To think teachers could stop using parents evenings as a working late example?

[needabreak5]

Reading a few recent teachers threads and I have a few close friends that are teachers. I don’t doubt teachers genuinely work long hours during term time, weekends, evenings etc (as do some other professional jobs but for better pay). However, I do think they sometimes point out the ‘parents evenings’ a bit too much, given everyone knows it’s not even every week, why not just say you work late most nights, without giving that specific reason, surely it’s a drop in the ocean not worth mentioning? I work a 9-6 office job (and usually stay late) but have a fortnightly recurring meeting 6-9pm, I wouldn’t mention it to anyone, it’s a core part of my job (just happens to be outside of normal working day). I just think non-teachers/parents may be more understanding of the relentless long hours if parents evenings weren’t repetitively mentioned as one if the main examples.

You can't make silk purse out of a sows ear... Pretty damning? A good teacher is someone who is invested in the development of the children in their classs and actually know who all the children are. We only had a couple. Don't even get me started on the quality of the headteachers. I know some great teachers, they just haven't taught my DCs.

Yes though I said that and I’m not a teacher. I’m sorry your children had such a poor educational experience but surely if the teachers can’t keep track of all the children they teach it’s more likely to be the case that they are over stretched is it not?

There is no need to put other people down just to say how hard you work, lots of people who work in offices have to work really hard as well.

It's not the Parents' Evenings that are the problem. I quite enjoy them. It's the fact that you then get home at 8 pm and have to cook dinner and then either plan till 1 am for the next day or as I have done, got up at 4 am today to plan (Parents' Evening last night).

I don't think @curlymom put anyone down . It isn't like sitting in an office all day. I'm a TA but I've done loads of corporate work as well. It isn't the same thing. The stress levels may be the same in some cases, but it's just different having a class of thirty kids, usually a few with challenging behaviour and some with additional needs. Many of the kids don't want to do some of the work at least. Some hate maths, some hate English, some hate pe. The teacher is ultimately responsible for getting them to do it without bribing, being harsh and not taking focus away from the other children. If you have twins or triplets and find it difficult, imagine that times fifteen but you have to get them to do 'boring' stuff and you can't promise them screen time. If you put a foot wrong, the parents may accuse you of all sorts. If you get accused of something it can taint or ruin your career for years or even forever.

It's closer to medicine than office work imo due to the type of pressure involved. Anyone saying it isn't the same as office work isn't being snide. It's just true. If a nurse said the same nobody would take umbridge

I lost all sympathy for teachers and their striking - back in the 80’s when they ruined my education then….

No different now for my kids.

I do wish they were better paid (and the rubbish ones got rid of a lot lot faster) but didn’t they just get 8.9% increase in july. (Headline figure i know - so no doubt there will be winners and losers.). But there isn’t a bottomless pit of tax revenues.

I think people are clueless as to what teachers do. Secondary schools don’t have one parents night, they have one for every year group! Most teachers I know work ridiculously longs hours. My DD has had emails with slides for next days lesson at 1am from her teacher more than a few times. It’s like most jobs whether you’re a nurse, teacher, doctor people don’t know they like to think they know and are derogatory about something they have no skill or understanding in and love to comment ‘well you knew what you got into, so why don’t you go find another job’….that’s partly why we are in this situation because that is exactly what people are doing. Or ‘it’s a vocation and you should care more about the kids/patients than whether you get paid enough’

I kinda understand where OP is coming from. Parents evening is part of the job and the time is accounted for.
My dad taught from the 1950s-1980s and never did anything ‘extra’, but he did parents evening (and complained). I don’t think parents etc consider it anything beyond the scope of the job. It’s like friends who work in a shop who stay one night of the year to do a full stock take. It’s expected.

Its all the other things they need to talk about where time isn’t accounted for etc.

You are right, they did ruin your education because you sound clueless. If you actually look into it most teachers aren’t striking because of money, the majority would prefer working to rule.

Maybe she didn't mean it in a snide way, I'm sure it's not an easy job, but I felt she was insinuating office jobs are way easier and I don't think that's fair. Lots of us don't know how hard teachers work, but I do believe lots of teachers don't realise how hard others work either.