To be really worried about proposed teacher strikes.

[katedan]

In England not Scotland for context. My twin daughters are year 11 and I am terrified about the impact of teacher strikes on their GCSEs. They have not yet covered the curriculum and every day counts to get them exam ready so strike days will be disastrous for year 11 and 13 pupils ( and lots of other children especially those who are vulnerable) these kids have had their education impacted by covid and now strikes. This will make the divide between state and private schools even bigger. Do you think they will go ahead or if a safety net will be put around exam years if it does.

It really is. My DP teaches Y5 and they have one TA across three classes. All the teachers want her in their class because they all have SEN and low ability children who need extra support that they can't give 100% to because they've got 25+ other children to teach. So the poor TA is pulled all ways. In an ideal work if schools were adequately funded by the Govt they could have a TA each and those TAs would be better paid.

Don't be ridiculous, teachers get their wages spread out over 12 months but only get paid for the hours in their contract. So they get like 9 months wages split across 12 months. Nurses, teachers etc will 'invest' any pay rise they receive back into our economy. Yes better pay in asda when you take into consideration all the unpaid hours they do. Give yersel a wobble

Do you think if Labour gets in next time, things might improve? Keir Starmer didn't sound too sure about putting more funding into anything, although anything is better than nothing I suppose!

Terrified. Jesus. Work out what lessons they have on the day, organise some revision activities- there is literally always something to do. Panic more about the greater state of the school system, the obsession with 'catching up' post covid and the lack of willing to fix what Gove broke. Strike days will be repaid in many lunchtime, after school and holiday revision sessions, I'm sure. Ex-teacher of over 20 years - exam years only.

Strike days will be repaid in many lunchtime, after school and holiday revision sessions

Not if teachers don't take part in them. They don't get paid for these.
I'm retired now but never ever did revision sessions outside the timetabled lessons. And yes, my exam results were fine.

I want to be optimistic but I just don't know. I hope they could find the necessary funding and I also hope they'll address the way the curriculum and the ridiculous attainment rules put so much pressure on teachers and increase their workloads. They've got a lot to unravel and repair after 12 years of Tory rule, so it's anyone's guess whether things will improve. But one thing Labour is good at is listening to the unions, so there should be far more constructive dialogue than there is presently.

There's so much pressure! My dd is about to do her 3rd set of mock exams, third! Since May last year! She struggles with the pressure of exams and much better with course work. The anxiety she has during the weeks building up to it is horrible. I'm sure I did mocks in year 10, and then the real exams were year 11 (although I missed most of years 9, 10, and 11 as depression wasn't really recognised back in the 90s). The exam pressures are just insane and appear to be more about results for schools rather than actually caring about the kids doing them!

That’s shocking!

But that is precisely why the teachers (and non teachers) who were contributing to the discussion got so frustrated with you. You were quick to give your opinions on a working environment that you don’t have any first hand experience of.

Generally, if enough members of a profession are willing to strike over workload and pay issues, then we should be listening to those involved in the profession, rather than speaking over them.

It was me who first mentioned Asda, and I mentioned it because I’ve seriously looked into applying. I also worked in customer service roles for 9 years before becoming a teacher (not Asda, but similar large retailers) and the job was significantly less stressful, significantly more flexible, and my working hours were exactly that.

I was fine in debate, and part of debating is listening and then reflecting on others' views where someone might change their mind, which is good. But it was the personal insults from a select few posters that are just very unnecessary, which was the frustration on my part. I don't mind people disagreeing, but I do mind it getting personal. But I'm glad that all got deleted and we can move on.

I hated working directly with the public! I had a cheese sandwich thrown at once! 😀 They were really angry! But seriously, the general public was vile!

@WineDup , seriously, do it, and if you think after a year that it’s less stressful and that you earn more for the same hours then fair enough.

Supermarkets are open early and close at 10 and need to be staffed to reflect those opening hours. I do not want to turn this into a holiday debate but no way would there be enough leave to cover the holidays. I wouldn’t be able to pay my sons nursery fees if I worked at Asda, never mind a mortgage. You can’t wear your own clothes.

I have a distant relative - aunt once removed or something - who works at the Asda in my home town and loves it but she’s been there for over thirty years and there’s no way she earns close to what I do.

