No computers to use in school

[crazycatgal]

I've just started a schools direct PGCE and will be in school pretty much full time. There are no computers for staff to use in planning time. Each class has a class laptop that the teacher is able to take home and use.

What am I supposed to work on in school?

@leccybill If that's a jab at me daring to do a PGCE even though I have anxiety then kindly leave the thread. I don't need someone online questioning my competence because I have anxiety, that's not what I came here to discuss.

I don't think Leccy is wrong in what she's saying though, the training (and teaching) is mentally and emotionally tough. It may help you to find strategies to help with your anxiety generally rather than focussing on one small detail (the laptop in this case) in my experience schools are often quite chaotic and things don't run smoothly and teachers are expected to be creative and flexible in dealing with problems as they arise. Getting stuck on one detail will cause unnecessary mental pressure for you.
Also, you can't order people off your thread.... it doesn't work like that on a public forum good luck with your training though

To be fair to the OP, we've been reminded this term to be mindful of where we are leaving our electronics and handbags and stuff. Our catchment has a skyrocketing problem with drugs (County lines anyone) so there is concern that things easy to sell may go.

I think you need to get your school rather than mumsnet to solve this problem though OP!

I’d just leave it in a locked faculty office or hand it into the school office. They have secure storage - they have to have safes to store money etc.

To be honest when I was training I did all my planning at home and my trainees have done the same and brought their PowerPoints in on memory sticks. When at school the vast majority of the time should be spent observing really.

crazycatgal
To be fair to leccy, they are making a valid point. The training year will be a tough year for most trainee teachers and so will the NQT year, more so if someone has anxiety.
If school have said they are going to look into it, then give them a bit of time to look j to it. Yesterday was the 5th day of teaching. As a trainee, you're in your early days of observing.
I wouldn't be expecting trainees on day 5/6 to be doing anything with pupil data or any planning. They are usually just observing around the department or school, doing some of their university/training provider tasks and getting used to being in school. I wouldn't have their timetable until around week 3 or 4 once the classes have settled and I know where I can put a trainee (we try to avoid tough classes for trainees) so there's no need for planning yet.
Definitely have a chat with your mentor this week though. Just be aware that things don't happen instantly.

Jeez...i did my training 15odd years ago and would have struggled without computer access so some of you are being really mean to the op. She should be provided with the necessary equipment and these days a computer is necessary.
Also 're private resources we are continually reminded about not leaving school laptops lying about nevermind private ones. I'm my time teaching we have had a laptop stolen, various pen drives, a few phones and a purse. Also a set of dictionaries, teacher planner and more stationery that I care to think about. Not too mention cash from the petty cash tin in the cupboard and money for a school trip that wasn't banked in time. In a school with 1650 kids there's always going to be sometime who is light fingered so I never leave anything in way of temptation.

Gardeninginsummer1
I think there needs to be some clarity on what they want to happen regarding IT access. With the training providers we work with some trainees use their laptops for planning etc and then use an encrypted hard drive, some the ITT provider loans laptops, some the school does.

I'm just questioning whether 5 days into term when no planning, no data use are is required is the time to stress about it. The OP will probably be doinv early observations still so is able to do her ITT tasks on her personal laptop for now and then speak further with her mentor when they meet this week.

Ah that's true enough I suppose. Just it's obviously not helping the ops anxiety.

Apologies if I sounded unsupportive OP, it wasn't meant. Just trying to say in a kind way that in schools, there's no time to sweat the small stuff, schools are chaotic, you very much need to think on your feet and adapt to quickly changing situations.

I remember my time observing pre-teaching. I wrote everything I saw in a notebook which I kept and it makes me chuckle a bit now, 15 years down the line. Do use of your observing time though- see every class with every teacher, at every time of day - honestly you'll never get the chance again!

OP : tbh, teaching is likely to make your anxiety worse if your responses on this thread are anything to go by. You don’t need to be staring at a laptop, your attention should be on the teachers & students, you’ll learn a lot more that way.

I think there is a difference between keeping lesson plans and PGCE notes on your own computer and having sensitive data about the school or children on there.
As it's early days and you are still observing I'm not sure what you need a laptop for? Is this school going to be your first placement?

