The Twenty-Eight Republic - Lockdown Light

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

You are most welcome to this school staff support thread to get us through stressful times. It is meant for school staff only – a sort of room of requirement. Baiters, haters, goaders and bashers can jog on somewhere else.

If you are NOT staff and just have a general education query please start your own thread.

You can play here if you are a member of one the following groups-

-ABBA - anti bashers and baiting association
-SWAB - school workers against bashers
-SWOT - school workers opposing teacherbashers
-STARS - schoolworkers together against ranting + slurs

Do not give ‘The Every twat for Themselves mob’ the staffroom password as a number of them are operating in an alternative reality.

No DfE muppets allowed

Other requirements for staff room entry include the ability to find the staff room, the ability to find a clean mug in the staff room, knowledge of the photocopier codes, and the ability to sniff out where the booze is stashed - Thirsty Tuesdays, Fizz Fridays now in operation.

If you are fed up with cakes and biscuits there is now a cheeseboard on offer

If you come with a stick to goad us then that is not allowed in the staffroom and you will receive a detention

Fucking hell.
Wouldn't you think that we have enough to be contending with at the moment, without parents actually emailing in to the Head, complaining about the perceived unfairness of how I awarded some House Points today?!
Will I chuff be giving out any at all next week!

Wow Angelina - some people really need to get hobbies.

Oh Ange ignore them. Everyone is just super whiny about everything at the moment (just look at MN).

I feel sorry for my DC’s teachers, every time the school sends a letter about something being slightly different due to covid the class WhatsApp group lights up with people with a problem. Today was particularly spectacular about a minor amendment to pick-up arrangements. There will be strongly worded complaints

Apparently, they want a list, detailing my criteria for giving them!

They can fuck right off with that.

Write ‘points awarded are inversely proportional to how many complaints the parent has made’.

I award housepoints totally capriciously. If I’m in a good mood they get sprinkled over a whole class like fairy dust.

My main issues are colds and cough and exercise. Ive never been able to run around or really walk up hills at any speed.
I have allergies but only really feathers and cats affect my asthma and maybe dust.

And allergy to chlorine but thats just my eyes.

Loads of soap and hand sanitizer and bleach smells wouldnt be doing me any good,

Hope you feel better Piggy.

Oh Angelina. I think I shared about the five emails from a parent over one warning. It was exhausting. Her daughter was rude and repeatedly calling out so got another and I pointedly said I'll be more than happy to explain why you got it if you forget

Arguing about house points is a whole new level. No wonder some kids are so argumentative and unable to accept things as they are.

I meant to say she got another today. Haven't checked if mum has emailed me but I have a full explanation ready and details of how many times I had to ask her to take her feet off the furniture (I think that will horrify mother as she was insistent on how her daughter has been brought up to have impeccable manners and be respectful. I've a feeling shoes on furniture will upset her more than disrupting the lesson).

@noblegiraffe that made me laugh.
In my case it is also related to how many negative points I have awarded, so if you are in a class that follows my exceptionally shit 9R class then you get points like confetti to keep my positive to negative ratio ok ( yup, we get judged on that too)

We get judged on a percentage per lesson, has to be between 10% and 35% of students awarded them per lesson. Even if they've all been shit.

Yeah, but noble, this week? Of all weeks?!
That's all they can think of that is important?

@Hercwasonaroll

We get judged on a percentage per lesson, has to be between 10% and 35% of students awarded them per lesson. Even if they've all been shit.

What? That's insane.

Fortunately, my HT is backing me and has shut it all down.

@TheHoneyBadger

Don't understand how you could avoid marking outside of school. It's a pretty substantial part of the job and no way it fits into non contact time.

I barely do. I've become very protective of the boundary between work time and family time.

Ventured onto wider mn. People are grotesque. This situation has brought out just how selfish people are. Sick of them weaponising 'children who aren't safe at home' or people who are too poor to risk isolating to justify their own selfish wants and behaviour (eg avoiding testing).

I'm logging off soon

Add it to the list of BONKERS decisions made by the leadership team at my school. Dealing with the fallout of more of their decisions every day.

Made positive phonecalls home today, parents were so so lovely.

