Part Time Teachers, do you go to every parents evening on your day off?

[reastie]

I am quite mindful that I may just get flamed for people seeing me as unprofessional but pt teachers do you go into every parents evening when the evenings fall on your day off? How do you feel about going in and doing all the extra things expected of us?

From what I can find I shouldn't have to go to the evenings at all or am entitled to extra payment for it if I do, but I do and always have done so unquestionably as part of my job. I've recently come back from mat leave after having my 1st dd and am tbh struggling with the out of classroom workload. I'm trying to get by doing as little as possible but alot of pressure is on staff where I work at the minute and I'm one of those people who can't wing it and has to prepare and organise things.

I have parents evening for a year group I am currently between classes (ie one group has finished, the new group not yet started). Because of timetabling I won't see this year group (which btw is not an exam year group)until after the parents evening so can't make appointments with the old class if they wanted them (although no need to see them anyway IYWKIM). My plan was to send a message out saying if any parents from my old group would discuss anything I will be happy to telephone them whenever is convenient for them, and tbh no student has asked me for an appointment and there's no actual importance of me attending. So I have zero people to see and I don't teach a core subject.

I feel really annoyed that i'm still required to go (line manager says so) and sit there in the vague hope someone might want to see me. It seems to pointless. I appreciate there may be a parent with questions or an issue from my old group, but surely this could be dealt with over the telephone given that I don't have any planned parents to see. In the past if I've had one or two appointments my line manager told me it wasn't worth me going in just for that and to ring them instead - suddenly all has changed while I was away or maybe he's punishing me I think I also feel a bit resentful as I'm only part time and think I should only have to attend half the parents evenings as I only work less than half a full time worker. IA prob BU here and don't really even know if I'll post this message as the responses will probably upset me and indicate you all think I'm a rubbish teacher for even moaning and not wanting to go. FWIW, I do work hard at school, I do get good results and I do care about the students, I just feel annoyed that working 2 days a week means I still have to do ALL of the extra bits and not my paid proportion of these things.

coconutty I seem to recall that happening where I am in the past, and that all TAs and teachers at one point had to come in for meetings even if it was their day off and the TAs were all unpaid to go

When I taught as a part time teacher I'm fairly sure that it was stated in my contract the proportion of out of hours meetings and after school events I was required to attend. As I was teaching 0.6fte this was calculated as 0.6 of the number of meetings/parents evenings etc.

It was then down to me and my line manager to work out which meetings it would be most useful for me to attend each term. I would say if you are unlikely to have any appointments for the evening then your line manager is just making you go to make a point which is unfair.

Have you got a union rep you can discuss this with?

custard my line manager is my union rep

I go to Parents' Evenings if they fall on my day off (4 out of 5 do this year ) but I don't go to meetings or twilight INSET if they're on my day off. The rest of the week I go to Dept meetings but not Pastoral, as I don't have a tutor group. I'm 0.6.

It seems like this particular Parents' Evening would be a waste of your time though. On 2 days a week you do NOT have to go to all evening sessions!

I hear you on the workload. I'm drowning

I go to any that are for kids I teach and have not asked for overtime, though perhaps I should - I did discover recently that I was entitled to for trip I went on (voluntarily) on non-work days. I don't understand why you have to be there if you have no appointments. I would seek clarification from your HR person or have a chat with the head (possibly with union rep in tow if you think it will get tetchy).

Oh yes I do actually claim back for the Parents' Evenings on my day off!

My daughter's GCSE English teacher is part-time. She is, as far as I am aware, always prepared to go but does try and deal with email/phone instead. If she clears it with all parents that way, she doesn't attend. I have preferred that because, although I have only had two communications over 18 months of any length with her, they were both at important times.

You cannot be directed to attend parents' evenings which fall on your day off and you should remind your line manager of this fact. This is assuming your school adheres to the Teachers' Pay and Conditions document (some academies don't).

If they still want you to come in, they have to pay you accordingly.

So what about the non-part time teachers who have to put in extra hours for parents evening. Is it ok for them to have to put up and shut up but not pt teachers?

They're not extra hours, parents' evenings are directed time.

However, full time teachers at my school would certainly not be expected to attend parents' evenings where they had no appointments. That's ridiculous.

