The Sixty Third Republic - as we glide into staycations the DfE whip up anti-school media storm

[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 for school staff to let off steam.

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. Finally, upload your covid test results twice a week on Wednesdays and Sundays.

I’m going to have to get used to seeing ECT - don’t like change!!!

@noblegiraffe

Brie hate to break it to you, but I don’t like Brie either!

😭.

I was thinking about a name change, actually.

Quince jelly with cheese. Food of the gods.

Just curious as we were discussing it at school, do you guys think the shift from NQT to ECT (and associated things) is actually going to address the issues in early retention?

Someone once gave me some Wensleydale with cranberry that they'd bought me as a treat. I could've cried.

Nope Iam
Our AB is using teach first and it's horribly reductive. I'm giving it two years and then I'm going to write my own!
Retention is about workload vs pay in the early years I think, plus the vilification of the profession. Some natty video clips about transition from the carpet or welcoming at the door are not going to solve that.

@Iamnotthe1

Just curious as we were discussing it at school, do you guys think the shift from NQT to ECT (and associated things) is actually going to address the issues in early retention?

I must be a bit old, but ECT - is that the new RQT?

Early career teacher = nqt and nqt+1

@Iamnotthe1

Just curious as we were discussing it at school, do you guys think the shift from NQT to ECT (and associated things) is actually going to address the issues in early retention?

This drives me mad. People mostly leave teaching because of insane workloads and shit behaviour.

Why, oh why is there this massive focus on improving training? Maybe give teachers the time they need to train and reflect. Reminds me of the CPD I was offered on “Managing workload.” The training was online at 7.30pm

Do you like Marmite

No. Although I’ll eat a twiglet,

Quince jelly with cheese.

Bad news about that, Brie.

I buy my DH Wensleydale with cranberry at Christmas, MrsH as he thinks it’s nice.

How did that scientist end up on the BBC? Did they not vet him for unacceptable opinions first?

Iamnotthe1
I don't think it will make much difference to long term retention, but do like some of the additional support.

I think the bigger issues are workload and the gradual draining effect of being simultaneously being blamed for decades of poor social policy, whilst apparently being responsible for fixing the effects of poor social policy without any time and resources. I also think there is a chicken and egg situation at ITT where because there's a shortage of teachers and ITT have their own pressures, some people pass who aren't to the appropriate standard, and then those people pass but don't last long in the profession. It's a vicious cycle that I don't see changing until there's a shakeup of education.

My biggest issue with the ECF is that nothing is yet ready. I have to plan induction based on pretty much nothing...

I'm guessing a name change to WistfulaboutWensleydale is going to be a non-starter then .

Not a massive fan of cheese with fruits in it, although the cheese man in the market does a very nice white stilton with apricots.

I've had my timetable through for next year. Fewer full days off, but it's ok.

Mentoring an NQT these days seems more like mentoring a PGCE student in terms of workload without the benefit of them taking your classes. We don’t have enough experienced teachers to do it all.

Another vote for quince jelly and cheese - especially a really sharp cheddar. I love cheese. And marmite. And gherkins (maybe not with marmite).

I'm hiding from the news about schools. I suspect primary has been overlooked (again) and we'll basically be left facing the germ-filled autumn term with no precautionary measures at all.

Lola and MrsH I completely agree. The tardiness in the resources is ridiculous.

I have a Teach First for the first time from Sept. On top of a PGCE and NQT, when will I breathe?!

Anyone have any good TF advice please PM me!!

My niece trained this year. Pgce and done really well but has decided not to even bother teaching. Her reasons are shit behaviour, insane workload and the fact she can see that teachers are over monitored in the workplace which causes massive stress. Money and cpd are not a factor.

Not a jam fan either - hence starting to make my own fruit gins - I like using berries in season and am a big fan of free food from nature but don't like jam or fruit puddings. I like gin though and when my dad's blackcurrant bush pays out I'll use that with brandy - yum.

Is it only me thinking ECT has rather negative yet perhaps fitting connotations?

Talk of singing maths starters reminded me of this song I used to use with my new year 7s when teaching science

@noblegiraffe

Mentoring an NQT these days seems more like mentoring a PGCE student in terms of workload without the benefit of them taking your classes. We don’t have enough experienced teachers to do it all.

Ain't that the truth!! The "schedule" includes weekly ten minute observations. My mentors simply don't have the time to do that - and I've been given more teaching and more responsibility next year too. We'll do it because that's what we do, but it's utterly unreasonable.

Retention is about workload vs pay in the early years I think, plus the vilification of the profession.

Then will the uplift solve that?

For me, I've always seen one of the major barriers to better retention to be how... ill-equiped or unready some NQTs seem to be after their training year. This has been worse since ITT providers had to loosen their standards at the application stage.

ContemplativeAboutCheddar?

MadAboutMozzarella?

ITT providers have a lot to answer for. The university we are linked to is a joke. There's so little focus on practical stuff they can use in the classroom, instead it's all educational theories. I understand why that's important but it feels out of balance. When I trained I just didn't have the head space to "get" why the research side of it is important. I just saw essays as a hoop to jump through and never to be looked at again.

This drives me mad. People mostly leave teaching because of insane workloads and shit behaviour.

Teacher Tapp today. 19% I think it was saying the biggest challenge at the moment is behaviour management.

When I ran a SCITT, we made sure that the link between the academic and the practical was there... but it was easy because we had control of the whole thing. I've got two of those trainees in my current school - both promoted rapidly - but they do know their stuff.
We failed those who needed failing and we sifted most of the shite before they got on the course by only accepting people with experience. Now that's not allowed, there are loads more bursary chasers.

Good job we have all these new behaviour hubs coming to enforce Gav's "traditional" approach 😂