All these days off...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

It’s been explained multiple times, what don’t you understand?

Because some don’t want to understand and they don’t have any frame of reference anyway. The math has been all over DCUM. At this point, it’s no use.

Posters don’t understand that grading and planning can’t get done AT work because teachers are busy with students. It’s a different type of job, one that doesn’t provide the luxury of sitting at a desk getting work done. But if you’ve never experienced that, perhaps it’s hard to imagine.

And some of us have friends or family that are or were teachers and know that 70 hours a week is absurd hyperbole

Okay. I can’t believe I’m trying again:

150 essays at 15 minutes each: 37.5 SUSTAINED hours of grading (that means without breaks, like sleeping or checking DCUM). They need to get back in 10 days, so that’s an extra 3.75 hours of work for 10 days straight for that assignment ALONE. That doesn’t include other assignments, emails, meetings, “other duties as assigned,” data collection and analysis, tutoring… most of which has to be done off hours. Because the work day is spent with the students.

My kid is a Sophomore and hasn't written more than 7 essays their entire FCPS career. I think the hyperboles need to stop. Teachers do a lot but let's not get carried away they have a great work life balance.

I’ll remember my great work/life balance when I’m up at 4am tomorrow grading. I’ll remember it when I’m grading papers throughout the day on Saturday as my family goes to the beach to give me privacy. I’ll remember it when I am writing college recommendation letters Sunday so dozens of students don’t have to panic about upcoming deadlines.

It must be true because a DCUM poster told me so. She knows my job and my responsibilities more than I ever will.

I wish my job only required me to work 195 days a year. I’d even take a pay cut to have it be so. But alas I am expected to be there throughout the year and yes many a night I’m up until 1 to 2 am putting in “unpaid” extra hours, and sometimes even weekends, This is necessary so that I can eat, spend time with and and make dinner for my family.

When I was younger and paid much less, with 2 weeks vacation, plus 8 holidays off a year. I ran the numbers and realized that hour for hour I’d make much more money teaching, with summers off, shorter work days, and school breaks. Now throw in pensions, no work travel, heath care that was much cheaper comparatively and I was looking at a total boondoggle.

After thought and investigation I realized teaching wouldn’t be best for my introverted personality.

I laugh whenever I hear teachers grumble about the money. How much exactly to you expect to be paid for as you stated a 195 day a year contract job, especially when only 180 of those day are spent in the actual classroom teaching.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

When people hear “teacher,” they often picture a 7:30–3:30 school day. But for many educators, the real hours stretch far beyond the bell. A 70-hour work week isn’t an anomaly—it’s routine. Here's how those hours add up:

Grading Isn’t Just Checking Boxes
- Essays: 15–20 minutes per essay. A class of 30? That’s 7.5–10 hours for one assignment. Multiply that times 5 (5 classes) for English and humanities teachers. That's up to 50 hours of grading for one essay.
- Short Answer Tests: 5–10 minutes per test. Multiply that across multiple classes. Many secondary teachers have 140-160 students, so each test could take several hours to grade.
- Feedback: Thoughtful, personalized comments can take 5–10 hours per major assignment. This is where learning deepens—and where time disappears.

Lesson Design Is a Daily Marathon
- Creating engaging, differentiated, evidence-based lessons takes 2+ hours per day. That’s 10+ hours a week just on planning—before the teaching even begins.

Meetings That Matter (and Multiply)
- CT (Collaborative Team) Meetings: 1.5–4.5 hours weekly.
- IEP/504 Meetings: 1–2 hours monthly, often outside contract hours.
- These aren’t optional—they’re essential for supporting diverse learners.

The Hidden Time Thieves
- Answering parent emails
- Writing letters of recommendation
- Updating grades and learning platforms
- Supervising clubs, sports, or events
- Attending professional development
- Supporting students in crisis
- Rewriting plans after fire drills, assemblies, or snow days

Each task may seem small, but together they form a mountain. And teachers climb it daily—not for praise, but for their students.

The Takeaway
A 70-hour week isn’t a sign of inefficiency—it’s a reflection of how deeply teachers care and how manyntasks they’re juggling. They’re not just delivering content.

Yes, there are other professionals who also work an unreasonable number of hous per week. No one is denying that. No one is saying teachers have it worse than other professionals. However, no one has the right to effectively call teachers liars when they say they routinely work 70-hour weeks. Do all teachers work those type of hours? Not even close; some teachers barely work more than 40 hours per week. But many teachers do work 70 hours per week, and they deserve to be believed.

