Extending school term at end of July

[NeverForgetYourDreams]

That's not going to work. Another ridiculous idea. What about all those people that moved their cancelled holidays for 2020 by a year. Summer holidays may go ahead if vaccine roll out happens and who is going to cancel and lose their money - I'm not. Will be lots of absent children.

[quote BelleSausage]@Disneyblue

What about all of us who have been teaching a full online timetable for the last five weeks?

I think as a blanket policy it is stupid. Surely it is better looked at on a case by case basis.

Out attendance for online is over 90%![/quote]
For every single lesson?! Or morning registration... Hmmm

@CallmeAngelina many state schools did nothing during the first lockdown as the curriculum was officially suspended, so there is probably some need to catch up. Some state schools do very little now (2 worksheets per week level for many of my colleagues’ kids) so there might be a need as well.

I actually thought this was a good idea, with adequate notice and planning and the necessary agreements with teachers.

So many parents complaining about the impact on their children, teachers saying their job is a vocation etc etc but everyone up in arms about a fairly reasonable way to make up the lost months is completely shot down.

@whatplanet our school does the full curriculum online. All subjects, attendance close to 100%. Its possible under some circumstances (not for all schools though)

@Disneyblue

I'm a primary school teacher. I wouldn't be completely against this to be honest. Many saying they won't get paid. Well if they simply extend october half term and Christmas they wouldn't need to be paid any more. Yes it will affect booked summer holidays, which is why this decision should have been made ASAP before people even thought of booking holidays.

An extended schooll day would be harder to do, because you would have to pay teachers for that.

But you would have to pay more for this year. By July teachers will have worked their contracted days for the year. If more dats are added they would need to be voluntary and paid. You can't just compensate with next year's working days as some staff might be leaving, retiring etc.

I think it's a great idea, but based on the reaction from teachers in another thread to the suggestion that they do extra hours during the week, this will not go down well!! T

@yomommasmomma

I think it's a great idea, but based on the reaction from teachers in another thread to the suggestion that they do extra hours during the week, this will not go down well!! T

So now you want us to work 16 hour days every day AND give up our holidays?

You know EXACTLY what you can do.

@yomommasmomma

I think it's a great idea, but based on the reaction from teachers in another thread to the suggestion that they do extra hours during the week, this will not go down well!! T

Why is it a great idea?

yomommasmomma weren't you paying attention on the other thread? It was painstakingly explained at length that many teachers already do extra hours and have done for years. Unpaid, because although we have contracted hours, ultimately you work until the job is done. Which is where they get their pound of flesh- because the job is never done.

@whatplanet

Yes, for every lesson. Pastoral staff are chasing up non-attendees. We are running lessons as usual with parents eves, meetings, marking and feedback.

But we are a tech school and all the students have school sponsored devices.

@whatplanet also for every lesson here too.

I wouldn't be willing to do this as I would have no childcare and I imagine other teachers would be in the same position. And the children I teach had full live lessons in lockdown one and again now.

I’m a teacher and a parent, and I wouldn’t mind this to be honest. I’ve always thought an extra week at autumn half term and Christmas would be nice. I’m not sure 2 extra weeks will make an enormous difference academically to the kids this year, but it certainly couldn’t hurt!

It's a completely terrible idea for children's wellbeing. After enduring this curtailment of freedom and doing their best to engage with remote learning (which for most is a pale comparison with learning with peers in a dynamic relationship with their teachers), extended school will feel like a punishment.

They need freedom and fun, the chance to rebuild confidence and relationships, and a child-centred, not curriculum-driven cramming approach.

I can’t see this happening. If I were to resign in May to leave at the end of the academic year, they’d have to pay me two weeks’ wages as I wouldn’t benefit from the increased days at October half term/Christmas. I’m sure there would be plenty of other people this would affect similarly, and the government wouldn’t want to pay them all extra.

@Grace58

But it could. If you are a teacher then you know how exhausted they all are in the last two weeks of Summer term. Do you really think any meaningful learning will happen if you tack another week weeks into term? It isn’t even enough time to start a topic, never mind finish one!

