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The staffroom

Whether you're a permanent teacher, supply teacher or student teacher, you'll find others in the same situation on our Staffroom forum.

Original poster

Open Evening stresses!

170 replies

Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 17:47

I work in a large secondary school. We have two open evenings coming up : one main school and one sixth form on two consecutive Thursdays .

School day finishes 3.10 pm as normal and the evenings start at 5 for three hours. Not all of us need to be at both but many do.

Work life balance!!??? hahahahahahhahhaaahhhaha! I actually dodn't think many of our SLT have children between 0 - 16 and a full time working spouse. Most hods and hofs have grown children, no children or SAHPs as partners... I, on the other hand , am a FT working mother with a FT fellow teacher DH. I thought it would get easier as my DCs got older but it really hasn't.

Anyone want to compare/play Top Trumps/ gloat?

DH (largeish private school) has two Saturday Open Mornings but only needs to attend one and he doesn't need to go to the sixth form evening.

OP posts:
Farontothemaddingcrowd · 28/09/2017 17:49

I get you. I'm a single parent of three who has an open eve Thursday from 5.30 to 8.30. This is after finishing work at 3.50

TheFallenMadonna · 28/09/2017 17:51

Open Evenings have always been part of the directed time budget in schools I've worked in.

TheFallenMadonna · 28/09/2017 17:54

And your middle and senior leadership team demographic seems unusual.

Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 17:57

Yes, it's directed time, I get that, although the sixth form one is a bit interesting as not everyone is ;directed' to be at it.

I am envious of schools which finish early on Open Evening days , though. That seems humane.

I visit a lot of schools in my role and our SLT demographic is fairly typical of the local area.

OP posts:
Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 17:58

Plus Madonna two in two weeks doesn't have to be the case! I know it's all self pity ... gah!

OP posts:
TheFallenMadonna · 28/09/2017 18:01

Are they all old or young? When I was on SLT only 2/7 didn't have school age children. Similarly HoDs.

TheFallenMadonna · 28/09/2017 18:03

Sixth form one was later in the term though. All the dates agreed between all local providers, which adds another restriction.

MsAwesomeDragon · 28/09/2017 18:06

In my school the open evenings are done by only 1 or 2 teachers from each department and the SMT. So big departments have 2 teachers in attendance and smaller ones just have 1, generally hod and second in dept. I don't think we have a sixth form one til about Feb, but I won't be at it so don't really need to know.

Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 18:19

awesome , years ago we had two evenings for main school and scrapped that. But with that came the decree that it was unfair that some people did a rota and other, smaller depts. needed everyone so now the three line whip is that all must attend. It is going that way for sixth form evening, too.
fallen - both! Younger ones (male) with wives at home and small children. Older one s(nearly all male) with children post school age. One female in her late 40s with school age children - she is part time, as it goes. Couple of males with school age children who proudly declare they don't attend their children's parents' evenings!

OP posts:
Fffion · 28/09/2017 18:45

It's a couple of evenings and in the calendar. Organise you childcare accordingly.

Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 19:03

Thanks for that Fffion !

I can organise childcare. The exhaustion I can't stave off.

Are you SLT .... Grin ?

OP posts:
CarrieBlue · 28/09/2017 19:05

The union told us that open evenings couldn’t be directed time, attendance should only be voluntary.

Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 19:08

Mine are too old for 'childcare' by the way. And I would never now recommend anyone to be a FT teacher , married to a FT teacher with no family network close by...

But it does mean for two consecutive weeks, I have/ want to dash home, actually see my DCs/ make tea/ dash back and reschedule and reorganise music lessons for two consecutive weeks. Whichever way you spin it, that's avoidable for staff by putting at least some space between things but hey ho. I was just having a moan and wanting to see what other schools do if you look at my OP.

When did staffroom become like AIBU where people come on and have a pop? It used to be our 'safe space' !

OP posts:
Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 19:08

Didn't know that Carrie !

OP posts:
Fffion · 28/09/2017 19:08

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

CarrieBlue · 28/09/2017 19:11

Yes it does. Not part of my job. Doesn’t mean I didn’t choose to be involved, but not forced to spend my time there.

Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 19:13

What's your beef Ffffion ?

If I was going to be contentious, I would say my school is massively oversubscribed every year so the OE feels superfluous sometimes when one is teaching a full day the day before and after.

But I don't terribly mind them - they are genuinely exhausting, though, and some concession, like early closure or a Training Day the following say ,a s some schools do, to staff would be nice.

They are exhausting for the lovely students who help out, too.

OP posts:
Fffion · 28/09/2017 19:13

Then you can feel good about going the extra mile.

CarrieBlue · 28/09/2017 19:14

Whatever Fffion

Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 19:14

Right.... teachers do that each and every day of their working lives.

OP posts:
Foxsox · 28/09/2017 19:45

Arguing like this isn't healthy

We had open evening this week. I'm a HOY in charge of transistor and I teach too. I have kids and a DH that works FT
I knew this was coming up and I knew it's part of directed time, always has been st this point in the year.
I'm
Thrilled to say It was a resounding success and it's likely we will see a rise in applications
You know what? That makes the reshuffle of 'childcare' worth it because in the long run more kids in school means my job is safe.

I totally get the work life balance issue, the thought of a 13+ hour day makes my eyes want to fall out but it's not every week.

Many local schools have a 'teacher day' on open evening which means you start later, prepare lots and then deliver open evening
Perhaps you could suggest this as an option?

Foxsox · 28/09/2017 19:46

Transition

chosenone · 28/09/2017 19:53

It's knackering. It really is, and yes this is staff room and not AIBU! ... what I do is visualise the holidays and how lucky we are to have them. It's literally and all or nothing job and we are currently in the all bit! 😴

Original poster
Piggywaspushed · 28/09/2017 20:03

FoxSox : I do agree and lots of colleagues have suggested what you suggest and been looked at witheringly.

I suppose my main issue is the two in tow weeks which just strikes me as cruelty!

As I said, we are hugely oversubscribed so we don't really get the thrill you do of having an impact...

I will obviously suck it up : just wanted a vent.

Spent ages working out what 'transistor ' was Grin

OP posts:
noblegiraffe · 28/09/2017 20:09

Ah Open Evening. When we spend our time rearranging the desks so that the most visible penises are facing the wall and get out a bunch of equipment that hasn't been seen since last Open Evening. I think most of the maths teachers staffing it could be replaced by a leaflet saying 'We set them by November half term'.