AIBU to feel that teachers shouldn't really be striking?

[Pinky1011]

They have 3 months PAID holidays only work 9-4pm, no dangerous or really bad working conditions, great job security, good pensions, They had pay rises last year up to 8%!!! I work in the private sector and haven't had a pay rise in almost 6 years! I just feel compared to alot of other professions, teachers have it quite good? I mean their starting salary is the same as a junior doctor. I get it inflation has wrecked everyone, but surely the issue should be getting inflation down? Not just demanding for more money, which by the way only fuels inflation further. AIBU to feel that teachers just don't know how good they have it compared to the rest of us?

Stolen from Mrs Smith on Facebook. Excellent description of a day in the life of a primary teacher

Teacher life, in case you thought it was easy!

The week before you have to teach the work to the class, you need to prepare all the work to be taught for the following week.

On the day you are delivering the work, you need to arrive at your place of work at least an hour ahead of time, possibly two and check your work is still relevant following on from yesterday’s work. It is important that you make any adjustments that are necessary to today’s planned work in this time, given your assessment of the work completed yesterday. Gather all the resources needed for the work, making sure you have a wide selection to meet the needs of those doing the work under your guidance.

Welcome those coming into your workplace. Check they have lunch, sort out and return the property they lost yesterday and comment on new glasses, haircuts and lost teeth.

Start to deliver your work. NB, there will be a number of those in the room who will need additional support to access your work despite all your planning. You must provide this support. Others may have an emotional need that requires your support too. This need must be met. Continue to deliver your work. There may be those who actively try to prevent you from working, again this must be managed by you, whilst continuing to work. Be prepared to repeat your work, several times to any who need a bathroom break during your work. Keep an eye out for those lightbulb moments. Praise, support and encourage as you walk laps of your workplace.

Take a break. During this break mark the work just completed and set out new work for after the break. Once a week join the children on their break outside in the playground. On these days make sure you have the work easily to hand for your next session so that no working time is lost. Continue on working like this, during lunch (when emails can be read and answered) and into the afternoon until home time.

Match up each person in the class with all their belongings. As part of your work you must maintain contact with parents of those who do the work you have set. This work is to be done after you have finished the class work for the day. After you have done the work in class, mark the work produced today. In light of this, adapt and change the work you will do tomorrow.

Decorate your workplace according to local rules about double mounting, colour of backing paper or font and size of lettering. Your room must look inviting.

At least once a week you must attend a meeting of an hour or more about work. This is often run by someone who has been doing the same work as you, but for considerably less time. They now go from workplace to workplace explaining how to work better, faster, smarter or harder than you do already. You will feel anger and jealousy in equal measure towards them.
When you have finished all you can do in your workplace, or if you have a family you’d like to see, pack your bag and head home.

At home, have a wee and then have tea. After eating, unpack your bag and continue work. This may be on your laptop or with books that need to be marked.

Finally, unwind with a book, a box set or something crafty. When you do eventually wake up after falling asleep on the sofa, go to bed. Inevitably, you will dream about school.

Wake up.

Repeat as before.

Mrs Smith loves her job with all her heart but if you think she only works from 8.45 until 3.30 then think again. If you also think you could do her job better than she can, she can point you in the direction of the application forms. If you are happy to teach maths to sixth formers, all the better.

If you don’t follow Mrs Smith already, please consider doing so. Thank you.

#thisisntacompetition
#publicsector
#comeandhaveago

You are being unreasonable and also a bit dim- back to school for you

It's not nonsense at all. I'm a big supporter of teachers and have said multiple times om this thread that they should have a significant payrise and a huge improvement to working conditions through a massive increase in funding to state education.

But to pretend that the level of qualification required for professions such as law, accounting and medicine is the same as that for teaching is obviously not true. The length of study, the exams required etc. Those professions also require other skills on top of technicals skills, but the level of technical skills and knowledge required to obtain qualifications in those professions is higher also, hence it taking longer to qualify.

What do you mean by technical skills?

And that is a good point as well - no expert on education here but as a bystander it appears that much if the fallout on schools seems to be the result of a complete failure in other services: social services, CAMHS, etc.

Teachers need to be able to focus on teaching, not trying to fix social issues. Social services failure seems to be behind much of the failure in schools and the NHS.

If you'd ever done the exams for law, accounting, medicine, to become an actuary, etc, then I'm not sure you'd ask this question!!

Which is exactly why I am asking!

