Discrepancy between Secondary schools

[1AngelicFruitCake]

I’m a Primary teacher and have been working on a rota throughout with work to do at home. I’ve been back on full hours for a few weeks as have other primary teachers I know.

What I can’t understand is how some secondary teachers are barely in due to being a big school so rota takes a long time to roll around and then not doing much from home. I know this because a friend is secondary and is on days out with her children, minimal work at home and has openly told me they’re not expected to give much feedback etc. Yet I hear other secondaries where they’ve been working really hard at home. How can this discrepancy be allowed to happen? And yes I do feel resentful when I know how hard many teachers I know are working!

Well, I could counter that by saying that I've been teaching my full A-level timetable using Teams since March, whereas my DSis (a HLTA in a primary) had the best part of 7 weeks off paid and wasn't expected to do anything at all during that time - and we'd have 4 data points!

Put the blame where it belongs. Various govts who have fragmented education and the current govt who made vague useless statements at the outset, leaving all schools to essentially do their own thing.

I don't think this is a typical staffroom post. It's not on to set colleagues from different phases against each other OP.

We get enough criticism elsewhere.

I can't decide what your motivation is. Do you not think the same so called discrepancies exist between primary schools or is it only secondary you want to bash, based on your one friend's apparent workload?

Yes I can understand what you’re both saying, although from my point of view I can overlook a TA, who is on less pay than me, having time off. My friend was complaining she’s got to go in for a day next week and it made my blood boil!
I also don’t understand how some schools are getting away with it with the parents they have.

Fair enough, I posted on here because if I posted anywhere else it’d be piled on against teachers in general. I suppose I was trying to understand how some schools are getting away with doing so much less as my experience is limited to primary.

Ok, well I chaired a Zoom meeting of teachers from my specialism a few weeks ago. Everyone was working but only the independents were being expected to deliver a full timetable and only the state colleagues were needing to go in (probably because of more keyworker/vulnerable child provision). There was a lot of variety but no-one was exactly twiddling their thumbs.

@Piggywaspushed Agreed. Isn’t the Staffroom a place for support?

Likewise @Phineyj I could say the same for Primary. My children’s school sends home twinkl worksheets each week. My sister in law is a teacher in a primary school. She supervises a keyworker bubble one day a week because of this she isn’t expected to set or mark any work. On the other hand I have taught life to timetable since the start of Lockdown. It’s unfair to criticise, our anger should be directed at the Government for poor mismanagement and also not putting into place a centralised plan which all schools are expected to follow. Yes. The plan was schools to provide childcare only but this was a knee jerk reaction to a last minute lockdown. When it was clear Lockdown would be extensive there should have been clear (ha ha!) guidance.

Meant ‘likewise’ as like @Phineyj... hope it didn’t seem like I was disagreeing with you!

There will no doubt be differences between schools for any number of reasons but I don't think picking apart what other colleagues do is helpful. The staffroom is supposed to be supportive.

For what it's worth, I'm secondary and have been busier than ever during lockdown. Not just lessons/setting work but things like curriculum development and grading, writing the timetable for next year. This week's been spent desperately trying to fit the remaining A-level curriculum into the available time next year. Ordinarily I would have taught some Y2 content at the end of Y1 but haven't been able to due to school setting other things, plus the fact that trying to teach A-level Physics online is bloody hard. I also want to try to make sure we have time for practical work and quality feedback from assessments.

Same sort of thing with Y11.

Plus trying to make sure my NQT who is starting
in September has everything he needs.

I feel next year is going to be a looong year for teachers everywhere so we should support eachother!

I didn't take it that way, don't worry.

I could easily post that in my experience primary colleagues have had it easier. They're sending home twinkl, in school 2 days a week and not doing any feedback. I wouldn't post this because I'm not a twat.

Schools have done things differently. Let's not argue against each other.

I know this because a friend is secondary and is on days out with her children, minimal work at home and has openly told me they’re not expected to give much feedback etc.

No, you know what your friend has told you. Your friend is one teacher in one school. As ever, anecdote is not evidence.

I could say something about how little primary teachers do during normal times, baring it on the piece of mouldy bread in a plastic bag which was my DS’s science lessons in year 6 but that would be very stupid of me.

Every primary teacher I know is in school working full time unless they're shielding.

Points taken onboard thank you

@1AngelicFruitCake I think if you have been following the Republic since the First Republic you would have a clearer understanding of what is happening

No idea what you’re talking about (I’m assuming that’s what you’d Hope I’d say!)

Ah don't be resentful! My friend teaches primary and they sent home loads of sheets, nothing online at all. Zero contact with parents and the school chose to shut and send key worker kids elsewhere. She admitted that although she had done a few bits she had basically chilled out for weeks. I'm secondary and whilst I'm only in once a week, I have worked full time at home.

The discrepancy is there regardless of primary or secondary.

Thanks Muppet. I know you’re right and I’m not trying to say one works harder than the other just that some schools are doing so little and when I hear about another day out when I’m working and missing that time with my children I think it’s hard to not feel annoyed! I know I’m in a great position to have a job. Going to try and avoid her for a while as it’s not doing me any good to hear the boasting!

I worried about the kids in my class from the get go. I'm primary. I've provided 3 lessons a day online from the day after the Easter holidays. We'd sent home a pack for the first 2 weeks. I've assumed no printer, everything is a YouTube video link with a pencil and paper task.

Now, no one else in my school thought we should be doing this. I just kept going - I liked having the focus of work, the videos had around 80% view numbers for my phase. Finally after half term they let me spend budget on work books to go home, and gave me an email address I could share with parents for work to be handed in.

Not just school discrepancy, also personality of teacher discrepancy.