[Closed] Back to school

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😥

first day at secondary for my youngest daughter - she's so excited!!

As a parent...

Yeeeeeeessseesssssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm dancing on the ceiling.

6 long weeks before another week off.

My kids go back on Wednesday and Thursday.

Add in a train strike on my commute to complete the misery...

As a parent who has a son that's starting secondary school today and memories of just how daunting that seemed to me then, I'm not as happy as I might usually be today.
Apparently he was happy enough this morning so obviously made of sterner stuff than his Dad 🙂

Ours go back tomorrow. So do I - the downside of a term time contract 🙁

Eldest started his first day with a paper round today!

Oh yes, eldest starts high school in tommorow. He's a bit nervous, but looking forward to it. There's a very complex plan afoot for his classmates to meet on the way there.

Youngest starts School Nursery on Thursday, she can't wait, she's been asking to go there everyday since the last taster day in July.

But still Yeeeeeeeeeeeeesssssssssss!

Ours go back tomorrow (yr 4). We are expecting tears (as always) from one of them – she has never dealt with new terms/years well and now her very best friend (and emotional rock) has emigrated to Dubai with her family 🙁

not yet it isn't. 2x INSET days FFS! Lazy b'stards can't possibly have training days sometime in the previous 6weeks when the school is closed. Oh no. 👿

We home educate. What are terms????
😀

not yet it isn't. 2x INSET days FFS! Lazy b'stards can't possibly have training days sometime in the previous 6weeks when the school is closed. Oh no.

Here's a hint, the school is CLOSED!

Double post...

I reckon the head might have the keys!

Here's a hint, the school is CLOSED!

Edit : beaten to it by stoner

anyway I could stop and bicker, but the children are about to be home-schooled in Advanced Firewood Management and Logpile Geometry. Double period.

No domestic partial amputation classes? 😕

If it's so fantastic and money for nothing with never ending holidays, why aren't you a teacher, Stoner?

No domestic partial amputation classes?

I'm sure they'll be able to pick up a few tips. 😉

I was very smug riding past a queue of traffic into Milton Keynes this morning, and the kids aren't all back until tomorrow so I'll be even more smug in 24 hours.

anyway I could stop and bicker, but the children are about to be home-schooled in Advanced Firewood Management and Logpile Geometry. Double period.

Pretty sure the teachers doing 2 days of irrelevant CPD would be more than happy to join you 😛

Whole family starts on Thursday, the better half and I are both teachers so we've been on holiday since mid June, which makes going back a bit of a wrench.

Whole family starts on Thursday, the better half and I are both teachers so we've been on holiday since mid June, which makes going back a bit of a wrench.

Now that's a proper summer break! Where do you work...and are there any CDT jobs?

I've already been back for 2 weeks!

Wife's first day at work this week as a TA at a School. She has the whole week as training before the students start next Monday!

not yet it isn't. 2x INSET days FFS! Lazy b'stards can't possibly have training days sometime in the previous 6weeks when the school is closed. Oh no.

Absolutely. I mean every other professional uses their holiday time when attending training right?

yeah but every other profession doesn't have the luxury of 13 weeks of holiday and funded by the public purse providing a service that virtually every family uses.
Never mind teach, just another 6 weeks till you get another hol.

yeah but every other profession doesn't have the luxury of 13 weeks of holiday.

And pay is largely adjusted in accordance with that fact.

The amount of leave people have is irrelevant. No-one uses holidays time to cover training.

edit. Just to be clear I'm not a teacher. No way would I want to have that job.

yeah but every other profession doesn't have the luxury of 13 weeks of holiday.

yeah but every other profession doesn't have the luxury of 13 weeks of holiday and funded by the public purse providing a service that virtually every family uses.

Nice troll, but if I had to spend the other 39 working weeks surrounded by thousands of other peoples kids, I'd need that time off to prevent me from murdering some of them!

Which is probably why I'm not a teacher.

Our school had today down as an inset day, then at some point over the last term they added tomorrow as ANOTHER inset day. And we only found out via our own Facebook friends.