Those things require a huge amount of intensive learning of technical knowledge and study. Years and years of exams. You can't just do any degree plus a one year course. After a degree, for those professions, professional study would go on for anything from 3-7 years. There is much more technical knowledge that you must learn to become qualified, the exams are absolutely brutal. Failure is often met with sacking. Hours worked alongside doing this are usually far more brutal than trainee teachers do as well. Of course, the potential rewards are higher too, mostly (not for everyone, when you stratify the data, per my earlier posts). But yes: obtaining those qualifications is harder, takes longer, requires more study and many more exams than a PGCE. And yes, all of those people in those professions also need to do work experience also to qualify, as well as that training. Lots of it. In many cases more hours than teachers do, to reach full qualification level.

For all those quoting what they say is good pay for teachers, it's just about ok in theory but.....

1. Schools are skint so manage out older more experienced teachers to save on wage bills.

1. If you move school they don't have to pay you the same wage or higher, there is no pay portability.

1. Progression up the pay scale is not automatic in many places and may be linked to unachievable targets.

1. Teachers in FE are paid a lot less (max 30k) for very experienced staff in my local area.

1. Staff used to boost their pay with summer exam marking but high workload means no time or energy and I know the exam board I work for were really desperate for more GCSE markers.

1. Historically people thought they were trading a lower wage for a good pension, this has already been downgraded once in my 17 year career. Some schools and colleges have done away with it completely.

1. Also people put up with the pay as the holidays were once exactly that rather than time when you still had to work but with juggling your own kids too.

1. Always having holidays in term time means you always pay more.

9.you spend a lot of your own money on stuff for the classroom or kids because otherwise you can't do the stuff you need to do never mind the fun stuff (especially primary colleagues).

10. I wanted a nice round ten but I've run out of steam ☺️

It shouldn't be the misery olympics. It's mot a competition if crapness.

But no, teachers are not unique in working hard for terrible pay in comparison to skill/ qualification.

Yes, they've been absolutely stitched up the last decade or so and their pay needs raising substantially. It does for all public sector workers IMO, when you look at the stats on pay vs qualification level.

We should all support this, it is in everyone's interests.

No it would not be inflationary, that's a myth.

And I feel very sorry for teachers trying to pick up the mess of the NHS and particularly social services not functioning, so they are unable to teach and spend their time being social workers. I have a lot of respect for them. It's not a job I'd want.

As a lone parent to two small kids and a full time job the strikes will inconvenience me significantly. But I support them, because I want their teachers and all public sector workers to be paid properly and my children's education to be funded properly. School funding per head needs to double roughly, I think, for schools to be able to function as they should.

But to pretend that the level of qualification required for professions such as law, accounting and medicine is the same as that for teaching is obviously not true. The length of study, the exams required etc. Those professions also require other skills on top of technicals skills, but the level of technical skills and knowledge required to obtain qualifications in those professions is higher also, hence it taking longer to qualify

It does rather depend on how qualified the practitioner actually is. You can have low level qualifications as well as advanced qualifications in all of the other professions you use as examples. You’re not comparing like with like. A medical consultant is paid far more than a classroom teacher.

The fact is that many well-qualified and experienced teachers (and experience is immensely valuable) are leaving the profession they love because the pay is too low and the demands made on them too high. They get better pay and work-life balance elsewhere.

A teachers' wages given the huge holidays they have every year, and the potential to earn many more thousands from working during school holidays or tutoring is outstanding comparatively to a similar profession. The pension is fantastic, as is the job security and lets face it they are NOT scraping up dead people from the roadside like the police or paramedics.

Since the beginning of time teachers have whinged relentlessly regardless of political party, it is what they do, and it is bloody boring.

Do you not get bored of typing the same post out over and over again, Swiss?

Ah Noble. You are still here, now there is a surprise! Do you ever sleep or eat? Or teach for that matter

It's 8pm in the evening, Swiss, why would I be teaching?

I will never tire of reminding you of your cosy job, with your half a year holidays, your 5-9% pay rise and your gold plated pension.

Join the real world just for six months, and then come back and tell me it is all buttercups and butterflies. In the real world you really wouldn't survive a snowflake mentality.

You could try to be less obvious.

Oh dear, who did a pee in your cornflakes?!

I am trying to be very obvious. It is a long long way from being noble, lets put it that way.

For one thing teachers don’t get 3 months paid holiday. School staff get paid term time plus holiday pay uplift and the total is divided by 12 so it’s an equal monthly amount. You are showing your ignorance you stupid, judgemental twat person!!!! Teachers were working through covid, teaching online and in school for vulnerable and key worker kids. You really have fuck all idea of what you’re saying 🤦‍♀️🙄🤬

Are you five years old? Or have you spent too much time in the class room you have forgotten how to be an adult?

My union isn't striking, Swiss.

A medical consultant has done technical training and exams for 7 years, then worked as a junior doctor for many years, before becoming a consultant. The qualification to become a teacher and the qualification required to become a doctor are just not comparable, in terms of academic difficulty, exams or time and experience.

I have great respect for teachers and as I said they should have a significant payrise but this is not a sensible comparison.