Teachers - Action short of a strike

[FermezLaBouche]

Hello teachers, (and anyone else who would like to comment!)
I was just wondering how many of you are planning to carry out this action short of a strike?

For me, this course of action would only make MY life worse - I have to keep everything up to date for my sanity's sake. It also seems designed to create massive bad feeling within schools. I work in a happy environment and actions such as refusing to be observed, refusing to cover, refusing to implement new policies, etc. would stir up such bad feeling. I genuinely would like to hear from anyone who is taking this course of action.
Link if anyone's interested: www.nasuwt.org.uk/Whatsnew/NASUWTNews/NASUWTindustrialaction/ActionShortOfStrikeAction/index.htm

And who, honestly, can afford to lose a day's pay? Who looks at their pay slip and says "hmm.. I could happily have less this month!"

We've got the Dreaded O due too, but I still object to our deputy walking into classrooms unannounced, declaring the work "too easy" because three kids said it to get a reaction then walking off again.

Not my class, incidentally! But she has no right to walk in and do informal 'learning walks', 'moderation' or 'environment checks' at any given moment.

I think that what Juniper is saying about the DHT coming into the classroom goes to the heart of the problem I have with this action. There is no other profession where anybody thinks that they are king / queen of their own domain and nobody can come in and see what is happening. In every other profession people are monitored and are observed and do hopefully get proper feed back on how to improve their work.
How does any teacher believe they can improve their teaching and learning unless they are both observed by fellow professionals and observe others teach?
As of the 1st of September the so-called three hour limit is no more in the new legislation. I honestly do not believe that the unions understand what the current situation is across the country and I suspect that most parents would not agree with the unions over this.
To put it in "O" level terminology, discuss above, taking a definitive stance for or against.

In every other profession people are monitored and are observed and do hopefully get proper feed back on how to improve their work.

Exactly - proper feedback - not open to abuse by any member of staff who wishes to bully their staff.

I observe Literacy lessons and give proper feedback, and am in turn observed. But I wouldn't dream of just wandering in to a colleague's classroom without notice or without telling them what I'll be looking for. That's just bad manners and disrupts the lesson.

During the 10 years I was working outside teaching, I was monitored, appraised and given performance targets.

However, this was based on my performance over a year, and the outcomes of this. At no point do I rememebr EVER my boss sitting down beside me and saying "I will observe how you work over the next hour. Here is the rigid criteria which I expect you to follow in this hour. If you do not perform at an outstanding rate in this hour with me watching your every move, despite your fanatstic output and sales over the last year, I will tell you, you can't do your job properly" (insert 3 hour limit rather than 1 hourwhere appropriate).

Does any other industry operate like this?

Totally agree with you that it needs to have a suitable level of structure to ensure it is productive.

"ATL aren't striking- join them if you don't agree with NASUWT's or NUT's principles."

Thing is, I joined ATL because it was a non-striking union.

So I left it when it declared a strike last year, and joined NASUWT, because it was the only major union not involved in the strike at that time.

My head walks into my classroom at least once every day, to greet the children. She often pops in at other times too, for lots of reasons. It's a small school, and part of our way of working is that the whole school is everyone's domain - the only reason I ever shut my classroom door is if the front door of the school (right next to my classroom door) gets really busy or noisy and it is disrupting learning. The idea that other professionals should stop at my door and say 'well, I can't come in, I've had my 3 hours this year' is just absurd.

The idea that the head - or anyone, I get a lot of specialists in observing because I have some very SEN pupils and it's a rare week when I don't have someone in for at least part of a day - should be limited in the amount of time they come in to see the class is ludicrous, it's like limiting the amount of time my son can spend in the kitchen because I happen to cook in there. They're not judging me, they're there for the benefit of one, some or all of the pupils - are they happy, are they learning, do they need more help in some way, should I be adapting what I do to enable some children to learn better, or on the other hand need to tell me something which is of benefit to the children in my class or elsewhere in the school. It's not disruptive - the head is very respectful and doesn't interrupt, and in some ways the children are so used to it that their learning (which is the most important thing) isn't disrupted.