There is a lot wrong with teaching and I support anyone trying to change that but doing so by claiming we are as poorly paid as those on minimum wage and just above sits very uncomfortably with me

I had someone throw a pile of receipts at me because I wouldn’t return a £1 t shirt that they didn’t have a receipt for.

Still, beats the time I was spat on, the time I had a chair thrown at me when pregnant, the time I had to get between two teenagers who were fighting, being called a “stupid c*” for asking someone to sit down, had sexual comments made to me (including someone hump the air in front of me while wearing a leotard, and another tell me about their masturbation habits), being told that they hope I die of aids, … I could go on.

The good in teaching outweighs the good in customer service roles, but the bad in teaching is something that few other professions deal with.

I’d take stagnated pay if they could deal with the other issues, but it’s never going to happen.

Having a cheese sandwich thrown at you is pretty minor in comparison to physical, verbal and sexual abuse directed at teachers (along, of course, with NHS colleagues, social workers, police and prison officers) !

I didn’t say they are better paid.

I did however, point out that on a part time teachers salary (£25k) my take home pay would be more in Asda. Mainly because I’d also get UC which would cover childcare costs, and I could work around my partners working pattern.

My partners salary is approx £13k and mine £25k, and our take home pay is only £100 different.

Absolutely well said!

Honestly as a teacher, no it won’t impact them. Most ‘content’ is covered months before the exams and then it’s simply revision. I also taught myself my A Levels and took the exams as an external candidate. I was from a working class background and working full time. It can absolutely work and isn’t as detrimental as it’s all being made out to be!

Strikes planned and my understanding is that it’s three main days for all and one day for a regional strike.

even Ofsted, university lecturers etc are striking!

Yabu this is about something bigger than exams for teachers!!

Do you even know if your school is affected, only the NEU union have voted to strike currently, NASUWT have not voted to strike as they didn’t have more than 50% of members voting in their ballot.

No, me neither and my results were good. I'm not suggesting they should either; exam curriculum should be teachable, with revision time, in normal timetabled lessons, but that is another problem to be addressed. So many teachers do put these sessions on, out of both good will and pressure to secure good results.

I don't do revision classes, and haven't for years. I expect my students to work at least as hard as I do in lessons and homework. Their results are testament to that.
My goodwill evaporated a long time ago.

I think anyone on minimum wage and zero hours contracts should strike because if teachers can’t afford to live on their significantly higher pay how the hell is everyone else meant to? Be great to see shop workers , care staff , childcare workers etc take a stand and we can see how much we rely on these often undervalued and underpaid workers. Only difference is we don’t have a strong union behind us. But seriously all jobs should give you enough to live on. If your working full time and need top ups from the government to live there is something seriously wrong.

And I appreciate teaching is obviously a profession that involves a degree and study etc so should be paid more but everyone should earn a wage they can live on.

I completely wholeheartedly agree, and I can’t think of many jobs which I would consider to be undeserving of a pay rise.

I honestly think that they want us all arguing amongst ourselves over what is effectively pocket change in the grand scheme of things.

Also relevant - if we do get 10% pay rise, I’ll see none of it, as it will take me over the student loan threshold, and I’ll be paying 9.6% of my earnings towards that. Depending on if they deduct tax before or after my loan, I could actually end up worse off. If that happens, I’m going to drop down to two days per week.

I don't want to take away from the way teachers are treated in the way of verbal and physical abuse, which is extremely unacceptable, but in customer service roles, in particular with the public, it is really vile and certainly not any better in terms of the sheer abuse they receive.
Being spat at, headbutted, violence received from grown men, as in punched in the face/tackled to the ground/kicked/pinned against the wall and threatened, every offensive language known to man said to them. My ex was grabbed by his tie and dragged over the counter because he asked for ID! Shoplifters and the abuse, drunks being abusive and having to deal with them and their (often persistent and recurring) behaviour. Being screamed and shouted at by angry customers and their threats. There is plenty more to go on, unfortunately.

Not to say teachers don't receive unacceptable abuse and behaviour from all sides, but on this one, there are many, many jobs that unfortunately suffer lots of abuse from people ranging ranging from customers, patients, clients, service users and everyone in between ☹️