This does sound like an insane amount of work for a job that pays government level salaries.

But I don’t think it has always been like this. So what changed to make the hours so crazy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

It’s been explained multiple times, what don’t you understand?

Because some don’t want to understand and they don’t have any frame of reference anyway. The math has been all over DCUM. At this point, it’s no use.

Posters don’t understand that grading and planning can’t get done AT work because teachers are busy with students. It’s a different type of job, one that doesn’t provide the luxury of sitting at a desk getting work done. But if you’ve never experienced that, perhaps it’s hard to imagine.

And some of us have friends or family that are or were teachers and know that 70 hours a week is absurd hyperbole

Okay. I can’t believe I’m trying again:

150 essays at 15 minutes each: 37.5 SUSTAINED hours of grading (that means without breaks, like sleeping or checking DCUM). They need to get back in 10 days, so that’s an extra 3.75 hours of work for 10 days straight for that assignment ALONE. That doesn’t include other assignments, emails, meetings, “other duties as assigned,” data collection and analysis, tutoring… most of which has to be done off hours. Because the work day is spent with the students.

My kid is a Sophomore and hasn't written more than 7 essays their entire FCPS career. I think the hyperboles need to stop. Teachers do a lot but let's not get carried away they have a great work life balance.

I’ll remember my great work/life balance when I’m up at 4am tomorrow grading. I’ll remember it when I’m grading papers throughout the day on Saturday as my family goes to the beach to give me privacy. I’ll remember it when I am writing college recommendation letters Sunday so dozens of students don’t have to panic about upcoming deadlines.

It must be true because a DCUM poster told me so. She knows my job and my responsibilities more than I ever will.

I wish my job only required me to work 195 days a year. I’d even take a pay cut to have it be so. But alas I am expected to be there throughout the year and yes many a night I’m up until 1 to 2 am putting in “unpaid” extra hours, and sometimes even weekends, This is necessary so that I can eat, spend time with and and make dinner for my family.

When I was younger and paid much less, with 2 weeks vacation, plus 8 holidays off a year. I ran the numbers and realized that hour for hour I’d make much more money teaching, with summers off, shorter work days, and school breaks. Now throw in pensions, no work travel, heath care that was much cheaper comparatively and I was looking at a total boondoggle.

After thought and investigation I realized teaching wouldn’t be best for my introverted personality.

I laugh whenever I hear teachers grumble about the money. How much exactly to you expect to be paid for as you stated a 195 day a year contract job, especially when only 180 of those day are spent in the actual classroom teaching.

It’s funny how you wrote a lengthy post to bash teachers and in the same breath admit that it’s not something you could do yourself. Yes, it’s a very demanding job in an overstimulating environment with no downtime. I tend to value people who are able to do something that I am unable to do myself.

[Anonymous]

They aren’t underpaid. They get paid a more than fair wage for the hours worked.

The education required for the work performed fits the salary.

The total compensation package, including insurance and retirement benefits is actually quite generous if you take all of the above into consideration.

Is that less funny? Are you clear as to what it means to bash?

Do you need bullet points? Or would that still be too much for your skill set, comprehension abilities and attention span? Fyi yes I just bashed you, so are you now clear as to what it means to bash and or trash. I freely admit in this instance to both.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

When people hear “teacher,” they often picture a 7:30–3:30 school day. But for many educators, the real hours stretch far beyond the bell. A 70-hour work week isn’t an anomaly—it’s routine. Here's how those hours add up:

Grading Isn’t Just Checking Boxes
- Essays: 15–20 minutes per essay. A class of 30? That’s 7.5–10 hours for one assignment. Multiply that times 5 (5 classes) for English and humanities teachers. That's up to 50 hours of grading for one essay.
- Short Answer Tests: 5–10 minutes per test. Multiply that across multiple classes. Many secondary teachers have 140-160 students, so each test could take several hours to grade.
- Feedback: Thoughtful, personalized comments can take 5–10 hours per major assignment. This is where learning deepens—and where time disappears.

Lesson Design Is a Daily Marathon
- Creating engaging, differentiated, evidence-based lessons takes 2+ hours per day. That’s 10+ hours a week just on planning—before the teaching even begins.

Meetings That Matter (and Multiply)
- CT (Collaborative Team) Meetings: 1.5–4.5 hours weekly.
- IEP/504 Meetings: 1–2 hours monthly, often outside contract hours.
- These aren’t optional—they’re essential for supporting diverse learners.