FFS!

I'm still 'working' from home on Friday though when the kids will be out, so me and Mrs Grips are going to Five Guys for my birthday lunch. Ssh don't tell the kids 🙂

Irrelevant, whatever your holiday allowance, you wouldn't expect to have to use it for training purposes.

Perhaps, the holiday allowance shouldn't have to match the pupils'?

Worth noting that irrelevant of when the inset days are there is still the same number of school days each year. So you're not losing or gaining anything, it all adds up to the same.

Ah! I love the start of new term threads look forward to them every year. Let's have a pop at the teachers as they want 1 day at school to prepare for the term with no kids.

Perhaps, the holiday allowance shouldn't have to match the pupils'?

I thought it'd be carmageddon this morning - but it wasn't.
Only some shit audi and bmw driving on the way in today - just waiting for the properly shit driving - volvo and seat - to start tomorrow.

Got babybgoode ready in record time this morning.

School starts tomorrow... 🙁

So you would, perhaps, want the teachers to come back to work a bit before the pupils in order to do their training. Maybe they could go in on the Monday after the summer holidays and then the kids could come in on the Wednesday? They could also take the odd day off during the year to do more training, again allowing the kids to take the day as holiday. Yeah, that would work I reckon.

Perhaps expect the teachers to attend school for 200 days per year, and the kids for 195? That might work?

I've been back for just over two weeks, but I did break up two weeks early.

Wife is back today, youngest starts secondary tomorrow, and eldest back to secondary on Wednesday.

Having no kids in primary school is making me feel older than turning 40 during the summer did.

Great post, nickjb!

My response is a smug, 'School's back in? I hadn't noticed.'

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But then you also wouldn't expect to have to do preparation and paperwork during your holidays either and I'm pretty sure you'll struggle to find a teacher who hasn't done that over the last 6 weeks.

Nope you wouldnt 😆

Plenty of teaching jobs available if you want to join us...great pension too.

Ah! I love the start of new term threads look forward to them every year. Let's have a pop at the teachers as they want 1 day at school to prepare for the term with no kids.

Ah yes, my daughters teacher looked so busy prepping for the coming weeks last 'teacher training day' as we bumped into her at the local shopping centre last term. Absolute look of horror on her face during the pleasant small talk when she realised what day it was meant to be. Never seen her move so quickly after that...

I love all these people moaning about how teaching is such an easy life. There's a teacher shortage, what's stopping you?

Absolute look of horror on her face during the pleasant small talk when she realised what day it was meant to be.

I think you'll find, breatheeasy, that she's done a lot of work in her own time over the last year, even if she was shopping when you saw her.

I love all these people moaning about how teaching is such an easy life. There's a teacher shortage, what's stopping you?

the fact that I'll have to teach.

What took you all so long? We've been back two or three weeks, now counting down to October half term...

We still had some summer left.

Ah yes, my daughters teacher looked so busy prepping for the coming weeks last 'teacher training day' as we bumped into her at the local shopping centre last term.

1 teacher. I've just been past my daughter's school and their all in the classrooms looking rather busy.

Now that's a proper summer break! Where do you work...and are there any CDT jobs?

I've already been back for 2 weeks!

Spain, I'm not a proper teacher (my SO is, but I do ESL) but we follow the school calendar which is about 12 weeks over summer, 2 at xmas and 2 at easter. No half terms, but quite a lot of public hols which are often stretched into 'bridges', eg 6th and 8th December are public hols so they chuck the 7th in there, meaning you finish work on Tuesday until Monday.

Snag is, I'm self employed so earn zero over the summer. OTOH, proper teachers get paid 14 months a year!

Ah yes, my daughters teacher looked so busy prepping for the coming weeks last 'teacher training day' as we bumped into her at the local shopping centre last term. Absolute look of horror on her face during the pleasant small talk when she realised what day it was meant to be. Never seen her move so quickly after that...

