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Original poster

Buggery bollocky inset days

18 replies

Thomcat · 02/06/2008 09:15

Just bowled up at the school gates at 8.30, 15 minutes early, car park full so thought nothing of it.
School closed for teacher bloody training.
Aggghhhhhhhhhh how did I miss that note in the 2 page newsletter?
All 3 kids started crying in the car and we're back home again.

And while I'm at - teacher training days piss me off! Sorry teacher - I'm sure you think I'm very unresonable - but they are a pita and it's not like teachers don't get the MOST holidays in the world ever. What the hell happens on all these teacher training days throughout the year? Maybe if I knew how needed they were and how impossible they were to happen on a day during the actual half terms , spring break, Ester hols, summer hols, Xmas break etc etc etc etc

OP posts:
UnquietDad · 02/06/2008 09:24

Not AGAIN.

Annoying not to have remembered about inset day, but for the LAST FECKING TIME teachers' pay is worked out over 39 weeks.

tortoiseSHELL · 02/06/2008 09:27

Bad luck TC! We have INSET today as well, but fortunately ds1 had remembered!

Afaik, INSET days are taken out out of the number of days holiday for teachers - when they were started, the teachers had 6 more days holiday, but it doesn't feel like that because they aren't actually IN the allotted holiday time. But the teachers aren't getting extra days off, and your dds aren't missing out on days at school. The reason behind having them 'on top' of the holidays is (I think) so that schools can have them when they're most useful - so the term dates are set by the council and the schools set their INSETs.

I actually think it's good not having them in the half terms etc - otherwise, a teacher would never be able to go away for a week in a half term holiday, and because of the weekends, it would end up being right in the middle of the holiday, and ruin it for a teacher. I remember when I was teaching, in a private school, so we DID have our INSETs in the half term holiday, and it was a real pita - we would tend to have Thursday and Friday INSET, which meant that the second weekend was useless for going away, and there was only 5 days at the beginning. What I'd REALLY have liked to do was to go away Sat-Sat, but that was impossible!

If the state schools DID put them in the middle of half term, then it would just mean the other holidays would be lengthened, as teachers are contracted to teach a certain number of days, plus a certain number of INSETs.

But I know they are REALLY annoying for parents, especially when you have to find child care to cover them.

lulumama · 02/06/2008 09:27

and then teachers would have to go in on their holiday to do training etc.. and seeing as how the only time they can take a holiday with their family is in school holidays. that would have a really negative impact on them.

so a pisser to have forgotten, but bearing in mind that most teachers spend school holidays with their own families and also doing lesson plans, preparation, marking etc...

but i am feeling your pain getting 3 DCs ready for school and it is not open

hunkermunker · 02/06/2008 09:29

'ello lovely.

See you later xx

TheFallenMadonna · 02/06/2008 09:29

All ds's school INSET days are tacked onto a holiday.

As is this one, really...

And as I'm sure MB will be along shortly to point out () - they were taken from school holidays, not term time.

LynetteScavo · 02/06/2008 09:32

Your DC's ae crying? Mine would throw a party!

I can handle teacher training days.. but why did DS1s' school have thiers on the Friday before half therm, where as DS2s' school have theirs today!!!!!!

2 extra days I have to take off work. Towns could atleast coordinate themselves.

TsarChasm · 02/06/2008 09:35

OMG TC are you ever gonna fry on here for saying that They get mighty touchy about it y'know.

Notquitegrownup · 02/06/2008 09:36

TC - sympathy for having forgotten, and having to drive home with 3 crying children!! I really wish the schools could put their inset days together to make one weeks extra holiday in, say, May or June, and then we could all take a week's holiday out of season, when prices were lower. Now that would be sensible planning.

If it helps, I used to be a secondary school teacher, and I worked at marking or preparation for at least 50% of the school holidays. I left teaching, moved into admin and now have five weeks holiday a year to do exactly what I want in. I can relax, take it in school term time if I want. I get a lot more holidays and work a much shorter day, with no marking in the evenings, than I did as a teacher.

Original poster
Thomcat · 02/06/2008 09:39

Ohhhhhhhhh UnquietDad, you're becoming my least favorite MN this week!!!!!!

Sorry sorry, you dodn't have to reply dear, you could have left it someone less irritated with explaining it. Never mind - as you were.

Thank you Tortishell and lulu etc for explainng. Still think teachers get a lot of holiday a year and inset days are irritating, however their holiday pay is worked out. But I think teachers (well the ones in DDs school) are great so nuff said.

Off to change them out of uniform

They've stopped crying now!

OP posts:
UnquietDad · 02/06/2008 09:50

Sorry thomcat. Nothing personal. I've worn myself out explaining this to people on DW's behalf before, that;s all. You probably didn't know that.

wotulookinat · 02/06/2008 09:51

Inset days are training days, not a holiday for teachers. They're not usually much fun for the teachers, you know!

TheFallenMadonna · 02/06/2008 09:52

Oh they are. Everyone is all relaxed and scruffy and school is lovely and quiet with no children around

wotulookinat · 02/06/2008 09:55

I always find them tediously boring and very slow.

TheFallenMadonna · 02/06/2008 09:57

Your school needs to look at how it does them then. I found them quite invigorating. I think we need to take take a step back and look at how we do things from time to time.

clam · 02/06/2008 09:58

So, Thomcat, you ballsed up and didn't read the newsletter correctly, yet somehow that's the teachers' fault?

clam · 02/06/2008 09:59

So, Thomcat, you ballsed up and didn't read the newsletter correctly, yet somehow that's the teachers' fault?

wotulookinat · 02/06/2008 10:19

YOu're right, Madonna, they aren't very well done at our place.

Original poster
Thomcat · 02/06/2008 10:20

That's OK UnquietDad, I was overly cross at myself when i started the thread for being such a total idiot and somehow not realising it was inset day. Sorry, I really didn't know the info provided before. Know I know I still am irritated by inset day but i understand why nw!!!

LOL Clam - yes it's totally the teachers fault!

I'm am, hands up, a complete numbskull. Can't believe I did that. Have looked in all my notes and can't see where it says it anywhere!

Still, DD3 is asleep and DD1 & 2 are digging in the garden and it's all good.

Hunker - can still meet you at 1.

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