I blocked my Headteacher on WhatsApp this week

[jsty]

To make this post as short as it needs to be.

I am an ECT who decided not to renew my fixed term contract at the school I have been working at this year, my contract ends on the 31st August. On the last day of work I handed in my work laptop and lanyard/fob before I left the building. Fast forward to now, I received a text message from my headteacher this week. Basically I have not completed some SEND paperwork, that was due before the end of the term. The headteacher was claiming it was essential to be completed. The message was worded very politely and wished me the best of luck for the future but they basically asked me to come into work, collect my work laptop and complete it before the end of the summer holidays, preferably as soon as possible.

I do not recall being told that this needed to be completed. The last half term I found so overwhelming and felt all I was doing was working for most hours in the day.

I responded by not replying to the message and blocking the headteacher. I have felt unsupported during my time working there from SLT. I have gone 3 months working there without a single meeting/observation from my mentor.

I probably have responded in the wrong way and dread what my reference from this school could be now but I just want to enjoy my summer holidays in peace and relax.

I am going back on supply in September to decide whether I want to stay in the profession or not.

YABVVU

This paperwork is needed for a child - just do it. It was due before end of term although you “don’t recall” 🙄. Just do it. What reason do you have for not doing it other than pure pigheadedness?

Blocking headteacher is childish.

Your next job won’t go better if this is how you handle things.

Sorry I haven’t read the full thread but unless you were completely ignoring this despite warnings in term time I’d say this is inexcusably bad leadership and support of an early career teacher. Others have more responsibility for this than you do now.

However in similar cases of senior leaders reneging on their duties in the past (not in current role) I have just put my head down and done what I needed to for the students/ colleagues. I have then taken stock, made different decisions, or indeed left when necessary. However if I were you I would do this one last thing and then put this very unsatisfactory role to bed. Wishing you all the best in the future. I am sorry, teaching is tough at the best of times- which these clearly haven’t been,

Very unprofessional. Just do it. or accept you will not be getting a reference and someone's child will suffer as a result of this.

As a teacher married to a doctor here are some facts that may interest you:
If he’s not on shift he doesn’t work. He is not contactable during annual leave.
He has a full day a week to do paperwork for a 3 day a week job (full time contract for consultants)
He has a full day a week for professional development.
If he does end up working outside his expected time he can be looking at locum rates of £300 an hour.

Very glad you were never my headteacher saying manipulative twaddle like that.

So, the conversation is different for doctors, isn’t it? Hence the I wonder. Which you have read as a series of facts which haven’t been stated.

I’ve done both jobs . Nursing is a total killer when you’re on duty. I have done 10Ks where my legs didn’t ache as much as a day on the ward. Teaching though, is unrelentingly horrible 24/ 7 during term time. The number of pointless tasks you have to complete is incredibly time consuming. I wonder why both are such exploited profession? What could it be?🤔

Do it for the kids man. Do it for the kids.

So, sorry your point is ‘here is a job where they wouldn’t be expected to work in their holidays’ as a reason why the OP should? That’s illogical.

Your question was “I wonder what people would think of a doctor doing this” - the implication being they’d think poorly. Im
explaining, as you do not seem to know, that doctors certainly do not rush to fill in patient paperwork when they are not in contracted time. So it is a false comparison.

You have the responsibility as the class teacher to complete the paperwork for children with SEND.
You will have been told to do this before the end of term.

Who do you expect to do it? From your post, it sounds like you’re one of those teachers who just thinks the next teacher will do it.
Why should other people pick up your work load because you can’t be bothered to do it? I’ve taught for nearly 25 years, I’ve been a senco, I’ve beeb an acting head and I’ve worked in different schools. And it’s always the same. Some teachers do the job properly and others don’t.

The child with the send need will be the one who misses out - they need this doing. Your contract is until 31st August.

You don’t know when your path will cross with the headteacher again and you will need a reference.

Yes I know it is the holidays but send paperwork won’t have suddenly sprung up.

Not unprofessional at all - OP could be on a 6 week ‘digital detox’ cruise for all we know.

It is illegal to not give references or give poor ones.

