I am willing to be enlightened:

[RollaCoasta]

My son is in Y13, and last Friday (May 14th), he finished school for good. He is now on 'study' leave until his 3 A level exams in late JUNE.

Can someone tell me what teachers do during these extended study leaves for Y13,12 and 11? (There are two revision days offered for Psychology - my son could do with many more (i.e. regular lessons leading up to the exam))

As a primary teacher, it is the busiest time of year - we are running round like blue arsed flies doing our assessments, marking SATs, moderating, working out new classes, sports days, music concerts, looking at next year's planning, writing 27 full reports (10 subjects).... plus planning the weeks' lessons.

To tell you the truth, I'm feeling a bit miffed .

Please, someone set my mind at rest that you're not all out shopping.

(BTW son is at a much-admired (by some) state grammar.)

I teach in a 6th form college, and I willingly admit that this is the 'easy' term. But I have no shame in doing so, because teaching 'A' level, I find that it is far more complex than teaching younger years (I have previously taught from year 6 through to year 13) and I work harder than my primary friends the rest of the year!

But to give you an idea...

During the year, marking is very heavy. Its not like marking in primary where you can get a book marked in five minutes, or even in lower secondary where you can whip through two class sets a night. 'A' level essays are much longer and far more complex, and so take up almost all of my time during the academic year. To give you an idea - the average 'A' level assignment takes me about 20 - 30 minutes to read, mark and give appropriate feedback (and keep the detailed record, I am required to keep). Given that my average classes are 15 - 20, you are talking 71/2 hours marking per class. But I teach a minimum of 3 classes a day, and each group has an assignment once a fortnight! Yes, I do double up some classes - but marking pretty much dominates my life from Sept - May!

This means that there is very little time for planning during this time, and so this tends to get done during the study leave period.

So, the rest gets left until May - July.
Given that we know the syllabus way in advance and this is dictated to us by the exam board, then we will plan out our work and materials now.

So I am currently -

• Researching and developing materials that I have noted over the course of the year need improving. At 'A' level, this is not a five minute task. To teach it well to 'A' level, you need to research it to degree level. On Monday, I will be doing some research into Epistemology and Idealism for example. As the exam boards change the syllabi every few years (we're now into the second year of the new syllabus, so some topics are still very new to us), it is a constant task. Further, if you want to stay ahead of the game, then you are constantly having to research new materials to include so that your students' work seems fresh and they are up to date with the work of the latest scholars and ideas. This actually does takes hours!

• Then there is the updating of resources - again, this is not a simple handout like primary, but my average course books run to 100 pages in length! Every year we ask students for ideas to improve them, and every year we use this time to improve the handouts and resources we use. Again, at 'A' level standard, this is not as easy as say a year 7 task because you would first have to research the material, ensure what you write is correct, and again this can involve reading lots of degree level material to ensure that the work students are doing reflect current debates.

• At my current institution, at least one teacher per department is encouraged to become an examiner. It helps you to have the edge and know exactly what the exam board are looking for. This is hugely time consuming.

• Almost all training and development happens during this time. We do not get much, if any time off for staff development during the course of the year. I have not had a single day off yet for staff training, it will all happen over the next month.

• UCAS references will be written over this time too. These are very in-depth, but I'm not writing 30 - more like 300!

So yes, This term is the easy term for us 'A' level teachers - but I find that whilst I have this time easier, it is pay off for the fact that Sept - May, I work a lot harder than my Primary school teacher friends. It really is a trade off, no more. I find the big difference (from teaching 'A' level to year 7 teaching alone) is that 'A' level is so much more complex and intense, the level of research and planning is so much greater (there is no way you can go into a lesson without having fully prepared your lesson - the students will know!) compared to teaching lower down the age range, that everything takes so much longer - planning, marking ... and that is what I do during this period! In fact, this is the only time during the academic year when I don't work every single evening (and I only teach part time!). Oh yes, I will enjoy every evening off - which for me this year - the period between Year 13s leaving (they leave later than yr 12) and Year 12 returning, will be a grand total of 3 weeks! So yes, I have three weeks of 'easy' time. Not much is it??

Thank you Ellokitty. It is very interesting that you have to research current thinking in your subject - I can see that is very important, particularly at A level.

I also didn't know about UCAS references.

I realise that the marking in secondary schools (apart from English Lit in Y11 at my son's school) is more intense and time-consuming. I appreciate that my son's graphics teacher had 15 82-page product design projects to read, which must have been arduous!

