What do you think of these school situations ?

[Wigisfashion83]

I work in one, just wondered what you thought of the following.

1. A teacher from next door coming in to tell the class to be quieter, as her class were working on an assessment. The class were animated, not screaming and shouting or anything but chatty, and we were also watching a documentary. I may be unreasonable but I think it undermines the member of staff and the teacher doesn't get to decide the noise of other classes, if they are not SLT.

1. A student telling another within earshot of you that he would like to do something violent to you. This happened to me and I reported it. The student had a quick telling off but the detention I issued him was removed, so I requested that it is reinstated. Yet, if our students said such things to SLT, they would be out of the school before they know it.

1. Teaching a class (cover) and their form tutor pops in. They are a year 7 form. The teacher coming in is known to be a bit cold, but she doesn't even acknowledge me or the fact that it is disturbing my lesson. She literally doesn't even look at me, just comes in the room and talks to her students for about 10 minutes.

I would take charge more.

"Quiet my class is doing an assessment"
"That's good to know, perhaps some advance warning and no one will disturb another time?" (Because that's prep any teacher can do prep).

1. Discuss the situation with your line manager, consider a formal complaint.
2. No way. To be honest any other teacher coming into the room and I would immediately say yes (name) how can I help you. No way would I have let them yabber away for 10 mins. Form admin.on their time unless it is something really pressing/ last minute/ serious behaviour type moment.

#1 is fine and normal, they're not saying that your class were too noisy full stop or on a normal day, but at that particular moment there was an assessment going on so they needed to be quieter.

#2: not great. I'd want to know why your punishment was removed.

#3. Bit rude, but I couldn't get too worked up over it.

#4 if a regular teacher had capacity I'd think it was very normal that it went to them

Have you posted about this sort of thing before?

But if I had planned an activity that involved group discussion, then perhaps it's unreasonable to expect my class to be silent

Should make it clear that I am a Cover Supervisor at the school but I am employed there and the kids know me as a permanent staff member, I am just not a 'teacher' teacher.

Yes, but I think the assessment takes priority. If it was noisy enough to cause disruption to the class next door it is too noisy.

But a colleague asking me to tell the kids to be quiet is undermining as
It sends a message to the class that I’m not able to control them.
‘On Call’ don’t come into any classrooms at my school and ask the teacher why they are having a problem with x,y or z. They ask ‘Who’s stopping you from teaching and the class from learning?’
I have a form and have no problem with another FT coming into a lesson to address their form or members from their form.
As regards the pupils saying you’re a ‘TILTF’ ,that’s where the union helps.
I am not victim blaming. You need to be able to say ‘I’m going to speak to my union rep about this incident unless you deal with it. ‘
Join and log all incidents that you feel are undermining you as a teacher. Contemporaneous notes are invaluable when highlighting inconsistencies in practice.
Email your concerns to the relevant staff. If you’re an NQT you should have a mentor.
Get them involved.
Once you’re in a union cc your emails to the rep when you’re expressing concerns.
Take regular but little steps to prove you are aware of school procedures and that in certain instances ,colleagues have not followed them.
When you get a response ask for clarification about why colleague X,Y or Z was allowed to interpret said procedure in the way they did.

God. Epic post. Sorry. Multitasking and left post halfway through.

Before anyone can really help any more, can you clarify if you are a qualified teacher employed as such, or a supply teacher, or a cover supervisor or a teaching assistant or ....
It does make a difference & might also explain some of the behaviours

Sorry thought I had said, Cover supervisor

I really think you need to let 1 go - it’s a non-issue, especially as the teacher is question has already apologised.

Has anyone mentioned concerns about classroom management? We obviously don’t know you, or the details, but it’s very unusual that a HOY would request a form to have yet another change of FT, that the FT is visiting your lessons whilst you are teaching etc. I really don’t know, you may be absolutely fine, and if no one has said anything then there may not be a problem. Equally if no one has said anything and there is an issue with your classroom management then that is a red flag about poor running of the school.
If there are no issues with your work then it is a management problem, sounds both middle management and SLT in this scenario. What’s your HOD like? Is there anyone there you trust that you could talk to?

They have expressed concern about my behaviour management before and I have had training. I think it's something I have improved, but still it's not an easy role when you are cover.

I am not in a department, there is somebody I could talk to but he told me the same thing, to work on my behaviour management.

Cover is really tough, I’ve worked in my school for 10 years and even know when I get called emergency cover for some reason the kids try it on for a mo.

You need to be consistent, and follow the school behaviour policy to the letter. Never deviate.
Ours is warning 1, move in room, send to a different class with other kids- the latter results in a call home and detention.

Read up in your school policy and use it every single time you need to.

Learn the kids names, I know it’s hard in a big school, work out who are the students you defo need to get on side, those with needs etc

Does your school use seating plans?when we give our cover work we need to send in our seating plan, which has any needs on it, their target graces, CAT bands etc- you could ask SLT if this could be made a policy as would help all cover supervisors.

Call parents/carers , email tutors, email Class teachers, follow the policy.

Be consistent and it will pay off.

The first is fine to me. The second two are unacceptable (I’m a teacher).

They all seem to come back to the same issue, you struggling to control the class.
How long has it been an issue for, as you said they had asked you to work on it?

1. if you are watching a documentary, students should not be chatty. They should be watchy
2. There should be a distinction between the punishment for being rude to SLT compared to supply or 'normal' teacher. BUT violent intentions should be reported and you should escalate if you don't feel safe. I had to do that when a student was physically threatening me, when he was just spoken to but he was suspended for two weeks for 'refusing to complete homework' for SLT
3. if you were doing work at your desk they may have not wanted to disturb you. Otherwise, this was rude.

The culture in secondary school is very odd for things like this. Some teachers can not tell the difference between communicating with a class and a colleague.

When I worked in a special needs school we had proper procedures for members of staff helping you with a tricky situation- called ‘change of face’ and part of it was the change in status regarding who was in charge was always indicated through eye contact and a nod. I remember thinking then my previous secondary colleagues could have done with such explicit training in status and group dynamics.

Re: inappropriate comment. In ye olden days if a student said the f-word in my presence there were serious consequences. These days I have know boys passing porn in lessons and not get in trouble. It is very sad how worn out people are.

1. Of the class is noisy enough to disturb next door when they should be being quiet and watching the documentary YABU

1. YANBU, the school should support teachers applying appropriate discipline

1. YANBU, that’s just rude.

Do you have QTS?

OK, so it sounds like there are some issues that you need to work on, but that you don’t feel supported in this.
What role does the person have that you can talk to? If they’re just another colleague then that’s great as a sounding board, but you need someone in management with a bit of oomph who can actually help you. Is there anyone like that?
Is there any opportunity for you to observe colleagues/have them observe you for support? A buddy system that you could use for the removal of disruptive students? You need to be on a staged support plan, with regular meetings with a line manager or HOD to support you - these should be helpful and geared to you gaining confidence, not a punitive stick to beat you with.
You need to have support, not just dismissal.
Do you think you could push for these, do you have someone in mind who could be your advocate?