How much non-contact time?

[EnglishHOD]

Name changes... I’m just wondering if you’d be happy to share how many non-contacts teachers and heads of department/faculty get at your school? I think I’m on a lot less than local peers.
Thank you!

Sorry, Kate, I wasn’t trying to get at you. I doubt your contract says anything about teaching hours, but more like to do anything reasonable asked of you by the head.

What an individual Teacher teaches is governed by the school timetable, surely? If you don’t teach a particular physics lesson, who does?

If you are weighed down by marking, push back on that.

Personally, I spend maximum 2 hours a week marking. I prefer students to mark their own work in class.

I think the trouble is that it is up to individual schools to set teaching time : the DfE made recommendations years ago, with a formula : but it isn't enforceable. To my knowledge.

I am lucky because I work in a no cover school : but this does also mean we can't bring in the idea of 'protected frees' for CPD etc which means people are reluctant to give up frees for observing each other or for meeting together as we feel the frees belong to us.

NEU guidelines state 10%of your contracted hours. You should get 2 and a half hours of PPA time a week in Primary schools. NQTs get more. If you're not getting it, speak to your Phase/Key Stage Leader because you are entitled to it.

You're right crafty gin - there is nothing in my written contract. However, a contract is not just in writing but can be formed verbally as well. So when I was told about 80%, I was expecting to teach about 24/25 lessons per week - totalling about 50 lessons per fortnight.

Unfortunately, I have to mark each child's exercise book in depth and then they are required to respond in green pen - (the notes that I wrote on the board) because my HoD has directed me to. However, the little darlings never do as they're directed and so my HoD (and he is actually a good HoD) is constantly pulling me up on my marking and/or the pupils' feedback to my marking...

I can't handle the workload and so, I am leaving. I have given notice according to the terms in my written contract. I am allowed to withdraw my labour craftygin.

Your HOD is an idiot, which is a good reason to resign, IMO.

Isn't this the issue rather that what you discussed at interview?

As a Science Teacher, you should be able to walk into a new job, but you need to be able to teach the number of lessons that are on the timetable.

Happily, all my reading recently in educational research suggests the days of deep marking and triple feedback and multi coloured pens are numbered.

It’s madness, Piggy. I wonder how it managed to grow roots and then for teachers not to revolt, and for it to infiltrate into the independent sector.

Because people have totally misunderstood John Hattie and can't be bothered/ don't have time to read things properly : the EEF stated feedback as the top intervention. It seemed cheap and easy and then it got out of control!

Funny how they don't pay any attention to many of the other things the EEF found!

I'm not sure it's in all of the independent sector. DH's marking is still proper old school.

Crafty gin - maybe I'm being thick - you mean, I have to teach the lessons on my timetable?!?! No shit, Sherlock. I've been teaching for 6 years... this is my first full year at this school.

Stop talking to me like I'm an idiot, please.

Perhaps your condescending attitude, and those of the parents of the kids I teach, is the reason I am leaving teaching. That and the insults the kids throw at me. I'm sick of being made to feel I am incompetent and not as good as other people.

What with infertility and my hometown being destroyed by mudslides, I just don't need it anymore.

Sorry, I am obviously being a clutz at communicating. Not my intention.

I’m not one of those people wh trawls though the thread to make accurate quotes, so again, forgive me if I have the wrong gist.

It seemed to me that you thought you were given too many lessons, especially given discussions at your interview. My point is that the number of lessons you have to teach depends on the timetable, not the interview.

You have said that you have to do a lot of marking in your free time, and I said that you need to push back on this, as it is unreasonable.

I am sorry that you have other stresses in your life and I can see how these and stresses at work can all align to become overwhelming. Something needs to give and probably the one thing you have most control over is how much marking you do. You can be a good enough teacher with just a few hours of marking a week.

Good enough should definitely be the mantra.

I think the trouble with teaching is that we are viewed by MN as moaners , but actually, because we teach, we are very biddable, rules driven, obedient people, generally who thrive on instruction and routine.

Therefore, we tend not to raise issues as this is viewed as disruptive and we are told , more or less, to put up or shut up, so we rant on MN, and it can all become a bit fraught.

fwiw, I think you are misreading crafty, kate.

