MCPS middle school teacher puts nothing on canvas?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a 20 year teaching veteran that is new to an MCPS middle school. I was given zero training on how to use Canvas or Synergy. I was also not given instructions for what is required to be listed on my syllabus. Also wasn’t told about deadlines AND due dates. All I was told pre-service week was a long list of deadlines.

Canvas homepage due this day
Hang all of these things on your wall by this day
Decorate your physical classroom by this day
Update grades at least every 2 weeks
Record and post your BTSN video a week before the actual event so parents won’t come to the real thing
Complete the following online trainings by a certain day: blood borne pathogens, staff health awareness, test security, Diabetes 1, Leader in Me, Compliance training

In between all of this are grade level and department meetings and emails with their own action items such as creating bitmojis and photo collages.

It’s week 2 and I am still getting 504/IEP info one kid at a time via email from counselors. I file the email into a folder in my inbox but haven’t actually read over any of them because I’m too busy actually planning for my classes with what little time I have left. To compensate for this, every 3 days I’ve spent the majority of class time sitting individually with students missing assignments while the rest of the class runs a mock. I have to do it all online because nobody has shown me how to use the copier to scan, etc.

I’m also a parent to a young child stating the Child Find process. I know how unrealistic all of the accommodations my kid needs are given the terrible working conditions of MCPS.

Get your kid into private services. You cannot rely on MCPS.

More with the back-door private school recruiting.

Do…you not understand the difference between “private services” for SN and “private school?”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a 20 year teaching veteran that is new to an MCPS middle school. I was given zero training on how to use Canvas or Synergy. I was also not given instructions for what is required to be listed on my syllabus. Also wasn’t told about deadlines AND due dates. All I was told pre-service week was a long list of deadlines.

Canvas homepage due this day
Hang all of these things on your wall by this day
Decorate your physical classroom by this day
Update grades at least every 2 weeks
Record and post your BTSN video a week before the actual event so parents won’t come to the real thing
Complete the following online trainings by a certain day: blood borne pathogens, staff health awareness, test security, Diabetes 1, Leader in Me, Compliance training

In between all of this are grade level and department meetings and emails with their own action items such as creating bitmojis and photo collages.

It’s week 2 and I am still getting 504/IEP info one kid at a time via email from counselors. I file the email into a folder in my inbox but haven’t actually read over any of them because I’m too busy actually planning for my classes with what little time I have left. To compensate for this, every 3 days I’ve spent the majority of class time sitting individually with students missing assignments while the rest of the class runs a mock. I have to do it all online because nobody has shown me how to use the copier to scan, etc.

I’m also a parent to a young child stating the Child Find process. I know how unrealistic all of the accommodations my kid needs are given the terrible working conditions of MCPS.

It gets better. Not dramatically so, but quite a bit better than where you are now. This was the easiest first two weeks I’ve ever had in two decades in MCPS because I was finally able to anticipate some of the pre-service crap and do it over the two months of summer.

See this is why teachers are leaving. SO many demands that have zero to do with teaching. You shouldn't have to work for free over the summer!!!

Yes. This is why teachers are leaving. Because of the 101 things that are dumped on teachers on top of teaching and little to no support

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've never understood what Canvas is. I get the messages, but nothing happens when I click on any links. I have to log into ParentVue to see grades.

Me again. My son is now a senior. He's had an IEP for severe inattentive ADHD most of his school career and received lots of services in elementary. Back then, nothing was online, and I had no information on what they did with him. In middle school, he had a resource class and a case manager to help him. I didn't have a lot of visibility there either. In high school, he mostly did everything himself.

And somehow it worked out, OP.

Keep an eye on things but please understand that the start of the year is completely hectic, as the teacher PP described. You might want to coach your child to email his teachers regularly to check assignments and due dates with them. Self-advocacy is one of the most important skills these kids need to learn.
Also train him on how to use his planner. Check every day that stuff is written in there, and that he goes through his list of things to do, scaffolds his larger projects, decides what portion to do every day.

Essentially your kid can have the best teachers and counselors in the world, but YOU are his home coach. It's a lot of work, but it pays off - BTDT.

This is good advice. Keep working on training your kid to be independent. That will be the most valuable in the long run

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn’t worry about canvas you have no control there. What would bother me is the teacher not following the 504 accommodations. Write an email and CC the principal. Give it 1 week, if no improvement call an IEP meeting to discuss better strategies and make sure the implementation plans are very clear regarding teacher expectations. Document everything in writing.

What is wrong with parents? I’m a teacher and I would be pissed if you cc the principal on your first or even second email to me.
Always try to work things out with the teacher first.

[Anonymous]

One nice thing about private school is that all assignments are listed on canvas. It is quite easy to keep track. Obviously you have to review it with your kid.