I am a p-t teacher and always do to parents evenings of classes I teach regardless of what day they fall on. I dont think it's relevant what day its on, its part of the workload for that class. I do think its a bit odd that you dont have any appointments and are still expected to go. Maybe its a sort of policy thing i.e.if they take that attitude then they give less wriggle room to thse who try to get out of it in the future.

I have many part-time colleagues who are not willing to be flexible at all and who seem to think they only need to be at shool for their teaching and their designated frees which I think is why my school makes some of the decisions it does about what we have to do.

From the NUT:

Additional working time

STPCD (School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document) para 74.7 & 74.8 & STPCD statutory guidance para 143 and 176

The STPCD provides that part time teachers cannot now be required to work or attend non-pupil days on days when they do not normally work (STPCD para 74.7).

They may, however, agree to attend staff/departmental meetings, parents/open evenings and INSET days and other non-pupil days on such days by mutual agreement with the head teacher. Where they do agree to work on days when they do not normally work, this cannot by definition be included in directed time. The STPCD therefore includes a provision for additional payment for this working time. The formula for this payment provides, in effect, for part time teachers to receive 1/1265 of the appropriate full time pay rate for each hour of additional working time.

NUT advice on additional working time on non-teaching days and on the power to make additional payment, including the circumstances when the provision should be used and the appropriate length of additional working time for which payment should be made, is set out later in this guidance.

The STPCD also provides that part time teachers may be directed to work outside school sessions on days when they do normally work (STPCD para 74.8). Situations may, for example, be encountered where teachers who only work the morning session are asked to undertake non-teaching duties after the end of the afternoon session such as attending a meeting. Such directions must, however, be reasonable, both in the context of the general organisation of teachers? non-teaching duties and in the context of the statutory guidance given to head teachers to seek to avoid such situations wherever possible. NUT advice on this issue is set out later in this guidance.

We have several job shares and they all do parents' evenings together.
However, this is primary and it may be different in secondary.

reastie, IIRC, you are in an independent school? The above guidance may therefore not apply, as you are not employed under STPC...

colleger my point is that they go to the same amount of parents evenings as I do but I only get paid to do less than half time with a salary obv alot lower, so in my logic I should do the equivalent of how much I'm paid for how many parents evenings IYKWIM

tether yes it's an independent. I tried ringing my union earlier for confirmation but they were busy .

I will and am going, I just felt a bit huffy about it tbh given I have to get in and pay petrol etc to actually have no one to see

Thank you all for generally not jumping on me as much as I expected

Another reason to get out of there, it seems...

Dont you end up teaching fewer year groups because you are part time? Maybe not if you are in a subjust that doesnt have many lessons per week.

I jobshare in a primary and have always gone to all parents' evenings with my partner, as I think it very important for both of us to meet the parents and for them to meet both of us. My current HT however has said time and again that she doesn't see the need and that we can do one each if we like. We still both attend however.
But it's different in your case, as you have no appointments. It's someone being jobsworth by the sounds of it.

You absolutely do not have to go in on a day you don't work. End of. They can ask (they should pay you, though) but you can say no. You can be directed to come to 0.4/0.6 of parents' evenings (whatever your part time allocated timeis), but ONLY ON THE DAYS YOU WORK.

You can choose to go in if you want. Let's face it, you might have another job on those other days.

Colleger that's right. why the ? a part time teacher takes a massive pay cut and often puts in more time proportionally anyway. Someone can choose to go in, but they can't be bullied into it.

I am a specialist subject teacher in an independent prep. I only go to parents evening if I have any specific appointments. However I arrange a suitable time on one of the other days I do work when I make myself available to any parent who may have any questions. This information is communicated out to the parents before the parents evening. I will also happily take and phone or email enquiries on my working days.
I do however go to any inset days if they are applicable to me - particularly at the start of every term, even if it falls on my day off. Its a bit of give and take I suppose.
Seems ridiculous to go in if you have no appointments.

YANBU. Not reasonable to make you do just as much unpaid overtime as those who are on a full-time salary.

I work in a school (not teaching) The P-T teachers here claim overtime or time off in lieu for every minute they work outside of their normal working days.

In answer to your title question - it depended totally on the attitude of the HT at the time. Those who tried to 'demand it', I didn't. YOu are contracted to work 0.6% of the contract - that means 0.6% of Parents evenings, etc., and can't be made to work on your non-working days.
OTOH, where the HT thanked me for coming in, or asked me if I might be able to do something, then I usually did go in.
However, it seems completely pointless you being there for this evening, whether you were PT or FT