The Hidden Time Thieves
- Answering parent emails
- Writing letters of recommendation
- Updating grades and learning platforms
- Supervising clubs, sports, or events
- Attending professional development
- Supporting students in crisis
- Rewriting plans after fire drills, assemblies, or snow days

Each task may seem small, but together they form a mountain. And teachers climb it daily—not for praise, but for their students.

The Takeaway
A 70-hour week isn’t a sign of inefficiency—it’s a reflection of how deeply teachers care and how manyntasks they’re juggling. They’re not just delivering content.

Yes, there are other professionals who also work an unreasonable number of hous per week. No one is denying that. No one is saying teachers have it worse than other professionals. However, no one has the right to effectively call teachers liars when they say they routinely work 70-hour weeks. Do all teachers work those type of hours? Not even close; some teachers barely work more than 40 hours per week. But many teachers do work 70 hours per week, and they deserve to be believed.

This does sound like an insane amount of work for a job that pays government level salaries.

But I don’t think it has always been like this. So what changed to make the hours so crazy?

Again, another topic that has been discussed endlessly on this forum. There are additional meetings, paperwork, data collection, trainings, duties, etc., that I’ve been added in the past 20 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

When people hear “teacher,” they often picture a 7:30–3:30 school day. But for many educators, the real hours stretch far beyond the bell. A 70-hour work week isn’t an anomaly—it’s routine. Here's how those hours add up:

Grading Isn’t Just Checking Boxes
- Essays: 15–20 minutes per essay. A class of 30? That’s 7.5–10 hours for one assignment. Multiply that times 5 (5 classes) for English and humanities teachers. That's up to 50 hours of grading for one essay.
- Short Answer Tests: 5–10 minutes per test. Multiply that across multiple classes. Many secondary teachers have 140-160 students, so each test could take several hours to grade.
- Feedback: Thoughtful, personalized comments can take 5–10 hours per major assignment. This is where learning deepens—and where time disappears.

Lesson Design Is a Daily Marathon
- Creating engaging, differentiated, evidence-based lessons takes 2+ hours per day. That’s 10+ hours a week just on planning—before the teaching even begins.

Meetings That Matter (and Multiply)
- CT (Collaborative Team) Meetings: 1.5–4.5 hours weekly.
- IEP/504 Meetings: 1–2 hours monthly, often outside contract hours.
- These aren’t optional—they’re essential for supporting diverse learners.

The Hidden Time Thieves
- Answering parent emails
- Writing letters of recommendation
- Updating grades and learning platforms
- Supervising clubs, sports, or events
- Attending professional development
- Supporting students in crisis
- Rewriting plans after fire drills, assemblies, or snow days

Each task may seem small, but together they form a mountain. And teachers climb it daily—not for praise, but for their students.

The Takeaway
A 70-hour week isn’t a sign of inefficiency—it’s a reflection of how deeply teachers care and how manyntasks they’re juggling. They’re not just delivering content.

Yes, there are other professionals who also work an unreasonable number of hous per week. No one is denying that. No one is saying teachers have it worse than other professionals. However, no one has the right to effectively call teachers liars when they say they routinely work 70-hour weeks. Do all teachers work those type of hours? Not even close; some teachers barely work more than 40 hours per week. But many teachers do work 70 hours per week, and they deserve to be believed.

This does sound like an insane amount of work for a job that pays government level salaries.

But I don’t think it has always been like this. So what changed to make the hours so crazy?

Again, another topic that has been discussed endlessly on this forum. There are additional meetings, paperwork, data collection, trainings, duties, etc., that I’ve been added in the past 20 years.

Yeah, this. And both political parties and every leader seems eager to add to it.

I wonder what would happen if some candidate for SB ran on "restore 1990s workloads to teachers." As a parent I'd be thrilled.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

When people hear “teacher,” they often picture a 7:30–3:30 school day. But for many educators, the real hours stretch far beyond the bell. A 70-hour work week isn’t an anomaly—it’s routine. Here's how those hours add up:

Grading Isn’t Just Checking Boxes
- Essays: 15–20 minutes per essay. A class of 30? That’s 7.5–10 hours for one assignment. Multiply that times 5 (5 classes) for English and humanities teachers. That's up to 50 hours of grading for one essay.
- Short Answer Tests: 5–10 minutes per test. Multiply that across multiple classes. Many secondary teachers have 140-160 students, so each test could take several hours to grade.
- Feedback: Thoughtful, personalized comments can take 5–10 hours per major assignment. This is where learning deepens—and where time disappears.

