Teachers assigning asynchronous work on synchronous days(APS)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nearly all of my second grader's math classes consist of a 10-15 minute lesson, three problems that go with the lesson in Seesaw, and then 35-40 minutes of Dreambox.

Same.. OP is talking about MS where they have a blocked schedule. One class meets twice/week for 1.5 hours, being replaced with short videos/asynchronous work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You’re not. Sometimes, in real school, kids do independent work all period. It’s not strange that would happen in DL.

Middle schools block scheduling, they only have this class 2 days a week. So if you’re taking an hour and a half of teaching time and giving them a five minute video instead, I would say that’s a disservice to the kids. Particularly if it’s happening frequently

Yes. I was talking about middle school. Even in normal times they have blocked classes every other day. And yes, even in normal times, they sometimes have whole class periods of independent work. Really.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You’re not. Sometimes, in real school, kids do independent work all period. It’s not strange that would happen in DL.

Middle schools block scheduling, they only have this class 2 days a week. So if you’re taking an hour and a half of teaching time and giving them a five minute video instead, I would say that’s a disservice to the kids. Particularly if it’s happening frequently

Yes. I was talking about middle school. Even in normal times they have blocked classes every other day. And yes, even in normal times, they sometimes have whole class periods of independent work. Really.

I have no problem with independent work when it’s a value add. I don’t see a five minute video with no follow up discussion, assignments related to it (e.g. have the students write an essay on what they learned, opinion piece about it ) to be of much value. And when it’s happening frequently, feels like a complete afterthought. Not part of the lesson plan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Nearly all of my second grader's math classes consist of a 10-15 minute lesson, three problems that go with the lesson in Seesaw, and then 35-40 minutes of Dreambox.

Same.. OP is talking about MS where they have a blocked schedule. One class meets twice/week for 1.5 hours, being replaced with short videos/asynchronous work.

Are you sure about the Dreambox minutes? Kids should be doing 5 Dreambox lessons per week... maybe a few more if they’re behind.

- APS math teacher

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.

Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.

Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.

These stories are another layer of why everyone needs to get back to the classroom. It's clearly way beyond APS' bandwidth to monitor each and every class/teacher. Some teachers (not all, my youngest teacher is trying her hardest but my child is still suffering) are simply taking advantage of the remote learning at our kids' expense, and it's disgusting. They will never want to return if they can just head off to Disney or skiing or whatever they feel like doing, and send the kids a video in his/her place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.

Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.

These stories are another layer of why everyone needs to get back to the classroom. It's clearly way beyond APS' bandwidth to monitor each and every class/teacher. Some teachers (not all, my youngest teacher is trying her hardest but my child is still suffering) are simply taking advantage of the remote learning at our kids' expense, and it's disgusting. They will never want to return if they can just head off to Disney or skiing or whatever they feel like doing, and send the kids a video in his/her place.

It shouldn’t have to be said that you don’t tell your class that you’re off to Disney. Or that you can’t put in a half day and then hit the slopes. Good gawd.... I’m seriously hoping these stories aren’t t true. Don’t blame me for hoping!
- teacher

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.

Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.

Yes, people should tell you but you should also be popping into classes now and then to see what’s going on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One of my children’s elective teachers joined at the very beginning of class told them she got wrapped up in a project at home and would not be there for the rest of class. She gave them assignment and left the rest of the time. Can you imagine that happening in person?

Something similar happened with my child today. If we were to keep track of how much actual instruction is happening, it would be appalling. It's going to take ages for these kids to catch up. Misuse of asynchronous assignments is a real problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.



Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.



Yes, people should tell you but you should also be popping into classes now and then to see what’s going on.

It's also possible that parents and students are exaggerating. You shouldn't be so quick to believe anonymous postings on DCUM, AP. Note how the person with the ski slope story never came back with any details. Probably BS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.



Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.



Yes, people should tell you but you should also be popping into classes now and then to see what’s going on.

It's also possible that parents and students are exaggerating. You shouldn't be so quick to believe anonymous postings on DCUM, AP. Note how the person with the ski slope story never came back with any details. Probably BS.