Believe you me, sitting next to your manager in an open-plan office in industry is far more 'intrusive'!

I don't think any of us are bothered about people popping in and out, heads and smt included if they aren't judging us.

But it is the judging that pisses so many people off

(I suppose also, because everyone sees my classroom and how the children are working on a 'normal' day, if I happen to slip up in a 'formally observed' lesson, they have a bank of other experiences to draw on, and so that formal observation is much less high stakes. "I know today you failed to read the learning objective out, but I've seen you do that a million times, don't worry" kind of thing. A bit like using teacher assessment over a whole year to give a child a level vs a final 'high stakes' exam - when i get formal feedback, it is based on that broad experience of my teaching, not a single hour in a high stakes scenario. Even for Ofsted, the Ofsted inspector did observe me, but also read back through lesson observation notes and discussed my teaching over a longer period of time with the head before awarding a grade - basically checking that that 'snapshot' fitted into a bigger picture.)

I don't really know what to think about this. My school generally conform to the guidelines, and where they don't, I personally find it very helpful. For instance, Feenie I disagree with you about learning walks, random drop-ins and so on. I have no issue with people from SMT arriving in my classroom, and don't find it disruptive. However, I know perfectly well that I will be given positive, professional feedback that will help to improve my teaching. The same with being observed more than 3 times a year- it does happen in my school but it's done in a supportive and professional way, and shouldn't add to the workload or be too stressful.

On the other hand, I do firmly believe in supporting the Union, and I'm with NASUWT, so I might seriously consider moving elsewhere.

Where does it say you can't work outside school hours?

We used to have quite a strong union in our place, so we managed to counter-act most of the things anyway - although the fcat the the union have had to deatil so mnay examples is quite worrying.

The thing is, it's not about choosing to go along with it or not; your head should not be putting pressure on individuals, because it is the union who's in dispute; not the individual. Not only that, but the union isn't even in dispute with headteachers, but the government.

We have 60 Nas members in our schoool, but they rarely come to meetings and if they do, say things like: "well I don;t mind." or "I'd lose a day's pay." COme off it. You're a teacher. You do not get paid badly (and I say this with 2 kids in f/t childcare.) If you let one thing pass, what next? Pay cuts? School 7 days a week? Or is the union only there to protect YOU personally?

I think people who pick and choose what they liek about teh union should leave. CHoose another one.

It looks like I'll be in this job another 35 years, so I want it to be a job wheer I have decent working conditions.

Rant over. Daughter of a fairly militant TGU union rep, so brought up with it.

I inwardly groaned when I heard about this action as I anticipated that it would be very disruptive to learning. I went out on strike last time, even though we could not really afford to because as part of a union I felt that I had to support the majority.

I would far rather strike for one day than work to rule as I think that a period of working to rule causes more harm. I cannot possibly do my job during directed time, it requires at least 12 hours a day. Having said this I was pleased to note that my school does not expect us to many of the things on the list because it values our worklife balance. I think if you are looking at that list and you do most of the things, your school has got something very wrong.

The one that we do break is the lesson observation, I have a member of SMT or a head of faculty in my room probably about once a fortnight if not more regularly. It does not bother me because I am a good teacher and the management are supportive and feedback is constructive. I can see however that it may not be like that everywhere.

I wil struggle with the emails, clubs and display rules. I run clubs a few times a week and see that as something that is intergral to the rich experience of my pupils. Having said that it does say that the ban only applies to clubs that are enforced from above although they would prefer you to stop running them.

Would I be unreasonable to carry on running my clubs? Does this also apply to student catch up, coaching and revision sessions?

Yes teachers are quite well paid and as I said I did go out on strike. However many of us have financial commitments that swallow up our wages meaning that sacrificing a days pay is hard.

We have sizeable maintenance to pay, children who live with us to support, our own bills and elderly parents to support. I found it a challenge to give up a days pay.

