Longer school days to make up for lost learning

[StitchInLime]

Source: Various newspapers, give it a Google (admittedly with a right wing lean)

Apparently one of the options being considered, nothing set in stone of course but for the purposes of discussion...

AIBU to feel both joy and sadness at the prospect of this (joy for me so I can claw back work hours, joy for children so they can claw back some school time but sadness for my teacher friends and all teachers who will need to add more hours to already heavy workload).

"Again, perfectly normal in most jobs to miss these."

Hmm. Who the hell are all those people turning up to sports day and nativities then? There seem to be an awful lot of fuckers who are managing it.

Not read all the comments, so apologies if it's been mentioned.
But, can't they just give schools extra funding so they can employ extra staff to offer extra support to those children that need it within the normal school day?
I'm not sure I'd be happy (although mine aren't school age) to have them having to do longer hours of school, I also think when extra curricular activities are back up and running it would be a shame for children to miss getting back into these to stay at school longer.

Fizzy, would you like to reply to the question I’ve asked twice, about how many extra hours you think I should work on catch up sessions, when this week I will have worked 56 hrs and my standard working week is 50-60 hours?

At the start of each lockdown it was more because of setting up new processes.

My contract says I am not required in school during the summer holiday. Do you really think they should go against that (and do you honestly think they would choose to or could do so anyway) and insist I am in over the summer too?

You seem keen on directed time. Would you prefer I stuck to my directed time and didn’t work the extra hours I work every single week?

Look forward to hearing your answers.

I mean you are choosing to further punish the children of these parents?

No. The government is. This is gaslighting and emotionally abusing language and you should be ashamed.

I’m getting rather tired of some privileged parents resorting to using disadvantaged children to push forward their own children when they could not have given less of a shit about them before Covid19 and won’t once it’s passed either.
The teachers and school staff who did care before Covid19 and will do after, will pick up the pieces as usual, whilst those privileged parents carry on with their lives...

The teachers and school staff who did care before Covid19 and will do after, will pick up the pieces as usual, whilst those privileged parents carry on with their lives...

Exactly that.

I will be honest and say I’ve not read the whole thread...

But, as a teacher, I won’t be offering or agreeing to extra hours to the school day.

I care immensely about the children I teach, but I care more about the children that I live with. They have suffered the bereavement of their sibling, their dad abandoning them a few years ago and now have no contact with him, one has ASD and ADHD, one has hearing loss and the other has a chronic pain condition. But because they’re not on FSM, no one checks in on them or asks how our well being is. It’s not great, we’re struggling through like the rest of the population and as I leave each morning to teach the CW children at school in person, and the rest of my class remotely, I can’t give my own children an extra thought...

I deal with it because there’s an end in sight. If I’m now told I need to put in more hours for the children in my class at the detriment of my own family? No. Absolutely not. None of us can cope with any more. Teachers are parents too.

I don't think get paid for holidays my wage is pro rata so holidays are deducted from my yearly salary and then it is paid over twelve months.

I have a desk job where sometimes I have to work long, mentally intensive days because of a deadline and an unexpected hiccup in the project. My efficiency rapidly declines each hour and if these long days go on too long, it can take me weeks for my physical and mental healthy to recover.

A better system might be to add days to the calendar for students who are performing below year level. I don’t think it makes sense to spend money on kids like mine whose education has not been disrupted at all, because I have fought hard to make sure it is not disrupted. I also have academic, economic, and flexibility privilege not available to many of the families that are struggling so we just don’t need the extra help.

can't they just give schools extra funding so they can employ extra staff to offer extra support to those children that need it within the normal school day?

Absolutely, a very sensible idea. Preferably let schools choose how to employ the staff, without having to buy tutoring services from the Government's provider of choice. Yes, someone's already seen the money and had their hand out!

Thanks for the laugh OP

Sorry that was my typo! I mean you are choosing to further punish the children of these parents?
You cannot further punish a child who has abusive parents by not providing additional schooling, and even if you could stretch that point, you are talking about maybe 4 kids in 1000, and that does not entitle parents who are bone idle and don't care about their children's education to expect teachers to do what they clearly refuse to take responsibility for.

One has to wonder, given your self righteous stance on expecting teachers to be providing addition teaching for free, why you have not signed on to help provide voluntary help at your local school and why you do not offer online tuition for children struggling with English and maths. Simple set up a YouTube channel and start broadcasting YomoMaths and let people learn in their own time. So you can fit in into your spare time and give back to other people's children.

... but no. You expect teachers getting paid less than 25% of what you get paid to spend more hours at work that you do, and neglect their own children so the self entitled can get a free ride through life.

Evening all,

We're getting a lot of reports about inflammatory posts on this thread.

We've already removed all of the posts by FizzyPepsi as we can see they're a previously banned poster, back to goad some more.