It is very very unlikely a child will suffer and if they did it is nothing to do with the OP and everything to do with the senco

I think an isolated/ one off circumstance of a request to complete SEN paperwork is likely to be viewed as "reasonable additional work" as long as the time required wasn't excessive and depending on why it hasnt been done.

The implication is yours. What you have said is so interesting though. If only the working conditions you share extended to the whole teaching profession, from leadership to trainees. Some people say schools are the fourth emergency service. They operate under strict compliance and legislation relating to everything from safeguarding to SEND. Teaching is a vocation. If only education professionals at all levels, were respected. The hardworking people in schools, the exhausted ECTs right round to the frazzled headteachers are easy targets. As we see in the differing opinions on this post. And the government is rarely subject to society’s pile-on, as they continue to cut funding and add ever more onto the role of schools. Your husband clearly does important work. Society are lucky to have him. But people is schools are usually just trying their best.

Ex education recruitment consultant here for supply teachers. You do realise that all the headteachers within a town/city talk to each other? And the agency will also need a reference from the headteacher you've blocked?
Even for a short term placement, the heads at new schools will put in a call to your ex headteacher to check if you're suitable...

Taught for 15 years- I've never heard of a teacher being contacted during the middle of the summer holidays to complete work. Let alone have to go into school to do it on a work laptop. She could be halfway around the world for all the SLT know! Or on a digital detox. They should have asked you to do it before you left. That's the SENCOs job.
It's standard for schools to tie up all loose ends before the end of term.
I'd do it just to leave with goodwill but I'd try and do it remotely.
It's not going to make any difference to the child whether it's done now or in September. In which case someone else in the school such as the SENCO can fill it in with help from other staff who've worked with that child.

Are you saying that senior staff never make a mistake and forget to ask teachers to do a task. 😂

Teachers usually come in and do preparation in their classrooms so as to hit the ground running but they aren't directed in the holidays. You could be on a round the world trip from the 23rd of July to the 1st of September and it would be completely fine.

Are going to be in breach of any regulatory duty if you don’t do it?

What kind of paperwork? Are you in primary and the main teacher? If in secondary and a round robin type thing...how is X in your lesson? there will be other evidence and your input makes little difference. If it is a major piece from class teacher in primary this is something Senco should have flagged up long before the end of term and that is where the buck stops. How long would it take? Do you need to show evidence? If so where would that be ? As an ECT you should have been guided through this.

I am wondering though...What if you had decided to.go travelling around the world for the whole of the Summer. Teachers are entitled to their holiday time without having to.be called back in for completing something no one had told them they had to do during "office" hours? With my theory, would you have had to.jump on a plane from somewhere to rush back to the school to complete the paperwork? So, I guess the SENCO will have to do this. They should be competent enough knowing what to do. It sounds like you were in a chaotic school. Coming back to your specific situation, I think you might have to suck it up though. Once you're done, is there any chance you can raise the headteacher's poor handling of tbe situation to governors possibly? Tne headteacher can not ask staff to come in during tbe holiday to do something they had not told them they should do during directed hours.. it would be different if they had chosen not to complete the work of course.

"think an isolated/ one off circumstance of a request to complete SEN paperwork is likely to be viewed as "reasonable additional work"

Contacting a departing member of staff outside work hours who is on leave using WhatsApp to complete additional work ( presumably to cover for someone who should have made that request weeks ago) is in no way "reasonable".

SEN paperwork is hugely important.

Not filling in the required paperwork will mean those poor kids don't get evidence required to support them.

If you are even questioning not doing this then teaching isn't for you.

They can’t, however this was work that should have been completed before the end of term and wasn’t. Unfortunately, but responding in such a childish manner, the OP has ensured her card will be marked when it comes to expecting a decent reference.

As an ex teacher who taught for over 20 years, I couldn’t agree more.

She's not on leave. It's school holidays where according to her contract she might be expected to complete reasonable additional work given certain conditions are met (necessary to complete her duties , etc).

**
It is illegal to not give references or give poor ones.

Of course it’s not illegal to give a poor reference if what you say is strictly factual. What would be the point of references if they all had to be glowing?