Praise vs. Condemnation for Efficiency: views of PS teaching compared to other fields

[Anonymous]

So much hate right now on DCUM for those MCPS teachers who might manage to finalize grades before Monday and thus, have the day to do other things such as plan for MP 2, file IEP and 504 quarterly updates, email parents and other educators with student concerns, catch up on grad school work, read an article about an new strategy or policy, or even (gasp!) get some well-deserved R&R.

Last night, I went to a dinner party hosted by my BFF and her lawyer husband. I was the only public school educator there, though there was also a university physics professor and a few of the attorneys also teach law school classes. At some point, my SAHM BFF asked if I wanted to join her for an spa day on Monday. I said I had to finish grades. Everyone urged me to work as much as possible this weekend so I could go. No one argued that this was cheating the system, unfair to working parents, or even ridiculous in the first place that schools even close so teachers have a day to grade. Rather, they almost all shared stories and tips about ways that they had made their own work lives more efficient so that they could sneak in an unofficial day off once in a while.

Is the bilious reaction to teacher work days a strictly DCUM phenom? (Oh, you finished grades early? Well, this is proof every teacher could do it at home at night after working all day. No more professional days for grading! I need my free babysitting!)

Does the general public really hold PS teachers to a different standard than other professionals when it comes to working more efficiently? Obviously no one wants their lawyer or plumber to do 15 minutes of work and bill them for a full hour, but the physics professor specifically shared multiple instances of finalizing his grades the day after the exam and using the rest of the week to camp. He teaches for a state university so his twice a year mini vacation is in taxpayer's dime. How is it worse if an MCPS teacher finishes grading on Sunday (on his/her own time) and then spends Monday planning for the next unit?

If you aren't a teacher, do people frown in you finishing your assigned tasks earlier than your supervisor requires? If you telework (as many MCPS teachers will on Monday), what are you supposed to do if you are done with all of your work before the work day is over --stare at a blank computer screen and silent phone until 5 pm?

Ok, so this is a bit of a vent, but I was already grading by 6 this morning (yes, a Saturday), took a DCUM break and read the thread I mention before I had my second cup of joe.

[Anonymous]

I don't think reasonable people care. At all. Get your work done and organize your life how you wish.

However, as a group, my experience has been that PS teachers complain openly more than any other group. I don't know why this is. But I hear it a lot. And see it a lot. So, people are already kind of on the offensive with teachers as s group. I think you all need better PR.

[Anonymous]

I think any professional should be allowed to organize their work and schedule to be as convenient and efficient as possible. Time clock punching is for factory workers and fast food employees.

[Anonymous]

I don't think you are doing anything wrong, but when you use phrases like "free babysitting," you're committing the teacher equivalent of a parent bitching about "six-hour work days and summers off."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't think reasonable people care. At all. Get your work done and organize your life how you wish.

However, as a group, my experience has been that PS teachers complain openly more than any other group. I don't know why this is. But I hear it a lot. And see it a lot. So, people are already kind of on the offensive with teachers as s group. I think you all need better PR.

I am a teacher, and I agree. Lots of griping all around me. My lawyer DH works way harder than my colleagues and I do.