Lesson Design Is a Daily Marathon
- Creating engaging, differentiated, evidence-based lessons takes 2+ hours per day. That’s 10+ hours a week just on planning—before the teaching even begins.

Meetings That Matter (and Multiply)
- CT (Collaborative Team) Meetings: 1.5–4.5 hours weekly.
- IEP/504 Meetings: 1–2 hours monthly, often outside contract hours.
- These aren’t optional—they’re essential for supporting diverse learners.

The Hidden Time Thieves
- Answering parent emails
- Writing letters of recommendation
- Updating grades and learning platforms
- Supervising clubs, sports, or events
- Attending professional development
- Supporting students in crisis
- Rewriting plans after fire drills, assemblies, or snow days

Each task may seem small, but together they form a mountain. And teachers climb it daily—not for praise, but for their students.

The Takeaway
A 70-hour week isn’t a sign of inefficiency—it’s a reflection of how deeply teachers care and how manyntasks they’re juggling. They’re not just delivering content.

Yes, there are other professionals who also work an unreasonable number of hous per week. No one is denying that. No one is saying teachers have it worse than other professionals. However, no one has the right to effectively call teachers liars when they say they routinely work 70-hour weeks. Do all teachers work those type of hours? Not even close; some teachers barely work more than 40 hours per week. But many teachers do work 70 hours per week, and they deserve to be believed.

This does sound like an insane amount of work for a job that pays government level salaries.

But I don’t think it has always been like this. So what changed to make the hours so crazy?

I’d say 70 hours is believable, but very atypical. The hours seem to fall more heavily on those teaching secondary language arts. We are a two teacher family (ES and secondary) and we’re probably in the 50-55 hour range.

It’s a drop in the bucket, but 4.5 hours a week of CT a week seems high. 2+ hours a day lesson planning seems high too if they are in CT meetings up to 4.5 hours a week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think schools should actually look at peer- reviewed research and data on what schedules promote (get ready!) the best learning.

Young kids need consistency, repetition and routine. They do not need a different schedule every week between early release and a billion holidays. I don’t know what makes the most pedagogical sense at the middle and high school levels but I bet the data exists.

Be guided by the idea that the job of the school is to educate children, and then set the schedule from there, while sharing the data with parents so you can start rebuilding the trust thats been lost by lying in 2024 about why the schedule “needed” to change.

Agreed and this is what all the "school isn't childcare" people are missing. School isn't able to effectively teach with 4 day weeks.

Both PP's are right!

I was just getting ready to comment about what is the best for education of the children.

I was a teacher. While, as a teacher, I really enjoyed the occasional workday or snow day, that does not translate to great education.

Kids thrive on routine. We all do. It's fine to have deviations from time to time, but we all like to know what to expect.
Repetition is also important. Teaching a concept and repeating the instruction the next day is helpful.

Can we go back and think about what is best for the education of our children?

It is not four day weeks. And, it is certainly not early release Wednesdays.
It is also not having elementary school students in school at 4:30 or later.
It is not a county wide boundary study leaving neighborhoods upset and worried. If there needs to be a boundary adjustment because of extreme overcrowding, then do it ad hoc.
It is not lockstep homework policies.
It is not following a strict script when teaching.
It is not turning down federal funds in order to support a social experiment.

Go back to the basics and teach the kids.

Your response is a bit simplistic.

There’s a lot a school needs to consider when we say what’s best for students. Right now, we are in a climate in which teachers are crashing and burning. Teacher retention and job satisfaction absolutely has an impact on students. (Notice you say you used to teach. Each year, more people “used” to teach.) A teacher strapped for time can’t curate a lesson to meet the needs of students. A strong, rested teacher can do more in 4 days than a stressed, flailing teacher can do in 5.

And yes, repetition is important. But so is targeted, thoughtful, purposeful instruction. That’s what we don’t have time to produce right now. In a perfect world, 5 days is ideal. We aren’t in a perfect world.

(And I don’t think I “enjoy” days off. They are simply work days with pajamas on.)

Do schools exist to serve teachers, or students? Because your argument boils down to encouraging worse student outcomes because of teacher fatigue.

If you can’t see the correlation between teacher preparation/productivity/morale and student outcome, I don’t know how to help you.