Schools are able to opt to cover the time/material of a development day in twilight sessions. We get two closure days in November that we pay for by doing 5 evening sessions.

matt_outandabout - Member 
What took you all so long? We've been back two or three weeks, now counting down to October half term...
Posted 35 minutes ago # Report-Post

Drac - Moderator 
We still had some summer left.
Posted 28 minutes ago # Report-Post

Boom!

I love all these people moaning about how teaching is such an easy life. There's a teacher shortage, what's stopping you?

Principally the 3 Year Uni course to qualify you to teach simple mathematics to 8 year-olds.

I think recruiting people from the "real world" would be a great boost to kids, but it seems to me most teachers are school - uni - teaching.

Saying that 2 of my former colleagues from RBS took their pay-off money and completed a 1 year course to become teacher and are doing really well, but as a non-graduate it would be at least 3 years for me.

Drac - Moderator
We still had some summer left.

Aye, but we got to the sun loungers first on a holiday that cost half yours...

Principally the 3 Year Uni course to qualify you to teach simple mathematics to 8 year-olds.

It qualifies you to teach all national curriculum subjects to the whole of key stages 1 and 2. I don't think that there are many jobs going to teach one subject to one year group.

Principally the 3 Year Uni course to qualify you to teach simple mathematics to 8 year-olds.

Sometimes, all this kneejerk anti-teacher sentiment makes me think about giving it all up.

For about two seconds until I remember the 13 weeks holiday (which, as hinted at earlier in the thread, is actually unpaid).

That, and the fact it's quite fun and pretty fulfilling - more so I imagine than telling office drones to switch it off and switch it back on again all day...

(which, as hinted at earlier in the thread, is actually unpaid)

No it isn't. I'm sorry but you get paid holidays, either that or the Government is breaking employment law.

Hold my hands up. I was stating that just for effect.

Legally yeah we are paid during holidays, but from my work a while back as a teaching union rep I was shown that the value of a teaching salary is calculated on 39 weeks and then paid monthly over the year.

Perhaps, the holiday allowance shouldn't have to match the pupils'?

I'm pretty sure that if teachers started working to rule (e.g. no marking or prep out of hours) then the entire system would collapse.

ransos - Member
Perhaps, the holiday allowance shouldn't have to match the pupils'?
I'm pretty sure that if teachers started working to rule (e.g. no marking or prep out of hours) then the entire system would collapse.

IME never really works for us as a profession since it's almost impossible to actually achieve - yes, the system would collapse after about two weeks, but due to the nature of teachers that doesn't happen.

Whatever else you may think about the profession, for the vast majority they would do whatever was needed to provide for their classes...

No it isn't. I'm sorry but you get paid holidays, either that or the Government is breaking employment law.

A teacher on a 12 month contract is paid the same as they would be if they were on supply and got supply work on every day that schools were open. Legally, we're paid for the holiday but it's calculated based on days in work.

When we went on strike my employer deducted 1/260 of my salary, which implies 200 days in work plus 6 weeks paid holiday. (Though this has since been challenged successfully through the courts.)

I'm pretty sure that if teachers started working to rule (e.g. no marking or prep out of hours) then the entire system would collapse.

I wish more of us would refuse to do the pointless crap we're asked to do. There's a teacher shortage; what are they going to do, fire us?

Doesn't matter how you put it you're holidays are paid.

Legally, we're paid for the holiday

Doesn't matter how you put it you're holidays are paid.

?

[quote=miketually ]When we went on strike my employer deducted 1/260 of my salary, which implies 200 days in work plus 6 weeks paid holiday.

Surely it's based on you working Monday to Friday (weekends aren't holidays) and there being 260 days in a year excluding weekends. So you're paid for 52 5 day weeks.

BTW I'm hoping you're not a maths teacher 😉

Sad, sad people.

Surely it's based on you working Monday to Friday (weekends aren't holidays) and there being 260 days in a year excluding weekends. So you're paid for 52 5 day weeks.

Now you're just confusing them.

Ranos my reply wasn't to Mike.

Principally the 3 Year Uni course to qualify you to teach simple mathematics to 8 year-olds.