I’m really curious about the ski slope story myself... I am an APS teacher. I can’t imagine trying to teach in a car or anything else. It’s quite a set up that I need to do this right. Right now, it’s the last week of the quarter and my own kid is like a feral child who must fend for himself. We are required to record all classes. If any of this crazy stuff is happening, just give that person‘s administrator the day and the date of the class, and have them pull the recording.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.



Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.



Yes, people should tell you but you should also be popping into classes now and then to see what’s going on.

It's also possible that parents and students are exaggerating. You shouldn't be so quick to believe anonymous postings on DCUM, AP. Note how the person with the ski slope story never came back with any details. Probably BS.

I’m really curious about the ski slope story myself... I am an APS teacher. I can’t imagine trying to teach in a car or anything else. It’s quite a set up that I need to do this right. Right now, it’s the last week of the quarter and my own kid is like a feral child who must fend for himself. We are required to record all classes. If any of this crazy stuff is happening, just give that person‘s administrator the day and the date of the class, and have them pull the recording.

Also... I have never used sick leave as a personal day. We all get three personal days a year, because we have time off in the summer. With that said, I do think we are entitled to use those three personal days. Weddings, funerals, etc. If I do plan a trip or something, I take mine on a work day, because it’s more work to plan well for a sub than actually being there! Some people might abuse that, if their administrators let them. But I think most of us work pretty hard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.



Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.



Yes, people should tell you but you should also be popping into classes now and then to see what’s going on.

It's also possible that parents and students are exaggerating. You shouldn't be so quick to believe anonymous postings on DCUM, AP. Note how the person with the ski slope story never came back with any details. Probably BS.

I’m really curious about the ski slope story myself... I am an APS teacher. I can’t imagine trying to teach in a car or anything else. It’s quite a set up that I need to do this right. Right now, it’s the last week of the quarter and my own kid is like a feral child who must fend for himself. We are required to record all classes. If any of this crazy stuff is happening, just give that person‘s administrator the day and the date of the class, and have them pull the recording.

I'm pretty sure she taught until 11:30 and then assigned asynchronous the rest of the day (can't find the post now). I believe some of my child's lessons are recorded, but not all. Sometimes they have to turn off their cameras when recording.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
My 6th grader started a new exploratory section right after winter break, and so far the teacher has missed three or four of the seven class sessions. Not continuous days either or announced in advance, she’ll just randomly send them a message at 10 am that she won’t be there for afternoon class and there’s an asynchronous assignment posted. My kid said yesterday that they don’t get the point of taking the class if the teacher never shows up, and that they can’t even tell what the class is supposed to be about since there’s no connection one class to the next.

I told them it’s the most useless of the exploratory classes anyway so as long as they pass, I don’t care if it’s by a single tenth of a point.



Please let their grade level admin know. I'm an AP in APS and these stories are making me sick. They only way we can help is if you make us aware.



Yes, people should tell you but you should also be popping into classes now and then to see what’s going on.

It's also possible that parents and students are exaggerating. You shouldn't be so quick to believe anonymous postings on DCUM, AP. Note how the person with the ski slope story never came back with any details. Probably BS.

I’m really curious about the ski slope story myself... I am an APS teacher. I can’t imagine trying to teach in a car or anything else. It’s quite a set up that I need to do this right. Right now, it’s the last week of the quarter and my own kid is like a feral child who must fend for himself. We are required to record all classes. If any of this crazy stuff is happening, just give that person‘s administrator the day and the date of the class, and have them pull the recording.

Last spring my kid's teacher ended a class call early because she was at a beach house and her kids wanted to leave for the beach.

[Anonymous]

I am throwing the flag on many of these stories. I have two in APS middle and have had nothing like this with either of them. I’m home working in the other room and teachers are working hard. Teaching. Many working late and on weekends to make themselves available to kids. Please stop maligning teachers. Our teachers are great in person and virtual. They are smart, capable professionals who love working with kids. God bless them.