I’d rather have own children in a classroom with a properly supported teacher who has been given time to prepare lessons based on my child’s interests and needs. I want a teacher who has been granted time to get to know my child. I want that teacher to provide my child with support and feedback.

If you are content with a teacher who is burned out from working 70 frantic hours a week, then that’s your prerogative. That’s a teacher who will be using canned lessons, minimal feedback, and will be in survival mode.

70 hours! Lol

Yes, 70 hours. That’s what I routinely put into this job. I work 2-4 extra hours every evening and 10-15 each weekend.

I’m not lying. That’s what many of us do. When you have over 150 students, it takes a long time to answer emails, provide feedback, accommodate various learning needs, update data, etc. None of it can get done during the work day, so it becomes our evenings and weekends.

So LOL if you must. It simply shows you’re unaware of a teacher’s responsibilities.

Given that a school day is 7 hours a day, if you’re putting in 35 hours a week outside of that, I’m sorry but you’re doing it wrong

Please tell me how to do my job. I’m sure you know it better than I do.

150 essays at 15 minutes an essay: 37.5 sustained hours of grading. I get 40 minutes a day at work to grade. That means that I have to make up about 33 hours somewhere. Oh, and I also have to plan lessons, comment on OTHER assignments, attend meetings, respond to emails, write recommendation letters, etc. I can do very little of that during my work week.

So yes, 70 hours.

I don’t go to your job and tell you that you’re doing it wrong. I wouldn’t do that because I’m ignorant about what you do and how long it takes. Please provide me with the same professional respect.

I’m not who you quoted and I am sure there are weeks you work 70 or more hours. What I don’t think you realize is your students parents do too. And then they get to work to make up for disrupted instruction and juggle for childcare so you can be “well rested”. You are, perhaps inadvertently, portraying teachers as very entitled and out of touch.

No, I’m not buying it.

Teachers are also parents. I have a child in a different school, and I also have to find childcare on these days since I’m working. I simply am not going to complain because I intimately know what her teachers are experiencing.

And I’m not asking to be “well rested.” Never have, never will. I’m only well rested during my unpaid summer, and I accept that.

And if you work 70 hours, then I sympathize with you. I’m not going to tell you to suck it up like I am often told. You shouldn’t have to work a job that requires so many of your off hours.

You don’t need to buy it— this is what your students parents think when they read this about days off to “plan” and “get to know your child”.

They think you have never been a healthcare provider, you have never been in the military, you have never been an accountant or a lawyer or a social worker. All of those careers and many more routinely demand 70+ hours, in a five day work week.

And then they come home and find out their kid spent a half day on a laptop because of early release so you could plan.

They re-teach the critical reading skills that can only be acquired through repetition since you needed a day off. To plan.

You are not making a good case for people to think highly of teachers.

Most of those jobs make considerably more than teachers. My sister is an accountant and makes more than 100k and my spouse is a nurse and also makes close 100k, same with brother in the military. I won’t go into doctors and lawyers….I’ll give you social workers because they only make slightly more than teachers.

Because other professions work all year. Teachers have a two week winter break, a spring break, a summer break and huge number of additional days off. No other jobs have that many vacation days. You can’t compare apples and oranges.

They aren't vacation days. We aren't paid for those days.

Are Saturdays and Sundays vacation days for you?

Many of us work over the summer, too. We need to maintain certifications, so we take classes. We participate in curriculum writing. We come in early to prep classrooms, prepare content for our initial units, set up what we need for classroom routines. Many of us write dozens of college recommendation letters over the summer, which can take a full work week. Simply put, there's a ton of work, most of which we do because we care and not because we're getting paid. (We often aren't.)

Stop lying. Teachers definitely get paid the same every month between the start of school and the end of school. Those VERY long breaks are paid vacations. Every school holiday is a paid vacation day.

Please don't tell me about my job. I know more about it than you.

I am paid for 195 days spread from August to June. The pay is SPREAD OUT over 12 months. So no, I am not paid for the summer months. I am contracted for 195 days of work, and I am paid for 195 days of work (even though I work far, far, far, far more).

And here's what I'll never understand: if I have it so good, why haven't you joined me already? If teachers have all these glorious perks, why haven't you jumped ship from your job?

I don’t think anyone says you have it “so good”. What they’re saying is you don't have it worse than anyone else, and acting like a victim— especially when obfuscating or exaggerating— doesn’t make sense.

Well, it’s 5am and I’ve been grading for an over an hour now, hoping a few hours before work means I don’t have to work more than 2 extra hours tonight.