It's interesting that you say that this is your wind down time after 9 months' heavily focussed work. I guess our workload is fairly even throughout the year, with the extras of class organisation, end of year assessment and forward planning in the summer term (when you have less work).

(Mind your jibes at primary though! 'Simple handouts'? What are they?! We create our own curriculum! And, we do quite a lot of planning!)

Still strange that we're on the same pay scales when our jobs seem so different.

English Lit marking is extremely time-consuming. Some of my lot have written 12 pages for each task, even though I told them not to!

I daresay it is, janeite. It's just that DS went a term and a half without anything being marked in Y11!

Not a dig, RollaCosta - but I know when I created (from scratch) handouts for my year 6 and year 7 classes they were very simple in comparison . I could write a handout in an evening, largely because I had all the subject knowledge to just write the thing. At 'A' level, you will need to research it first, then write it - On average, I will read at least half a dozen books before writing an 'A' level handout. It is massively more complex - impossible to explain here - but the dig was not at you, just a comparison to what I have previously written when I taught in secondary schools.

Incidentally, in RS my subject - we largely create all of our own resources, due to there not being a national curriculum either!

I create all of my own resources - mainly because the majority of published stuff out there is crap.

My reports are 2500 characters, which is a lot more than two lines.

Seems you've managed to rile quite a few teachers on here RollaCoasta. Mmetrueblueberry wrote a brilliant post. It's best not to judge other teachers' workloads.

Tbh your son's school sounds not so great, OP, with the short reports, no study days etc. but that's not an excuse to take a pop at secondary school teachers.

When I did my Alevels we had study leave but I followed my school timetable (8.30-4 daily), any lunchtimes I would have spent in orchestra I did music and my 'frees' I spent planning for Brownies, which is what I did at school! It paid off, I got my As. Why is your son not doing the same? It's study leave, for you to study and focus on the things you find difficult without a teacher dictating what you'll be studying.

OP_ I have taught in both sectors- admittedly just supply in primary, and mainly in secondary- but there IS a difference.

Primary teaching is not so academically demanding- you try teaching A level English texts which you have never set eyes on until you find them on the syllabus! (That's what holidays and free periods are for.)

Ther is very little marking, very little "crowd control" of 25 yr olds who are full of hormones and just DO NOT WANT TO BE THERE and no walking miles around a huge school to get to lessons.

And as for you having to write a "personal report" for 27 children, what do you think secondary teachers do? Just write Good or Lazy?

Begrudging sec. teachers some free-er time during exam times is just plain mean of you.

As I said in my previous posts, your son's teachers should be making themselves available for extra revision etc. if he wants that. He doesn't sound very proactive TBH.

I am sure that all the preparation etc they do outside of "office hours" during the rest of the year balancing with this little bit of a breather for a few weeks.

25 yr olds- oops- usless typist- 15 yr olds!

This last half term is easier and it would be daft to say otherwise. During the other terms I work from abou 7 in the morning until around 11 at night. I don't really speak to my family during week time or get to to anything for myself during the week. I am not moaning, I chose that life. It is nice that during the last half term I can be finsihed for about 6pm and have the evening with my family tbh.

We get year 12 back after their exams but I think I gain about 75 hours of time from my exam classes leaving. I have to account to senior management what I am doing with every one of those hours.

I still run revision sessions for my classes until they sit their exams. We have new exam specifications so I am writing schemes of work. I have reports to write for my key stage three groups. I have key stage three exams to mark. I love the fact that in the final summer half term I can give those classes more attention. I have trips to organise for next year, a new year 9 scheme of work to plan. Displays to do, extra curricular events to run and I also use this final half term and the summer holiday to update my subject knowledge.

I have also ended up going into primary schools to teach transition lessons whils the class teacher does?

Do you really think that we don't do anything? I am still busy - busier than ever, writing new schemes of work - that the government has changed and so have some of the GCSE's. Marking all the new APP's. Helping those year 11's who 'drop in' if they need help. Apart from that I don't really do that much.

In my "free" time I shall mostly be:

Writing module for Y9 SoW (from scratch. Government changed it again 2 years ago. Next year will be the first time we've taught it)

Updating 2 modules for KS4 SoW.

Writing Risk Assessments for various practicals, so that pupils get to try a range of new things.

Teaching Y12 from a week after half term (and Y7, 8, 10 throughout....)

Teaching Y11 until half term.

marking 2 sets of coursework for Y10 (they do a GCSE each year in Science) (and organising after-school catch up/ help sessions for them)

Being available for any Y12s, 13s and 11s who need help.

