Maths teacher leaving before end of year

[Absentadditive]

Hello, a friend has sent me here to see if someone might be able to help.

My child is sitting Advanced Higher maths this year but their teacher is leaving at the end of this month. The school only has one other maths teacher qualified to teach at this level but they have not taught the course for many years and also I have been informed is not available for the full timetable of classes.

My child will most likely be asked for their advanced higher maths as a condition for some of their university offers. Is there anything I can do here? Mitigating factors sent into universities etc. It feels like a bit of a bomb being dropped on my child's future. Any advice would be gratefully received.

Thank you

I haven't distorted any of you posts, but you seem to be trying to go the extra mile to fit mine into your petty narrative.

That I have pulled you up on your belief that teachers shouldn't leave half way through a year has upset you, is a problem for you to solve, maybe you should be reflecting on why that is.

I'm not going to hunt around for statistics. Permanent one year contracts became more common when the recruitment crisis bit - largely because recruitment was so hard but also because often staff recruited were last minute warm body recruitments. The schools and MATs that already had issues responded by having a one year contract policy because it meant poor teachers , or unreliable staff could be got rid of more easily. See also - appointing staff on rolling supply contracts.

I think you may be out of touch with the chalk face. I know this because I am still there.

All you need to do is look at ads for jobs and yo will see how many there are and also see many saying 'one year contract in the first instance'.

By the way, I heartily do not believe any one year group is more important to have decent teachers than others. Teachers who teach older years will also teach younger years who also need consistency otherwise problems are shored up for the future.

The end of the summer term is an odd time to suggest the teachers of the oldest students should only ever be allowed to leave. The courses finish in April/May. Quite a few schools operate rollover timetables and begin new teaching of eg GCSE in May. There is NEVER a perfect time to leave.

You don't know when notice was given - it may be that the teacher was due to leave at Christmas and stayed on to do the school a favour, or it could be the other school has no teacher at all so it was arranged for them to leave sooner. Usually it's a terms notice for teachers

Some people are actually trying to help the OP, and some are not! OP has made it clear she is in Scotland so a lot of pointless talk about long notice periods and GCSE courses starting in September are entirely irrelevant.
OP make an appointment to see the guidance teacher and ask them what plans the school is putting in place. AH is often largely self taught anyway so using the resources others have posted here should help a lot. Be careful that any offers your dd gets don't expect course completion, if she decides to leave school (ie they might want to see she finishes s6 even if the result is not part of her offer). And she would need to be enrolled somewhere to sit the exam surely.

@Absentadditive I’ve sent you a PM. I might be able to help!

Why shouldn't a teacher take another job if it better suits them. In years gone by when there where more teachers this did only tend to happen at the end of the academic year. Now due to teacher shortages schools are more often advertising all year round. Like any other job if you see a better one then why wouldn't you go for it.

This is another sytum of the teacher shortages and will most likely get worse.

Op you've had some good suggestions already. Do go and see the school in person as your most likely to get more sorted this way.

Get a tutor.check they teach that specifications. or see if he can enrol at a 6th-form college for those classes. The school should br supporting you to find an alternative

If your DC is a self-starter, they might find the video lessons on Khan Academy for the topics they need to cover helpful. If they're really motivated then I recommend the books Engineering Mathematics and Advanced Engineering Mathematics by Dexter Booth (second hand copies are available cheaply). It won't cover the stats element but is excellent for the parts it does cover. Again, they'll need to check which chapters relate to the topics they need to cover (I'm not sure how much if any they'd need from the advanced book). Don't be put off by the name - they're aimed at engineering students but perfectly suitable for those who aren't too.

Neither of these are a replacement for a good teacher, but better than nothing.

I don't believe I've ever said this before, but PM me if you want. I have a maths degree and I've taught people at every level. I am not going to offer to teach your DC (sorry, I don't have time!) But I could look through the curriculum and the resources I've mentioned and let you know which chapters/ videos are likely to be helpful if you'd like.

You do know that GCSE and A levels (and presumably Scottish qualifications) are two year courses? So as soon as one cohort finish, the year below are halfway through their course?

That’s where you’re wrong. The AH is a one year course.

People who are refused early leave, meaning the end of the term or where they've handed in their notice after the cutoff date, tend to go off sick for the period. It's a human reaction to feeling trapped, they could already be unwell from stress and there's also the consideration that taking out expensive legal action to force them into isn't going to make it any better.

One qualification. What about the others?

In Scotland all the courses are single year qualifications.

Unprofessional for a teacher to leave? For goodness sake they may have any number of circumstances that means they need to leave. Unbelievable.

Thanks. Yes, she plans to complete the course and sit the exam regardless, we just need to work out the logistics of it!

Getting the school to respond to communication is a big issue but will just turn up at the door if I don't get a response.

Some resources that have been suggested look excellent and daughter has also hopefully made some steps to securing 1 hour a week of tuition (which she will fund from working)

Pls keep us updated on any offer.

Best of luck! 😊

@PSEnny I still think seeing out the course with your students is better for the students. Leaving before exams knowing no other teacher can teach the course is not great. Yes of course they can (and might need to) but it’s another reason why teachers don’t get the respect they largely deserve. Where my dc went to school this didn’t happen and didn’t happen at my school either. Only illness caused mid year absence from memory. Not getting another job.

But that was ages ago> Before the recruitment crisis bit? And in a highly selective school where there may have been the golden handcuff of better perks, pay and conditions and almost certainly no significant behavioural issues - and smaller class sizes. Teachers aren't just staying in those schools because they feel so much loyalty to the students. It's a far, far more complex picture. As I said, if we all worried about every single student and the consequences to them , we would never move on from any job, get pregnant, take time off ill. Teacher guilt is indeed real. Even at the end of the summer term you would worry or be made to feel concerned about the consequences of leaving.

It's not comparable.

That long ago, I was working in a schoolscape where one year contracts weren't a thing and all teachers were employed on permanent contracts.

@Absentadditive

Just a quick thought, but please make sure that where your DD is studying is still going to sit the exams.
I have known several education establishments pull the exam, so you may need to find somewhere else for your DD to sit it

Goodness me!

I am not your stat hunter. I have been in teaching for over 25 years. It's well known amongst people in that actual - y'know- profession to avoid schools and posts that are one year fixed term contracts, which is becoming increasingly difficult to do. Some of it is budget cuts. Put people on a year contract, they go after a year, you don't need to replace them - money saved. If you don't' understand school budgets are cut to the quick, you haven't been paying attention.