But I must be exaggerating about my workload. You know better than I do, of course.

Others of us were working at 5 this morning too, without having the luxury of time to post on DCUM to attention-seek about it.

Here’s the difference, when the rest of the 5am crowd finishes their work, they will have to do the parts of your job— that is, teaching basic and critical skills— which you admit elsewhere require repetition, which kids don’t get with all these teacher work days.

Then, they will have to figure out where to send their kids on the next early release if they don’t think four hours of laptop time is sufficient. So YOU can have a lighter workload.

Until you want to come to my office and do a few hours of my work every day to make sure I am not overtaxed, do not expect me to be excited to do yours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

It’s been explained multiple times, what don’t you understand?

Because some don’t want to understand and they don’t have any frame of reference anyway. The math has been all over DCUM. At this point, it’s no use.

Posters don’t understand that grading and planning can’t get done AT work because teachers are busy with students. It’s a different type of job, one that doesn’t provide the luxury of sitting at a desk getting work done. But if you’ve never experienced that, perhaps it’s hard to imagine.

And some of us have friends or family that are or were teachers and know that 70 hours a week is absurd hyperbole

Okay. I can’t believe I’m trying again:

150 essays at 15 minutes each: 37.5 SUSTAINED hours of grading (that means without breaks, like sleeping or checking DCUM). They need to get back in 10 days, so that’s an extra 3.75 hours of work for 10 days straight for that assignment ALONE. That doesn’t include other assignments, emails, meetings, “other duties as assigned,” data collection and analysis, tutoring… most of which has to be done off hours. Because the work day is spent with the students.

My kid is a Sophomore and hasn't written more than 7 essays their entire FCPS career. I think the hyperboles need to stop. Teachers do a lot but let's not get carried away they have a great work life balance.

I’ll remember my great work/life balance when I’m up at 4am tomorrow grading. I’ll remember it when I’m grading papers throughout the day on Saturday as my family goes to the beach to give me privacy. I’ll remember it when I am writing college recommendation letters Sunday so dozens of students don’t have to panic about upcoming deadlines.

It must be true because a DCUM poster told me so. She knows my job and my responsibilities more than I ever will.

I wish my job only required me to work 195 days a year. I’d even take a pay cut to have it be so. But alas I am expected to be there throughout the year and yes many a night I’m up until 1 to 2 am putting in “unpaid” extra hours, and sometimes even weekends, This is necessary so that I can eat, spend time with and and make dinner for my family.

When I was younger and paid much less, with 2 weeks vacation, plus 8 holidays off a year. I ran the numbers and realized that hour for hour I’d make much more money teaching, with summers off, shorter work days, and school breaks. Now throw in pensions, no work travel, heath care that was much cheaper comparatively and I was looking at a total boondoggle.

After thought and investigation I realized teaching wouldn’t be best for my introverted personality.

I laugh whenever I hear teachers grumble about the money. How much exactly to you expect to be paid for as you stated a 195 day a year contract job, especially when only 180 of those day are spent in the actual classroom teaching.

It’s funny how you wrote a lengthy post to bash teachers and in the same breath admit that it’s not something you could do yourself. Yes, it’s a very demanding job in an overstimulating environment with no downtime. I tend to value people who are able to do something that I am unable to do myself.

You don’t seem to value the working parents of your students very much. Is it because you think you can do all of their jobs?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

It’s been explained multiple times, what don’t you understand?

Because some don’t want to understand and they don’t have any frame of reference anyway. The math has been all over DCUM. At this point, it’s no use.

Posters don’t understand that grading and planning can’t get done AT work because teachers are busy with students. It’s a different type of job, one that doesn’t provide the luxury of sitting at a desk getting work done. But if you’ve never experienced that, perhaps it’s hard to imagine.

And some of us have friends or family that are or were teachers and know that 70 hours a week is absurd hyperbole

Okay. I can’t believe I’m trying again:

150 essays at 15 minutes each: 37.5 SUSTAINED hours of grading (that means without breaks, like sleeping or checking DCUM). They need to get back in 10 days, so that’s an extra 3.75 hours of work for 10 days straight for that assignment ALONE. That doesn’t include other assignments, emails, meetings, “other duties as assigned,” data collection and analysis, tutoring… most of which has to be done off hours. Because the work day is spent with the students.

My kid is a Sophomore and hasn't written more than 7 essays their entire FCPS career. I think the hyperboles need to stop. Teachers do a lot but let's not get carried away they have a great work life balance.