Helping to update KS5 SoW and trying out practicals for them.

Producing/ organising kinaesthetic resources library.

... as well as the various admin duties that come around (reports, APP levelling, marking...)

and I only work part time! (and I'm just a lowly bod with no TLR or 'extra responsibility' to my name)

It's so easy to knock teachers. We're sitting ducks most of the time. Am surprised that someone from within the profession would even ask something like this. As others have said, it'd be easy for any of us to talk about the lack of UCAS refs, coursework prep/ marking, multiple key stages you have a primary level. But every time I teach a "needy" Y7 class, I appreciate that primary teaching must be exhausting in a different way, and I also appreciate that it comes with its own challenges.

My goodness you lot! It was ONLY a question -not a condemnation!!! It's just that I don't see any of that from my side of the fence!

I KNOW we all have different workloads (and type of pupils!), and I thank a few of you, like katycarr, for explaining very clearly what goes on without getting bristly .

Mind you, I'm sure I'd get bristly if I was accused of doing very little for part of the year

I'll bow out now - a little better informed. Thank you.

I do not have a Y13, but I have lost my Y11 this week and lose my Y12 for 2 weeks study leave. This means that this week for example, I will gain an extra 5 periods. During these periods I will be:

finalising AS level coursework to be sent to the exam board

writing sets of reports

Starting to rewrite our GCSE sows as the entire English syllabus is changing next year.

Reviewing KS3 sows, which were rewritten in last years gained time, due to the school changing it's timetable length

Starting to write academic references for the current Y12

Planning for our annual teaching and learning conference in July

As a teacher, there are often peaks and troughs during the year. May for example, in the English department, is extremely pressurised, with cw deadlines and exam entries, revision classes etc, and then it eases up, just a little bit. Gained time means that sometimes you have extra time to plan and mark which you would normally do at home at other times of the year. having said that, I spend all year dreaming about my gained time, and when it eventually arrives, I realise how much there is to do!!

And, as other posters have said, your son needs to get used to doing independent study to prepare for uni - depending on his degree his "contact" time is likely to be much less than it ever was at school - don't you wonder what those uni lecturers spend all their time doing?

How's about we start a new thread, moulesfrites?

Something along the lines.... 'My son is going to uni, and only appears to have one lecture a week......' lol

INSET, reports, setting up exams, collecting, counting in and organising books, editing and adding to all the resources for next year (after change to all specifications last year), preparing schemes of work for when AS come back, uploading resources on to the VLE, external exam meetings and marking approximately 300 scripts (this is my choice and I get paid to do it but if teachers didn't do this it wouldn't get done), taster days for Yr 10 and 11, clearing desk and classrooms cos there's been no time to do anything except mark and plan in the run up to exams, endless collating of booklets and photocopying resrouces for next year. Could go on...

Oooh I would jump on that thread, RollaCoasta! I had 2 contact hours per week in my final year and there was only teaching during the first 2 terms so I had 22 weeks of teaching a year, a grand total of 44 hours.

Rolla- you may do well toresearch your next topic before youstart anotehr thread!

Degree courses vary hugely; my DD is at a "Top 10" uni studying chemistry. She had had 5 almost-full days of lectures/practicals for the entire 3 years. She has never had towork so hard, just to keep up.

I think she had maybe one free afternoon at one stage in between practical projects.
Meanwhile, students at the same uni doing ARTS degrees (BAs) have had "reading weeks" and fewer lectures.

Her current exams- finals- are based on 24 lectures, whereas the biologists at her uni have finals based on 18 lectures. Fair or what?

Yes, some courses are very easy in comparison and yes, some students have very few lectures.

All I can say is that there is a pecking order for both which degrees and unis, so employers will take note.

Even in the better universities timetabled hours vary considerably - typically science and engineering students are often pretty much time tabled for a full working day 5 days a week whereas Arts and Social Sciences students may only get 5-8 contact hours per week and are presumed to be reading around their subject in the library during other hours.
Whether they do this or not is another matter.

[Thinks of DS1 who managed a good degree at a good university without getting up before lunch time or reading any more than was strictly necessary ...]

Oh, don't start that thread, Rolla. You'll be lynched. DH is an academic - he has 6 weeks holiday a year, but rarely takes it. He is on teaching leave for 3 years, and yet finds himself so snowed under just now with work it's not true.

Exams aren't really based on no of lectures - you can't really compare uni and school teaching.