You're surely not suggesting that simply knowing the subject is enough to be able to teach kids? Surely?

matt_outandabout - Member
Principally the 3 Year Uni course to qualify you to teach simple mathematics to 8 year-olds.

Clearly then, as with most jobs, there is a lot of learning and practice before you are let loose in a classroom. Maybe this teaching malarky is tougher than you think...

Why so defensive? I didn't say it was easy.

My 'beef' is that, I would quite like to be a teacher, some of my former colleagues are teachers and they say it's not easy, but then our former job wouldn't appear anywhere on a list of piss easy swindles either.

I've mentored youngish people straight out of Uni and was very good at it too.

My former colleagues were able to become Teachers with a 1 year course because they already held degrees in completely unrelated subjects they'd gained 10 years or more earlier. I couldn't because I wasn't able to go to Uni way back when.

It seems to me that whilst I've got 20+ years of real workplace experience I could share it counts for nothing, whereas if I held a 2:2 in Media Studies that I neither remembered or had use for, I could qualify for the PGCE course.

So this teaching "Malarkey" really takes a year to learn (sorry, it's more like 9/10 months if you take out the holidays 😉 ) but only if you already have a degree, however good / bad (well having a 3rd excludes you) which seems a shame to me - even 22 years ago when I finished school going to Uni was fairly rare, less than 15% of us who started in Year 7 (or form 1 as it was then) went onto Further education.

Whilst I know Teachers are given a lot of strict rules to follow, I think Teachers with some workplace experience outside of education would be a great benefit to children, after-all the ultimate goal for education is to prepare children for the workplace.

You're surely not suggesting that simply knowing the subject is enough to be able to teach kids? Surely?

I really wish I hadn't typed that bit, it was a bit of a light-hearted exaggeration to make a point. Anyway, see above for more detail.

BTW I'm hoping you're not a maths teacher

Physics 🙂 and not concentrating when answering forum posts.

P-Jay

You could work as an unqualified teacher in a Private school or a Free School or Academy . You don't need to have QTS to do that, although many of their staff do. You might well get paid less than a QT

Give it a go you might enjoy it

sorry, it's more like 9/10 months if you take out the holidays

The PGCE students work during holidays except summer one in uni

There are lots of non-PGCE routes into teaching these days.

You'll still need a degree though, but that's the same for any graduate profession, surely?

Couple of years ago working for a chap about this time, he said, not looking forward to school, Squeaky shoes, rubbing heels, itchy trousers,wearing a tie, stressed out children and teachers, crying kids,road rage at school gate,early rises, homework,school dinners or sandwiches and an apple,etc etc.

I asked his wife what age there kids where, she said theyd left home and gone to uni, told her what her husband had said, she laughed, said hes the HEADMASTER, new term gets him like that for a few days

All the moaning parents be like...

http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/society/parents-celebrate-end-of-nightmare-2013090379096

after-all the ultimate goal for education is to prepare children for the workplace

Well we've been back three weeks now. I did work in industry before becoming a teacher. Secondary school teachers in Scotland need a degree before pgce.

And I spent a while this evening making an apple crumble for my low ability S4 set who are all simd 1&2 and don't believe apples can be turned into pudding because they never see it at home. You're all.right it's a skive.

I do think you have a point pjay about life experience and all that can bring to working with young people. IMO one of our education weaknesses here is having too many teachers of similar background, too many women (especially in younger age) and not enough experience outside of teaching.
There are other ways into teaching without degree, or flexible options to get that degree now... Go for it.

Whilst I know Teachers are given a lot of strict rules to follow, I think Teachers with some workplace experience outside of education would be a great benefit to children, after-all the ultimate goal for education is to prepare children for the workplace.

Actually I was given credit for previous experience - as I only had a 3rd from Uni (long story, but mostly my own fault!). The industry and life experience I had was taken into account by my PGCE Tutor and I was given a place on the course.

8 years down the line, I'm now a head of faculty. So not doing too badly.

As far as having to have a degree goes, that's not as set in stone as it once was. Private schools can employ whoever they like, and academies can (AFAIK) employ non-qualified teachers.