support staff won't be directed to work then who ensures the site runs?
Or should teachers be doing all those jobs unpaid as well to make up for having 67 weeks holiday in the last 3 months?

@BlessYourCottonSocks agreed!
One of the boys in my class was confused when he saw me at school the other day. It took him a minute but then he realised that I am setting and responding to his work from home when I am not in school.
A 6 year old has understood how teachers are working from home better than some of the users on here.