The Fifty-third Republic - Ides of March Part 2

[StaffRepFeistyClub]

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.

Do not give the staffroom password to non-staff as it attracts the wrong sort of crowd.

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. Do not sit on the chairs and do wear a mask

@JanFebAnyMonth

We also don't seem to have any MFLers here, do we?

Slightly overwhelmed NQT MFL-er reporting for duty!

I can do history and re but we should probably get a geography teacher.

Does our food tech teacher also do design?

Right. Huge week. Deep breaths.
It will be ok. It will be ok.

And I can't bring anything to the new school, though I'm prepared to run a gin appreciation on a Friday night after school

You've got this name!

Not sure I can offer much - primary TA but qualified teacher so could do anything other than ks1/eyfs.

I could do geography as long as someone else did the boring physical stuff. I'll do volcanoes and human geog.

I'm geography. Sorted 😁

The Library will be fab, as long as no Accelerated Reader allowed (at least for KS3/4).

Do primary colleagues use it/like it, would be interested to know?

MAD TIMES!

At least nine sixth formers have tested positive at the weekend (a poster on another thread will accuse me of fibbing). Six staff SI.

Tip of iceberg is feared.

Not an outbreak : nothing to see here.

Hellfire, piggy if LFTs are picking those up then it must be the tip of a huge iceberg!

Jan we don't use AR. Our library is purely about reading for pleasure. Our local libraries before covid were closed down and an already decent school library was boosted even further with a proper budget, new furniture, etc partly to compensate for that.
It's a core part of the school and although not currently used as before, we will be resuming class visits, informal small group visits to chill and read and after school literary groups asap.

If even one of our learners has Covid, they'll all have it by the end of the week, judging by the socialising and close contact I see going on everywhere off campus.
I can offer Maths, ICT/Computing, A level Psychology research methods, Critical Thinking (if it still exists), Science/DT in KS3. I've had Music and German on my timetable before now, but God knows why. I actually enjoy teaching PSHE and my lessons on sexually transmitted diseases were a triumph. They put them all off sex for good.

@borntobequiet

Piggy I hope you are ok and don't catch it from your plaguey students.
and for later or lunchtime if you can't last that long

Well we are sorted. I vote we just hire external providers for PE. I don't need to see young, healthy, glowing PE teachers super chill thanks to their lack of planning and marking and looking all relaxed in their tracksuit and trainers I don't know why I'm winking because I kind of mean it.

We'll give actual allocated time for tlr rather than just give it to PE teachers knowing they've got plenty to spare.

Oh and I've been invited to interview

Oh honey, wonderful!!

I'd be happy covering any age group, any lesson (as long as it doesn't clash with important library events or lessons!).

Do either of the Hemsworths do master classes in superhero PE? Just a thought.....

Is it? I'm trying not to be cynical and think they just 'have' to invite you but don't really want you. Plus shitting myself It has been a long time since I've had an interview.

Whilst doing supply I just got invited to take jobs and always said no until this one because it allowed me to be part time. It was literally a chat in the corridor with the HT saying I'd like a part time role if there was any gaps in their timetabling and then an invitation to apply and a quick chat with him in his office. I think when you do regular supply somewhere it's quickly discovered if you're competent and a good fit with the school and that logically trumps interview performance as a deciding factor.

Fairly confident about presenting my vision of the role just need to cope with questions and try to overcome the resistance to giving it to a part timer.

But haven't we had examples on here of internal candidates 'not even getting an interview'? And even if they did feel they 'had' to invite you, it gives you the opportunity to show them sides of you they may not know or have really considered before. It also gives you interview practise and the opportunity to find out more about the role/ school's medium term plans etc.

I'm pissed off about the absence of replies in the Dr Amir Khan questions thread. Despite being asked about it, HQ haven't explained why, either.

I’ve “only” taught English, Media and Film but I’ve taught a lot of qualifications!

GCSE (three different subjects, about a billion different specs)
A-level (five subjects, again a billion specs)
Applied A level
AVCE
GNVQ (level 2 and level 3)
BTEC (level 2 and level 3)
Cambridge Technicals

In 18 years I have never had a period where I taught the same specs two years in a row! It’s a running joke that I’m always doing a new spec for the first time.

@JanFebAnyMonth

The Library will be fab, as long as no Accelerated Reader allowed (at least for KS3/4).

Do primary colleagues use it/like it, would be interested to know?

As an ex-primary teacher I hate it. Particularly for able readers.

If we’re hiring in for PE surely that has to go to Saint Joe to keep noble happy?

I can do KS3 Science (if I have to 😞), gcse sciences, A-Level Physics, gcse maths, any level Applied/vocational science and I’ll cover most stuff, especially languages.

@CallmeHendricks

I'm pissed off about the absence of replies in the Dr Amir Khan questions thread. Despite being asked about it, HQ haven't explained why, either.

Yup rather strange....

(As a non-secondary teacher parent I am a bit and all the non-specialist subjects you've all taught.....)

Post from Parents United page, :

"So my daughter has a temperature. I let the school know I have sent for a PCR test and they responded with we can send a LFT to your home which can be read in 30 minutes and you can feel reassured and go back to school and work as a family."

Going to take a break from all the ing now....