What are you doing when you leave your current job btw? I have seen some of your other threads about getting out altogether?

I'm leaving teaching to do IVF because I know that I can't cope with both (some people do - good for them - but I can't. Infertility has broken me). I have no control over what my body does, but I can control the stresses of my job by leaving it.

Beyond the several rounds of IVF that I trying to prepare myself psychologically for (and not very well, as you can tell by my response to perceived attack, criticism and condescension, which is a poor attitude to have to survive teaching), I haven't had much time to think yet. It could be a year or slightly more...

And obviously there is a timetable to follow, but if certain things are agreed at interview and then not upheld, that IS a breach of contract, FYI.

Feeling hard done to now! Secondary HoD - 42 out of 50, and one of those is a meeting.

Teachers do 44/50

I actually therefore get 30 mins a week to do my HoD job.

What department cotton ? That's the same as my school, more or less. It's HOFs that get more.

I have two responsibilities. My main one carries a fair whack but I have one additional out of 50 for my HOD work.

Cotton- that’s rubbish. As a HOD you’re doing 84%, classroom teachers only do 83% in my school, HODs do up to 77% and core HODs do 70%.

Blimey - feeling even more hard done to now! I'm a Head of History piggy - with huge ruddy classes right up to A level!

35/50 as HoD in a core subject. Mainscale teachers are on 45/50

Always had lower than that but due to budget cuts we are now up to maximum- its unsustainable. I have 9 classes, 2 of which are A level in those 35 hours. I'm broken

My point was though cotton that that is basically the same as my school (it is shit though, agreed). Our head of history happens to not be a good example because he is also an AH. But the head of Geography is on 41/50, so similar to you.

I think the job has changed a lot since these decisions were mad : but it's unlikely to change, sadly, with budget constraints

I know, piggy. It is unlikely to change. 10% is the 'agreed' amount - so school feel they are being generous in giving 6 hours PPA over 2 weeks for teaching staff. It's an EXTRA half an hour a week, folks!

But, as you say, the job/pressures/class sizes have changed.

I now have an average of 25 in all (4) of my A level classes.
And 30 in all 4 GCSE classes.

Is therr an online guide somewhere for people applying for jobs to actually know before applying to a school what the ppa balance is?

Might be a win win as schools who dont give reasonable ppa will struggle to recruit ?

There should be a formula that the Timetabler uses for teaching time vs frees. I have almost always worked in the private and the formula was one free for every four lessons taught. There was no concept of protected PPA - free lessons in school were always available for cover, and all lessons in a week could be taken of those were the needs of the school.

The overriding reason for a teacher’s hours is the balance of the curriculum and the number of lessons that need to be taught in their subject.

Individual teachers can be over/under the ideal (80%). Those under can expect to be first up for cover. Those under should only be called upon in a crisis.

By that logic crafty, I'm surprised you were being so aggressive towards my 87% at 53 one hour lessons per fortnight. Holiday time can never make up the stress of the week I have 27 hours of lessons.

There is nothing thing that I can do about my lessons being sometimes planned in a rush, this resulting in poor behaviour, lack of marking etc... other than withdraw my labour.

I was told I would be getting one free for every four taught lessons and agreed to that. It forms part of my agreed contract, within reason. A part time science teacher was made redundant last year so everyone is science is more or less in this position (except my hod who has at least one free every day). It's not very well planned, if you ask me!

I wasn’t being aggressive. I was asking what the school could do about it. I was also suggesting that you spend too much time planning and marking.

Timetables change between interview and September, for example A-level classes can be put on after GCSE results day. Other things arise that no one has much control over.

Surely the school could do loads about it @Crafty - rejig other timetables, bring in cover, employ the right number of staff...

The timetables shouldn’t change between May and September - options blocks etc should already be sorted, and the recruitment process (and number of staff taken on) should have taken account of that.

I’m in a similar situation to @Kate. My timetable bears no resemblance to what was described at interview and it’s really infuriating.

I teach 31/45 as Second in English. This is considered over timetabled, but needs must as we are a department member down.

I'm not in the UK! In my last mainscale UK post I taught 25/30. Won't be returning for this & other obvious reasons...