I’m a Cover Supervisor and I just walked out.

[tellmesomethingtrue]

At the end of my tether. Pupils have been shouting at me, arguing with me for 3 hours straight today. I’ve told HR that I can’t cope with the final lesson and I’ve gone to sit in my car. I welcome the classes pleasantly, I am organised and the kids know me. Just because “I’m a sub” they are disrespectful and just awful. As soon as another teacher comes in to support me, the kids are fine. Today, I’ve sent 9 pupils to work elsewhere and called SLT three times. On the verge of (another) panic attack, enough is enough. I don’t think employment should be like this. Usually half the class are absolutely fine, do the right thing and work. Surely their parents would be mortified.

Agree - you're in the wrong job

Thursday 29th Jan

Agree - you're in the wrong job

I actually think a lot of parents are in the wrong job - it’s called parenting, but mostly it’s hands off

You’ll just make a load of unpaid work for yourself if you email. The parent who care will reply and enter you into a discourse and the parents of the really naughty ones will either ignore or send you something rude back . Head of year/ department or usual class teacher should take over. It doesn’t sound a good job for you. If you’re a qualified teacher consider tutoring or if not being a TA .

You have my fullest admiration and respect for even having a go at being a cover supervisor. Being a C S in a secondary school is the toughest job in teaching, and the absent teachers never leave their best, guaranteed-to-work lessons (they keep these for themselves). I’d be looking for something else in your situation.

How long have you been signed off for?

I get exactly what your saying tellmesomethingtrue, people or parents just don't know what it's like to stand in front of 30 secondary school children who decide they are not going to engage or cooperate in the lesson, either egged on or egging on other students to join in.

I was a Cover Supervisor for 13yrs, taking classes from yr7 to 11 and supervising years 12 and 13 just to make sure they worked if the teacher wasn't there. I as more and more children refused to follow instructions, listen and were very entitled, both the children and their parents had loads to say about any detentions that were set.

Before this, I loved my job. There were about 6 Cover Supervisors and although we covered all subjects we were able to say what lessons we were more proficient in or enjoyed, so you knew more about what you were talking about. Mine was History, Geography and English but as I say I did cover other classes too, such as maths, science and technology etc. The teacher would email what the students had been working on, what they wanted you to cover and would later see the work that had been produced by looking through their books and how well the student had understood the lesson.

With the lower classes it is teaching in some ways, talking them through the work, reading from the texts books, gaining the information, writing examples on the board, helping them navigate through the work and sharing as a class at the end. When you work in a school for a long time, you get to know the syllabus.

I so enjoyed my job, I was more popular with some students than others, but it wasn't a popularity contest. I was there to cover the class teacher and the children were there to learn. I had the right to remove them from class if they misbehaved, give out detentions and contact parents regarding their behaviour.

At the end it was the yr 8 girls that finally broke me. In the past I had broken up fights of 15yr old boys, calmed down children from throwing furniture around the class in a rage. And was a respected member of the staff. But the class of yr 8 girls took no notice, they ridiculed me, they told me they would tell their parents to get me sacked, their parents refused to allow them to attend any detention I set as they believed the students version of any event that had taken place. And when I rang the parents to talk about their childs behaviour, they either couldn't have cared less or simply said, they don't act like that so it must be you.

I was 56 by then and decided it was time to leave. Never underestimate what it's like to be in a job where a class of 30 children take no notice of you or behave so badly that like tellmesomethingtrue you just walk out of the class.

SLT was involved, I was supported. The school and myself did all the right things, but the attitude of some students and a lot of parents changed my outlook on my job and I left. I do miss it but it did start to affect my mental health and I lost my confidence.

@Dreamlava you don’t need a GP appointment to get a fit note. You can request one via the surgery website explaining why you need it, you also self certificate for the first week off.

In the Hackney school that you loved what was the ethnicity of the children @Mumto4loveliesxx ?

It was predominantly black, with some Turkish students. I only taught two white students, and they were new to the country.
I did teach in a predominantly Asian girls’ school at one stage and loved it there. I just think there is an unpleasant culture that can develop in some schools where they reinforce each other in this mindset and it becomes difficult to break that.

Your SLT should be supporting you. We have a strong team of cover supervisors and no one is allowed to call us subs. That is totally disrespectful.
we all get on well with all members of staff and HR will try and slot us into lessons where we are best suited - this isn’t always manageable. It is a hard job and you need a huge personality to get through the day. You need to set out your classroom rules as soon as they enter the room, and stick to them. You need to be really firm but fair.
I don’t blame you for walking out as it is a hard job and not well paid. I hope moving forward you can find a job where people recognise your worth and support you fully

Sorry I just saw this. Yeah I'm not suggesting you would just sit doing nothing. In the early 90s maybe but we only had a supply like once every couple months for one lesson.

How are you doing now? Have you found a new job? X

Thank you for replying @Mumto4loveliesxx
I agree you are 💯 right re “….there is an unpleasant culture that can develop in some schools where they reinforce each other in this mindset and it becomes difficult to break that.”

How’s things been @tellmesomethingtrue ? Are you going back after half term?

What Millerhouse1 says is so true.
As a recently retired teacher of 38 years I have seen student behaviour deteriorate rapidly in the last 15 years or so. For those not working in schools - yes, it can regularly get this bad!
Academisation, particularly in more " difficult" schools has resulted in a shift of attention by SLT away from creating the best learning climate in their school and an emphasis instead on looking for the next promotion on the corporate ladder which will move them further from any actual contact with the pupils.
This results in polarisation. " Good behaviour" schools tend to keep a stable leadership team and create a good team system which includes respecting/ supporting cover supervisors and supply teachers.
"Poor behaviour" schools are constantly replacing staff in all levels of their organisation, there is little accountability and little support for their cover supervisor/ supply colleagues.
Poor organisations also value cheapness over experience, often ignoring job applications from experienced teachers because the pay structure makes them " too expensive".
Make no mistakes. You can't bullshit teens. They can sniff out inexperienced and poorly qualified teachers much better than Ofsted and will often react accordingly.
I feel sorry for all the kids in these situations. I was speaking to a child in lesson 5 one day who had had 3 cover lessons in 1 day.
She said, because early poor behaviour was not jumped on, the behaviour got worse and worse. She said SLT had done nothing and seeing my face Lesson 5 was the high point of her day because she knew she was going to have a calm hour !
Hey, I'll take that as a compliment !
Seriously though, don't the vast majority of pupils, supply and cover teachers deserve a better deal than this?

I recently had the same class in three lessons (different subjects), plus they were double covers in the hall with another class. Fortunately they were one of the calmer classes and we all emerged with a modicum of sanity left.

The last couple of weeks with the rise of sick bugs and multi-day staff absence have meant that I haven't been in many classrooms, it's been mainly doubles and the odd tripple just to put the doubles into persepective.

My brain is definitely more fried at the end of a double/ tripple heavy day than a standard day in the classroom.

I'm so glad to be at half term!