I don't mind the Head popping in daily - he asks how everyone is, and if everyone is in school, and then leaves. It is a bit annoying if I am in full flow - or have a class who seize on every disruption, like this year - but I don't count that as an observation, and he doesn't stay long. My door stays open.

If he came in while I was teaching and started questioning children and looking at books without warning, I would be pissed off. It would be disruptive to the class and to the lesson, and it's just bloody rude. I am SMT and wouldn't dream of doing this. It's plain bad manners. If I do have to interrupt to ask someone a vital question, I always apologise to the teacher and the children.

There are plenty of bullying Heads that any rules are there to protect us from - one look at a current MN Education thread atm tells you that.

No decent teacher minds observation, but any change in regulation can leave some teachers open to abuse of the system.

I agree Feenie, ours do come in and look at books, talk to students etc and it does not bother me. But it is not done in a judgemental way.

Where does it say you can't work outside school hours?

You are right - it doesn't. Just not answering emails at home.

I honestly can't see this affecting our school; most of these items are very sensible and just good practice, as previous posters have said.

But isn't some of the union action taking place so you don't have to work 12 hours a day?

I think one thing that grinds us all down is the hours and workload. I thought this was one of the reasons for action

I work in a school as I said that is quite respectful of workloads but at the end of that day books need marking, lessons need planning etc and if you teach a literacy based subject and you have additional responsibility that will result in long working days.

I think, orangeandlemons, it's to do with choice.

We are paid for 1295 hours a year. Most teachers I know work at least 60 hours per week, but that should be their choice, rather than the expectation or the only way to fulfil their job description. The Unions are trying to make the point that we do work beyond the role, although most of us do this willingly. The concern is that it will become the expected.

I have no issue with SLT 'popping heads in' to see how we're getting along. I quite like to feel they are involved in the class. I do have an issue with random clip-board checks (with lots of muttering to each other and tutting), taking books for monitoring whilst they know the teacher is not in the room and with no warning, coming in unannounced and declaring a lesson 'not challenging', coming into rooms and undermining the teacher's decision and bad-mouthing other colleagues in public meetings for not having done extra activities in their free time. One major issue is that our last Ofsted report was significantly lower than the previous, and so SLT are bricking themselves. If we don't have an improvement this time, they will be fired. Teaching was a 2 with some 1. Management was a 3 with some 4.

The more I say about my school, and the more I read about other people's schools, the more I realise I need to leave. I will stand up for my rights in the mean time, but lots of teachers won't. Incidentally, I am the union rep...

I suspect most professionals work 12 hour days, very few professionals get 13 weeks of holiday a year. Overall I think I am doing OK.

Derceto

The point is, that is the contract we signed. 1295 hours per year in 195 days, which amounts to 13 weeks' holiday. There are pros and cons to the job, and I think very few teachers genuinely choose the profession for the holidays, but that doesn't mean we are there to be exploited.

We are going above and beyond the terms of our contract, even if the contract does seem cushy.

Is it your main household salary though, Derceto?

The holidays are a perk, certainly, and I spend them being the mum I can't be in termtime. But we are not paid for that time.

I saw a DM comment the other day which answered that point - it said 'well, if teachers can afford to have 13 weeks unpaid we are paying them too much!'

Yes the holidays are not paid which is why I do next to bugger all in them.

My husband earns more than me, although his income fluctuates but he has a sizeable amount of maintenance that comes out of his wage and a second sizeable amount that goes to his parents so in terms of what we contribute to the house pot I bring home more.

My DP makes about 1.5x my salary, yet works far fewer hours. He did an extra year of uni than me, and will soon be making 2x my salary, with constant increases. Also public sector. My salary will increase at a far slower rate, irrespective of how good I am. In fact, my end salary (without leadership scale) will be what he gets now.

If I had chosen a different profession, my salary would be far higher. I chose teaching because I want to be with children and I enjoy it. I really do enjoy it, but that doesn't mean I should be exploited.

I don't think it's amazing as a main salary. It's okay.