Is this yet another idea being proposed that can be rejected, and then if children's education outcomes turn out not to recover by the time they leave school, the government can turn round and say that they did consider ways to overcome this but nasty teaching unions rejected them (or leftie parents)?

The longer school day and now the shorter school summer holiday?

In any case, were it not to be tried this year but starting in 2022, with say a fortnight's autumn half term and longer Christmas break, it would lead to higher holiday prices in summer school holidays, and I can imagine all the threads on MN about employers and 'favouritism' or 'so unfair' that time off available is not to their liking.

I think it's a good idea.

I also have to say, if long days and short holidays is so good for students, why aren't we employing more teachers and doing it already?

And whilst we're at it, why don't we raise retirement age a few more years so life is just one long fucking slog from the cradle to the grave?

They’d have to pay the support staff, catering staff etc the extra as they are on term time only contracts.

@whatplanet I am also teaching my full timetable, online, for every lesson. And no, not just registration.

And the only vaguely nice weather we have is in summer. 2 weeks in October would be shit. October is a breather before the brutal Xmas term. An extra week at Xmas is just cold and dark.

I’ll work the extra weeks in the summer.

I also think the following should happen;

GP’s surgeries should reopen and stay open 7am until 8pm daily...lots of people will be desperate to be seen in person. They should also open weekends. They do need to ‘catch-up’. All surgery staff should be happy to contribute to these hours.

Nurses and doctors in hospital, plus other hospital staff have no-doubt been working hard...but when this is over, that simply can’t stop. They should work as much as needed to deal with the back-log of operations and routine stuff...get that all ‘up to date’ and ‘caught up’.

All services should put on extra staff around the clock if needed, to ‘catch people up’ with their day to day needs...all those boiler inspections etc that will need to be done ...pronto. People can’t wait.

Then lawyers etc, they should also work weekends and evenings. There will be shed loads of people waiting for cases, houses, divorces etc to come through And a lot of ‘catching up’.

Super Market workers have been doing a Sterling job, but it would be nice if stores could open 24/7 again for all the people working later and more often. Perhaps they could volunteer a few extra hours a week, until society has caught up. Do it for the greater good and all that.

In fact, across the board there will be lots of ‘catching up’ to do so hopefully you’ll all have to work a little bit harder, a bit longer and at times you wouldn’t have usually worked. If you have a holiday booked, you should cancel it, because you should have the countries needs at heart first and foremost.

I simply can’t wait until we all are just living to work. It’s going to be fab...well apart from those lazy stay-at-home types, who really need to get out and get a job and work like the rest of us.

@DBML

I’ll work the extra weeks in the summer.

I also think the following should happen;

GP’s surgeries should reopen and stay open 7am until 8pm daily...lots of people will be desperate to be seen in person. They should also open weekends. They do need to ‘catch-up’. All surgery staff should be happy to contribute to these hours.

Nurses and doctors in hospital, plus other hospital staff have no-doubt been working hard...but when this is over, that simply can’t stop. They should work as much as needed to deal with the back-log of operations and routine stuff...get that all ‘up to date’ and ‘caught up’.

All services should put on extra staff around the clock if needed, to ‘catch people up’ with their day to day needs...all those boiler inspections etc that will need to be done ...pronto. People can’t wait.

Then lawyers etc, they should also work weekends and evenings. There will be shed loads of people waiting for cases, houses, divorces etc to come through And a lot of ‘catching up’.

Super Market workers have been doing a Sterling job, but it would be nice if stores could open 24/7 again for all the people working later and more often. Perhaps they could volunteer a few extra hours a week, until society has caught up. Do it for the greater good and all that.

In fact, across the board there will be lots of ‘catching up’ to do so hopefully you’ll all have to work a little bit harder, a bit longer and at times you wouldn’t have usually worked. If you have a holiday booked, you should cancel it, because you should have the countries needs at heart first and foremost.

I simply can’t wait until we all are just living to work. It’s going to be fab...well apart from those lazy stay-at-home types, who really need to get out and get a job and work like the rest of us.

Great post

ChardonnaysPetDrago Thank you for offering to work it.