I have a DC who did schools direct last year and has just started as an NQT. He uses his own laptop for planning at home and uploads to cloud (Drive or 365 whatever the school uses) where he can access it at school. I don't recall him ever taking his laptop into either of his placement schools but if he had he'd have locked it in the car.

@leccybill Thank you for your recent comment, I appreciate your concerns but I am fully aware of how chaotic and full on teaching can be and I believe that I will be able to do well on this course.

@gazillion I'm just trying to be prepared so that when I do come to planning and teaching I have everything in place. I would rather be prepared than trying to find things out at the last minute. I've not been sat on a computer at all and I don't plan to be.

I would rather be prepared than trying to find things out at the last minute.

I think what a lot of experienced teachers are saying, OP, is that a big chunk of ‘teaching’ is finding things out last minute and having to adapt extremely quickly. Nothing is ever 100% fully planned and with your anxiety, some posters are just advising that you might react even worse to that kind of pressure than a trainee who doesn’t have anxiety.
Your increased worry about having a laptop/computer is a warning sign of that. As a trainee, you will have limited access to pupil data (our trainees are not allowed access to Sims for example and are verbally told about SEND issues) so using your own laptop is fine for planning and creating resources and not what your school GDPR policy is referring to, so do think about that advice again.

Having strategies to help spot new triggers in a new and stressful environment will be invaluable to you. Do let your mentor know so they can help support you as well and good luck, OP.

I'm just trying to be prepared so that when I do come to planning and teaching I have everything in place. I would rather be prepared than trying to find things out at the last minute. I've not been sat on a computer at all and I don't plan to be.
Please take this with the good will it's intended, but at this stage in your training there isn't anything to get in place as such. You're a matter of days into your training year.

You're in danger of making a common mistake that some trainees make of being 'busy' or fretting unnecessarily but actually you may well find yourself doing extra work because so early on you're not in a position to be getting ahead with placement stuff.

(This may just be me so others may do it differently) In my experience the first couple of weeks:
Trainees usually do some sort of school audit about catchment, school etc to know the context of their school
Trainees observe within the year/subject they are likely to be based
Trainees will so some cross key stage/cross subject observations
They might observe a specific child for a day e.g. SEND
When observing, they're watching the teacher and making notes, reflecting, thinking about how it links to the early steps in theory with their ITT provider
Brushing up on some subject knowledge
Looking at books and seeing how things are marked
Meeting with the mentor to discuss the logistics etc which might take a couple of weeks to sort out.

Trainees often don't have their timetable until a bit further in. With no timetable means no class information & with no class information then there's no meaningful prep to be done.

Take a step back. Your mentor is probably still on a full (or reasonably full) timetable. They got back to work a week ago. They've taught a full 6 days of lessons and are getting their own class/classes sorted and set up for the year. They have their own schemes and planning to sort, their own datasheets to create, their classes to get to know. Then they will block of time to allocate to mentoring a trainee for a specified amount of time a week. They will then start deciding what the timetable will look like for the trainee and will also be aware that they need to check ITT logins, network access, copier access, IT arrangements etc for the new trainee. But right now the trainee isn't teaching, isn't about to be teaching and they have more than enough to be getting on with that doesn't require a school laptop. So the mentor will get to it, but not in 48 hours or so when they don't get any extra time or pay.

It's clearly a logistical issue that needs a solution. Ask your mentor in your meeting but be aware that mentoring trainees is a significant job that mentors don't get time or pay for (so sorting non urgent IT issues in the first days of term is unlikely to be a priority & is more of a end of 2nd week when things have started to settle issue).

You need access to a computer to do the work you need to do, it's not optional. So if the school can't provide it they shouldn't have taken on a trainee. I agree with others - ask your mentor, then anyone else at school, then someone at your training provider. But do, as above, bear in mind it's only Day 6 and it might improve!

The OP doesn’t have school work to do yet, or shouldn’t have any planning/prep this early in the term so the laptop isn’t not essential yet.
She says she has asked and been told it will be sorted so needs to let it go for at least a few days. Start of term is hectic enough for the teachers let alone adding trainees to the mix

I'm an experienced teacher in a new job since last Monday. I only got access to SIMS yesterday and only got a staff ID card today. I still don't have a car park fob. You just have to wait for things to happen in schools and be grateful if they do at all!