I’ll remember my great work/life balance when I’m up at 4am tomorrow grading. I’ll remember it when I’m grading papers throughout the day on Saturday as my family goes to the beach to give me privacy. I’ll remember it when I am writing college recommendation letters Sunday so dozens of students don’t have to panic about upcoming deadlines.

It must be true because a DCUM poster told me so. She knows my job and my responsibilities more than I ever will.

I wish my job only required me to work 195 days a year. I’d even take a pay cut to have it be so. But alas I am expected to be there throughout the year and yes many a night I’m up until 1 to 2 am putting in “unpaid” extra hours, and sometimes even weekends, This is necessary so that I can eat, spend time with and and make dinner for my family.

When I was younger and paid much less, with 2 weeks vacation, plus 8 holidays off a year. I ran the numbers and realized that hour for hour I’d make much more money teaching, with summers off, shorter work days, and school breaks. Now throw in pensions, no work travel, heath care that was much cheaper comparatively and I was looking at a total boondoggle.

After thought and investigation I realized teaching wouldn’t be best for my introverted personality.

I laugh whenever I hear teachers grumble about the money. How much exactly to you expect to be paid for as you stated a 195 day a year contract job, especially when only 180 of those day are spent in the actual classroom teaching.

It’s funny how you wrote a lengthy post to bash teachers and in the same breath admit that it’s not something you could do yourself. Yes, it’s a very demanding job in an overstimulating environment with no downtime. I tend to value people who are able to do something that I am unable to do myself.

Thank you for supporting teachers. This site loves to trash them, not to find any value or worth in their roles.

It’s refreshing to see a post that isn’t an attack. Just… thank you. Thank you for seeing what we do when others don’t.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

It’s been explained multiple times, what don’t you understand?

Because some don’t want to understand and they don’t have any frame of reference anyway. The math has been all over DCUM. At this point, it’s no use.

Posters don’t understand that grading and planning can’t get done AT work because teachers are busy with students. It’s a different type of job, one that doesn’t provide the luxury of sitting at a desk getting work done. But if you’ve never experienced that, perhaps it’s hard to imagine.

And some of us have friends or family that are or were teachers and know that 70 hours a week is absurd hyperbole

Okay. I can’t believe I’m trying again:

150 essays at 15 minutes each: 37.5 SUSTAINED hours of grading (that means without breaks, like sleeping or checking DCUM). They need to get back in 10 days, so that’s an extra 3.75 hours of work for 10 days straight for that assignment ALONE. That doesn’t include other assignments, emails, meetings, “other duties as assigned,” data collection and analysis, tutoring… most of which has to be done off hours. Because the work day is spent with the students.

My kid is a Sophomore and hasn't written more than 7 essays their entire FCPS career. I think the hyperboles need to stop. Teachers do a lot but let's not get carried away they have a great work life balance.

I’ll remember my great work/life balance when I’m up at 4am tomorrow grading. I’ll remember it when I’m grading papers throughout the day on Saturday as my family goes to the beach to give me privacy. I’ll remember it when I am writing college recommendation letters Sunday so dozens of students don’t have to panic about upcoming deadlines.

It must be true because a DCUM poster told me so. She knows my job and my responsibilities more than I ever will.

I wish my job only required me to work 195 days a year. I’d even take a pay cut to have it be so. But alas I am expected to be there throughout the year and yes many a night I’m up until 1 to 2 am putting in “unpaid” extra hours, and sometimes even weekends, This is necessary so that I can eat, spend time with and and make dinner for my family.

When I was younger and paid much less, with 2 weeks vacation, plus 8 holidays off a year. I ran the numbers and realized that hour for hour I’d make much more money teaching, with summers off, shorter work days, and school breaks. Now throw in pensions, no work travel, heath care that was much cheaper comparatively and I was looking at a total boondoggle.

After thought and investigation I realized teaching wouldn’t be best for my introverted personality.

I laugh whenever I hear teachers grumble about the money. How much exactly to you expect to be paid for as you stated a 195 day a year contract job, especially when only 180 of those day are spent in the actual classroom teaching.

It’s funny how you wrote a lengthy post to bash teachers and in the same breath admit that it’s not something you could do yourself. Yes, it’s a very demanding job in an overstimulating environment with no downtime. I tend to value people who are able to do something that I am unable to do myself.

You don’t seem to value the working parents of your students very much. Is it because you think you can do all of their jobs?

