Coping with Teacher Training days

[bacon]

I'm new to education, DS1 in reception DS2 19 months old. But this is really going to get right up my nose. Teacher training days tagged onto half terms. 1st one Friday just before the weeks break.

How do mums cope? Ive got something planned - booked months and months ago and have to leave really early and now just checked diary and DS1 is home and I'm paying for DS2 to be in nursery!

Why cant they do these training days in the evenings or even Saturday morning like the rest of us? Why has education have to be so disrupted? Surely with the number of weeks off they get it wouldnt be too much to expect a few days to be put towards training?

Struth, we are self employed here, hubby never hardly gets time off, when we were farming we worked well unto the night, expected to get up at the crack of dawn, 7 days a week, working when completely exhausted and so hanging and no paid holidays!

So many families are struggling with childcare, trying to hold onto their jobs, and then this is slapped in our faces.

Surely this doesnt happen on the continent??

Loving the idea that I can say to my school, 'Ooh, sorry can't come into work next week because my kids have INSET'. Ha! As I said, there'd be a whole thread on here about lazy teachers who don't care about their students or their exams together with moaning colleagues complaining that they'd have to cover my classes and then I'd probably find that if there were going to be promotions I wouldn't be in the running but if there were reduncaies I would be. What world do you live in?

fivecandles Sun 24-Oct-10 15:29:40 That's 45 children whose parents can go to work feeling confident that their children are being well looked after.
by those unemployed people pulled off benefits
and 305 who haven't got the opportunity statistically worse than my school where only 250 haven't got the option

Agree empty. The likelihood is that the people who most resent the INSET days are the teachers themselves. And that's likely to go double if consultants who haven't set foot in a classroom for decades are paid thousands to come and undertake death by PowerPoint.

Eh? That doesn't even make sense mrz.

You're clearly a glass half empty sort of person aren't your mrz.

So instead of saying, 'That's great - let's extend it' you pick faults.

Did stoat even say that there were more than 45 children who wanted the service?? Because I don't remember that bit.

Seriously, how do you manage to get up in the morning when all you see is problems???

'by those unemployed people pulled off benefits'

So you'd rather they stayed on benefits and all the working parents who depend on their services joined them???

Really, your arguments are very, very strange and hugely depressing.

fivecandles

"I don't think you have read my comments very carefully.

I have said many times that I do not necessarily expect the schools themselves to organise or provide the service themselves. They could employ an outside agency or team up with other schools or the LEA as many already do to provide holiday clubs and before and after school care."

So it would appear that I read them accurately ... "They could employ" ... IMO The Parents could organise and employ

no fivecandles I would rather see children safe

Noone who knows me has ever considered me a pessimist fivecandles just a realist

FGS Talker, employ means 'use'.

They could use an outside agency who would manage the operation or the LEA or volunteers or TAs or the people who currently provide out of school provision.

There are lots and lots of options.

'no fivecandles I would rather see children safe'

What the Hell does that mean?

Are you suggesting that children would be unsafe in an OFSTED registered out of school provision?

But apparently they're more safe with grandparents or sixth formers or friends or just left on their own in the house because the parents have to go to work.

What are you talking about??????

So what are my childcare options on these random inset days?

Look, some of you very clearly don't want to use out of school provision, that's fine.

But please ask yourselves why you are so against other working parents having this option.

Why? What bothers you so much about it?

Because a lot of parents would welcome it and it would make their lives a lot easier.

fivecandles you seem to have a really simplistic view of the world to suit your needs
"let's puck people off benefits pay them the minimum wage and they will do a fantastic job of looking after our children so we can go to work"
"they can care for them in the school buildings because when schools are closed of training they are available" erm no they are often being used to provide a venue for that training
school insurance only covers injury to pupils for the 190 days so if the unemployed people caring for the children on inset days don't do such a good job ...
adult to child ratios for such times is 1 adult to 8 children
life isn't as simple as you want it to be

I think we've already been through all those points mrz.

I could turn that around and say life is as difficult as certain people want to make it.

Most schools or LEAs already manage to provide or employ agencies or voluteers or team up with other schools to provide before school and after school care and holiday clubs. There is therefore no reason why they cannot provide care during INSET days.

Many evidently already do.

So I repeat again, what exactly is your problem with that??

Because I am suspecting that there is an anti working parents agenda going on under the surface here.

yes we have and they are still valid

And I do find this very odd 'let's puck people off benefits pay them the minimum wage and they will do a fantastic job of looking after our children so we can go to work"

Again, I ask would you rather they were left on benefits?

And is your implication that anyone on benefits cannot do a fantastic job of looking after children?

Fivecandles

I know what employ means

I still think it is up to the parents to employ agencies ... if enough parents asked the school I am sure that the majority of schools would get involved in helping ... but it is not their role to organise the child care

Another point we have been over a few times

I am a working parent and not as fortunate as you as I was widowed at 30 with 2 small children to support but never felt it was up to the school to sort out my childcare needs

'yes we have and they are still valid'

Do you really want me to repeat the same points again and again because you can't be bothered to listen?

Take this one AGAIN

'they can care for them in the school buildings because when schools are closed of training they are available" erm no they are often being used to provide a venue for that training'

School buildings can self evidently accommodate all the staff and children who are enrolled or employed in them.

You understand this right?

In fact, during INSET days, although all the staff would be in not all the kids would be.

So I think the school building would be big enough.

Don't you??

Really?

'I am a working parent and not as fortunate as you as I was widowed at 30 with 2 small children to support but never felt it was up to the school to sort out my childcare needs'

Well bully for you!!

But you must use someone to look after your kids while you work then mrz.

Let me ask again - why should it not be the school (by which I mean the school buildings) for those who want to use it?????

Why not???

What have you got against this idea? why does it bother you so much?

I can understand why individual parents might want to use a friend or grandparents or whatever to look after their own children if they have people who are able and willing to do this well.

But why shouldn't parents who don't have anyone have access to a provision in the school??

Why not?

And is your implication that anyone on benefits cannot do a fantastic job of looking after children?

no fivecandles my implication is that if I can't be there to care for my children I prefer it to be someone who knows my child well or is trained to care for children but it seems you feel that anyone will do as long as the school organises it for you which is your choice but wouldn't be mine.

I'm finding this weird - how is it incomprehensible that, assuming insurance issues and alternative use of buildings could be got round, schools could be used to provide childcare for parents who need it on these days?

Not sure what the funny looks are supposed to mean either - would children be unsafe with people because the were the erstwhile great unwashed unemployed?

One person on this thread has already said her DD will be looked after by 'loopy Nana', and she is clearly not the only one struggling.

Why deny others the opportunity to sort their needs out?

My children were cared for by a childminder who as well as being a good friend was also a trained nursery nurse.

and yes bully for me

'I still think it is up to the parents to employ agencies'

Well, that's your view.

All I am saying is rather than have individual parents sitting at home worrying about what to do with their kids during INSET and often ending up with less that satisfactory plans like taking them to work with them why not have a coordinated scheme which all parents who want to use can.

The school buildings are open anyway for INSET so it makes economic sense. It would employ people. The employees would be vetted so that the kids would be safe.

The school obviously has a vested interest in keeping parents happy and children safe and well cared for.