@Hercwasonaroll

We get judged on a percentage per lesson, has to be between 10% and 35% of students awarded them per lesson. Even if they've all been shit.

What is this fresh hell! And who has the time to monitor it. We have one department who give positive points every lesson to every child (even when they are not in ) makes the rest of us look shit and like we have behaviour problems.

But do you you just stay in school longer instead? It has to get done no matter which portion of time we use for it. I want to come home after school and see ds, take the dog out for a walk, relax properly so I can get a decent sleep. For me, and my well-being, that's more important than a bit of my weekend when I'm relaxed and rested and can do it in peace whilst ds is sleeping or busy with his own thing.

Others prefer to get to school at 7am and/or stay late. We all have to do it and do it the way that suits us. That I, or others, do it on days off doesn't mean we have no boundaries or are crap at setting limits. We just draw our boundaries differently.

I often see someone proudly saying they never take work home only to realise they're in school from 7-5 to facilitate that. That would be unthinkable for me whereas sitting in my bed on a Saturday morning with a coffee and the radio on suits. Different strokes

Honey agreed re time working differently for everyone. People who do everything at school where I am are there 7-6. I'm there 8-4 but regularly email people in the evening (only when useful to them otherwise I schedule send).

I have no way to be in school much longer because of childcare. Like you say, it's whatever works. I try to keep weekends free. Won't be possible at the moment but things should improve as staff return.

@TheHoneyBadger

Ventured onto wider mn. People are grotesque. This situation has brought out just how selfish people are. Sick of them weaponising 'children who aren't safe at home' or people who are too poor to risk isolating to justify their own selfish wants and behaviour (eg avoiding testing).

I'm logging off soon

Confession: I flounced again last weekend, hence the alteration to the username. Main MN brings out the hostility in me that I have to quash all week (although quietly telling people to fuck off under my face mask is another outlet).

I commute by train so my work day starts and ends with that meaning I work 7- 5. I try not to do loads in the evenings or weekends whereas I know others do. It doesn't matter as long as it gets done.

@TheHoneyBadger, not really. I'm in school about 8:10 and normally out by 4:30, but now earlier as I'm not asking dmil to do childcare. I'm minimal with the annotation and use grids to avoid handwriting a www. I give them all a really specific, personalised EBI because that's what's going to make the difference. I'm also getting a lot better at ignoring the lesser tasks completely.

I have to say, being a seasoned and senior marker has coloured my view of time spent on the marking process. Ultimately examiners have to be quick and accurate - the latter is down to experience and sadly, dependent on the calibre of the marker. What's the point, therefore, in me labouring over every piece of classwork?.

I have to say, being a seasoned and senior marker has coloured my view of time spent on the marking process. Ultimately examiners have to be quick and accurate - the latter is down to experience and sadly, dependent on the calibre of the marker. What's the point, therefore, in me labouring over every piece of classwork?
It irks me that I have to write more than "clear ref". I know what that means; they know what that means; why doesn't hod know what that means?

I have to say, being a seasoned and senior marker has coloured my view of time spent on the marking process.

Same for maths. I'm efficient and get the stuff marked. I then use that to inform the groups next steps and starter Qs etc. Spending time writing individual comments is pointless.

If I was on a graph my marking would probably be slightly less accurate than some others in my dept, BUT I can blast through piles of papers in half the time they do. I'll take that for the probably 1% more errors.

It's never all done. This is a job where there is always something more to do. Best time management course I was ever on was years ago now and that was the point they made.
I suppose it's like the "good enough" mother idea, I aim to be a good enough teacher now, I can't work 50+ hour weeks like I did in my 20s.
The school you're in will have an impact and possibly the country too, we seem to have a system up here that works (a bit) more, none of the "however many hours to get the job done" idea.
I still work a lot more than I'm paid for mind you, I'm not pretending to have it sussed!

Rest assured I would not normally work such crazy hours. It is only sustainable short term and I have already made steps to lighten my load where I can. This week I've been "good enough" but for triple my normal number of classes/marking/planning. My own classes have suffered but they have the benefit of an actual maths teacher in their lessons.

Scotland does seem to have a better work life balance than England (possibly a huge generalisation).