I’m not a teacher and not sure how that was your takeaway from my post since I mentioned nothing about the value that I place on other jobs. But you just seem to be looking for an argument.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New poster - I can't get over the "70 hours" comment. There is 0 way you on average spend 70 hours throughout the school year and if you do, well you need to find a better way to do your job. One random "70 hour" week maybe? but probably very inflated. Might have gotten away with 55-60, but come on.

When people hear “teacher,” they often picture a 7:30–3:30 school day. But for many educators, the real hours stretch far beyond the bell. A 70-hour work week isn’t an anomaly—it’s routine. Here's how those hours add up:

Grading Isn’t Just Checking Boxes
- Essays: 15–20 minutes per essay. A class of 30? That’s 7.5–10 hours for one assignment. Multiply that times 5 (5 classes) for English and humanities teachers. That's up to 50 hours of grading for one essay.
- Short Answer Tests: 5–10 minutes per test. Multiply that across multiple classes. Many secondary teachers have 140-160 students, so each test could take several hours to grade.
- Feedback: Thoughtful, personalized comments can take 5–10 hours per major assignment. This is where learning deepens—and where time disappears.

Lesson Design Is a Daily Marathon
- Creating engaging, differentiated, evidence-based lessons takes 2+ hours per day. That’s 10+ hours a week just on planning—before the teaching even begins.

Meetings That Matter (and Multiply)
- CT (Collaborative Team) Meetings: 1.5–4.5 hours weekly.
- IEP/504 Meetings: 1–2 hours monthly, often outside contract hours.
- These aren’t optional—they’re essential for supporting diverse learners.

The Hidden Time Thieves
- Answering parent emails
- Writing letters of recommendation
- Updating grades and learning platforms
- Supervising clubs, sports, or events
- Attending professional development
- Supporting students in crisis
- Rewriting plans after fire drills, assemblies, or snow days

Each task may seem small, but together they form a mountain. And teachers climb it daily—not for praise, but for their students.

The Takeaway
A 70-hour week isn’t a sign of inefficiency—it’s a reflection of how deeply teachers care and how manyntasks they’re juggling. They’re not just delivering content.

Yes, there are other professionals who also work an unreasonable number of hous per week. No one is denying that. No one is saying teachers have it worse than other professionals. However, no one has the right to effectively call teachers liars when they say they routinely work 70-hour weeks. Do all teachers work those type of hours? Not even close; some teachers barely work more than 40 hours per week. But many teachers do work 70 hours per week, and they deserve to be believed.

All this tells me is you know how to use ChatGPT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They aren’t underpaid. They get paid a more than fair wage for the hours worked.

The education required for the work performed fits the salary.

The total compensation package, including insurance and retirement benefits is actually quite generous if you take all of the above into consideration.

Is that less funny? Are you clear as to what it means to bash?

Do you need bullet points? Or would that still be too much for your skill set, comprehension abilities and attention span? Fyi yes I just bashed you, so are you now clear as to what it means to bash and or trash. I freely admit in this instance to both.

+100. The notion that they are underpaid, unappreciated is a myth. Competition for jobs brings down wages (Econ 101) and they do get generous leave and benefits. If the wages are too low, there will not be enough staff. Wages will go up accordingly. It's that simple.

[Anonymous]

Separation of church and state!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They aren’t underpaid. They get paid a more than fair wage for the hours worked.

The education required for the work performed fits the salary.

The total compensation package, including insurance and retirement benefits is actually quite generous if you take all of the above into consideration.

Is that less funny? Are you clear as to what it means to bash?

Do you need bullet points? Or would that still be too much for your skill set, comprehension abilities and attention span? Fyi yes I just bashed you, so are you now clear as to what it means to bash and or trash. I freely admit in this instance to both.

+100. The notion that they are underpaid, unappreciated is a myth. Competition for jobs brings down wages (Econ 101) and they do get generous leave and benefits. If the wages are too low, there will not be enough staff. Wages will go up accordingly. It's that simple.

DP. I guess you see it differently if you are in the profession. Sure, we have staffed classrooms. The problem is it’s an ever-revolving door of people because teachers quit.

If your goal is to have “enough staff,” then I guess you can say we’re fine. If your goal is to have “effective, qualified teachers,” then we aren’t.

Generous wages and benefits get people to try the profession, but the overwhelming demands of the job make them quit.

And so the cycle repeats itself and DCUM posters continue to rage about unanswered emails, long-term subs, ungraded papers, and uninspired lessons.