We're looking into the rest of your reports now but please continue to report any posts which concern you.

But, can't they just give schools extra funding so they can employ extra staff to offer extra support to those children that need it within the normal school day?

This is what they should be doing - but with properly qualified teachers - ideally specialist literacy and maths teachers who are experienced in delivering evidence-based catch-up interventions.

This 'teachers aren't paid for holidays' schtick is baloney. This may be the technical position- but it's not actually the case at all.They are paid an annual salary- it just so happens they only actually work 39 weeks a year. As opposed to 47 for other sectors

Oh dear. You are really showing yourself up now. Don’t pretend you know more about the contracts, terms and conditions of a job you don’t do.

We are paid for our 39 weeks work, plus directed time, inclusive of statutory holiday requirements. The rest is unpaid.

@ChloeDecker

I mean you are choosing to further punish the children of these parents?

No. The government is. This is gaslighting and emotionally abusing language and you should be ashamed.

I’m getting rather tired of some privileged parents resorting to using disadvantaged children to push forward their own children when they could not have given less of a shit about them before Covid19 and won’t once it’s passed either.
The teachers and school staff who did care before Covid19 and will do after, will pick up the pieces as usual, whilst those privileged parents carry on with their lives...

This.

Lilleth I'm so sorry - that really is a lot to be dealing with

@ArseInTheCoOpWindow

A teaching meme floated around my fb for a bit last week.

Something like: How has it got to the point that schools are not only responsible for learning, but also childcare, social work, mental health support. food distribution, public health, counselling, educational and behavioural psychologist, child welfare etc etc etc.

It’s like schools are suddenly responsible for every multi agency thing possible.

This is so true. When did it suddenly become the responsibility of schools to raise the nation's children?

@ThelmaNotLouise well I noticed it from about 2005 onwards (trained in 95) but it's been getting worse year on year.

[quote Makingnumber2]@SansaSnark and this is why teachers should go back to working to rule- nothing outside 8.20-3.20 gets done. This would show those parents who think we aren't doing enough, and the government ,how broken and 'f-ed up our system really is and how it's been hanging by a shoe string and running on good will for decades.
Kiss goodbye to your chidren's assessment being marked- pretty much ever. Say bye bye to school trips and enrichment activities. No more school play or school musical evenings. Adios to lessons that are planned and up to date, engaging and stimulate quality learning. If we could all do that for a month, then resume normal business I think lots would think twice before whingeing.[/quote]
I mean, I'm happy to do the enrichment, planning and marking- and directed time is a bit more than 8.30-3.30. But I'm sure most teachers go well over their directed time every year, so if we got a little bit back last year I think that's reasonable BUT I'm also not convinced we did.

I will say again to Yommo, that teachers are teachers doing a job. They aren’t appointed by government to be saviours to all of societies ills, and to sacrifice themselves and their families without limit. That is what you are asking them to do.

I work really hard and do far more hours thanIm contracted to. I’m a really good teacher. I draw the line though and am not prepared to sacrifice myself and my family without limit. I do more than enough and will always sleep well at night knowing I have done a good job. I will not be doing more and I don’t believe anyone will ask me to do more and if they do, they will get shirt shrift, because I have already gone above and beyond. And I respect anyone who does a good job and chooses not to go above and beyond.

Yes,there has been a pandemic and a crisis. The government has to sort it out and resource the solutions. It really isn’t in teachers to individually make choices to sort it out or be told that it’s their responsibility to sort out.

Thank you choclateis much appreciated, as yes, it is a lot to deal with but as a professional I just get on with it. But my children don’t get my choice. They know ‘my children’ in class come first, because they pay the bills

I see that the twats4themselves shills are out in force.

But anyway

civic duty

11 months being treated like shit by many posters, many media companies and a targetting campaign by fuckwits and many more years of bullshit and blame from the government.

Fuck off with that "civic duty" bullshit.

When are some school staff so reluctant to do that bit extra?

Schools already run on goodwill, After school classes, clinics, catch ups, clubs, sports, tech, arts, computing etc,

Yet posters want another 2hrs per day to prove that teachers will go that "little" extra. ffs

Unions or teachers unwilling to co-operate should be subject to termination and the imposition of new contracts

Go for it, I for one will enjoy the endless employment tribunals that come about against those breaking employment contracts and firing teachers.

And good luck with employing co many new teachers.

Maybe the twats4themselves peoples army could do it for free?

I have really enjoyed discussing this. I still stand by my views and think that teachers should be supporting ideas like this and that they can definitely make space in their agenda's to do it, but I do thank all the teachers for engaging with me and educating me a lot more about what they do and how they do it. I have always thought that teachers are superheroes.

They can definitely make space in their agendas

You clearly haven't been listening.

I have always thought that teachers are superheroes.

And now you know they're people too. What a poor excuse for a climb down.