school is placing me on a mentoring/couching programme as they think I cannot manage behaviour in my class- is this a informal support plan?

[Sev124]

Can i go on a stress leave in probation period and how long?

We had a ks1 review day - my background is eyfs but here i am working in a year1/2 mixed class. They first told me they want me to take over maths planning clearly pointing out that the other teacher is struggling and plans all over places, then they said about my presence in class saying my TA seems to have more authority. Then their telling me they think it will be good for me to get mentored by a off the timetable teacher they have - 6 weeks - this will undermine me in front of everyone

can i go on a stress leave in probation period and how long?

Yes @Crishell the boiled frog.

Many of those on here are not teachers. Hence urging OP to repost in staffroom.

I've been at my current school 5 years and many feel that they will be sacked any day and that as soon as the words support plan is mentioned it will trigger a resignation and potentially going of sick with anxiety.

But this is different as the teacher is a ECT and it's a coaching plan not a ISP. Maybe that is just another term for an isp and I am being naive in thinking it is actually supportive. Most people don't pass an ISP and progress to capability procedures, it's just a way of being managed out. Most resign before capability as this doe not have to go on a reference. It think ECT cannot go on capability?

Far too much impact on mental health and wellbeing.

OP do you have a mental health first aider at school?

Sending you some moral support OP. For the posters pulling apart the OP’s spelling and grammar, I think this is unhelpful and unnecessary.

OP I totally understand what you are saying when you show concern about these additional meetings and what they will entail. It’s not the fact that you don’t expect to work during these times, it’s the fact that you’ve already got more than enough work to do during lunchtime and after school just to try to keep your head above water with planning, marking, assessing, feeding back to parents etc.

I think it’s best to get this thread moved to the staffroom section of education as you will get more answers from people who work in the school system and therefore will appreciate the way in which support plans can be used (both as a positive tool and sadly in other schools as a stick to beat people with.) I don’t think people outside of education appreciate the latter. There are teachers who have worked in the same school very successfully for 20 years who find themselves on a support plan as a way for the school to oust them and find someone cheaper to do the job. There is nothing supportive in this!

I also highly recommend the Facebook group ‘Exit the classroom and thrive’ as you can post anonymously asking for advice. Many people on there have had experience of teaching challenging classes, mentoring new teachers or being on a support plan and can offer real practical advice. I also think it’s a good idea to find out more about this mentoring / coaching plan being offered by the school before you agree to anything and get everything in writing with proper time scales and SMART targets as evidence for yourself. Wishing you all the best.

@Sev124 actually if you report @MNHQ and ask it to be moved to staffroom

It won't appear on active I don't think so there will be fewer 'helpful' comments from those not in education.

but I have a very difficult class, some of the children are put into additional social skills lessons. If I accept the mentoring and stay on my idea is that, these children, the same children will not change in 6 weeks

But that is very normal and typical. The school Managers are offering help to you, to master something they would probably have expected you to learn to do during your degree or Post -grad training, and then the two years of ECT you have completed. Part of the skill - many would argue the most important part - is how you relate to the children in front of you, whatever challenges they present to you. Yes, it is very challenging at first, but you are now in your 3rd year.

The workload is already too much for me. Even appraisal meetings are scheduled during our lunch times and after school.

Er... I'm confused by this comment, coming from someone who is a teacher, so has done teaching pracs and two years of work before this year. When did you think teachers hold their meetings ?

They would like me to plan maths and I said I would try of-course but then they would like me to sit with deputy head after school, in my personal time.

Again, "after school" is worktime. As a person in their 3rd year of teaching, I expect when they employed you, they would assume you could do this anyway. However, having found you can't, the DHT is now giving up some of their time, to offer you some support, and you are somehow thinking this is unfair of the school ???

Marking, we teach least 3/4 subjects a day and that is 30 x 4 books to mark daily. They want every single work to be marked

You've had this answered a lot, on both threads. In KS1, you don't have piles of books to mark. You mark as you move round the room, during the lessons. You make sure the dc leave their books open, so when you do look through a pile, they are all there, ready at the right page. You do a variety of all sorts of learning and recording of work, so there aren't 'books to mark' from every lesson. Plenty of the lessons you teach won't have books - PE, music, art, and then lots of activities from Foundation subjects and Core subjects.

@UsingChangeofName the book thing is quite typical of an ECT. It takes you a while to learn those tricks.

Also I think the OP is worried about time being taken away for appraisal meetings when she could be marking etc.
I suppose she needs to have faith that the meetings will actually help, not just be an hour of being told what she needs to do better but not how.

@Cookiecrisps I don’t think the references to spelling and punctuation are unnecessary.

They paint part of a broader picture which indicate the OP is perhaps not suited to teaching.

The errors in the title of this thread and subsequent posts suggest the OP is not familiar with some of the basic rules of grammar.

I’m not really buying the “I wrote in a hurry” excuse. Starting a sentence with a capital letter is instinctive for most adults when they write, even if they are in a rush.

I believe ECTs cannot be put on capability as the expectation is that they are still learning how to be a teacher and are already accessing support as part of the ECT programme and therefore any additional support given should be part of the ect programme.

Not my specialist area.

However, if the OP is in a temporary contract at the new school "probation" for that specific school as it were - then she is not necessarily an ECT.

OP - if you are early years trained and this is a year 1/year 2 class then it sounds like you are outside your specialism. That's hard for anyone.

In addition, some schools have much higher workloads than others - if your school is insisting on marking all the books every day as a matter of policy then you are not really in a position to refuse.

I would strongly suggest trying to find a new job in your specialism and in a school with a lower workload generally.

I believe ECTs cannot be put on capability as the expectation is that they are still learning how to be a teacher and are already accessing support as part of the ECT programme and therefore any additional support given should be part of the ect programme.

They can.

However, the OP says she's not an ECT.

OP has specifically said she isn't an ECT.

I finished ECT last year. This a completely new school, I’m a fully qualified teacher now

You said you're on probation. Are you employed in Scotland or England? If England, are you under the burgundy book?