Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.

I’m a teacher and I completely agree that if they didn’t bring home paperwork or their laptop, then it would be incredibly difficult to grade.

But we were paid for those days, so it doesn’t necessarily count as grading on their own time. In the past 20 years, I’ve taken a few snow days off where I’ve done nothing, but it’s disingenuous to say that working during a snow day is equivalent to being a martyr.

But we aren’t paid on Saturdays or Sundays and many of us work weekends. And ultimately: it isn’t about contract hours anyway. It’s about a job that doesn’t give you any time for the major and necessary tasks (like grading and planning).

That’s why this thread exists and all the other ones like it. Teachers could grade in a timely manner if work hours were available for tasks like these. But when we are forcing teachers to choose between grading and their own families, we can’t fault teachers for their choices.

I would say its generally true that teachers need more grading time.
But in this particular month FCPS teachers were handed four full days and four additional hours (two two hour delays) of unimpeded time. There is no reason the vast majority of teachers couldn't have used some of that free time to catch up on behind work, like any other professional would.

I bet a lot of teachers , like me, went in at our usual time on the delay days and used those hours to do grading. Most of us do appreciate when we get a little extra time like that to get caught up but the bigger systemic issue that dogs us year after year is that a) grading is a major requirement of our job but b) with the amount of classes we teach and other duties and tasks dumped on us, there is actually not time to grade during our contract. That creates the issue of your kids going multiple weeks without grades input, which nobody wants.

FCPS teachers and Gatehouse staff were paid for the snow days.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.

I’m a teacher and I completely agree that if they didn’t bring home paperwork or their laptop, then it would be incredibly difficult to grade.

But we were paid for those days, so it doesn’t necessarily count as grading on their own time. In the past 20 years, I’ve taken a few snow days off where I’ve done nothing, but it’s disingenuous to say that working during a snow day is equivalent to being a martyr.

But we aren’t paid on Saturdays or Sundays and many of us work weekends. And ultimately: it isn’t about contract hours anyway. It’s about a job that doesn’t give you any time for the major and necessary tasks (like grading and planning).

That’s why this thread exists and all the other ones like it. Teachers could grade in a timely manner if work hours were available for tasks like these. But when we are forcing teachers to choose between grading and their own families, we can’t fault teachers for their choices.

I would say its generally true that teachers need more grading time.
But in this particular month FCPS teachers were handed four full days and four additional hours (two two hour delays) of unimpeded time. There is no reason the vast majority of teachers couldn't have used some of that free time to catch up on behind work, like any other professional would.

Anonymous wrote:My kids do all their work on paper. That stays at school in their class binder. If we have a snow day I don’t just have my computer and all their schoolwork at home with me in 120 binders.

You are the only teacher in all of FCPS who is teaching correctly, on paper and off screens. Kudos.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.

What? Teachers pay is docked for snow days!????

My kids do all their work on paper. That stays at school in their class binder. If we have a snow day I don’t just have my computer and all their schoolwork at home with me in 120 binders.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.

I’m a teacher and I completely agree that if they didn’t bring home paperwork or their laptop, then it would be incredibly difficult to grade.

But we were paid for those days, so it doesn’t necessarily count as grading on their own time. In the past 20 years, I’ve taken a few snow days off where I’ve done nothing, but it’s disingenuous to say that working during a snow day is equivalent to being a martyr.

+1
Days over winter break aren’t paid contract days, that’s true. Snow days are still part of the 194 day contract though. They aren’t subtracted from our contract because schools were closed.

In my district, snow days are made up at the end of the year so that is a work day. The snow day is not. I don’t grade on snow days unless I choose to (I don’t).

You are on the Fairfax County Schools discussion board.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.

I’m a teacher and I completely agree that if they didn’t bring home paperwork or their laptop, then it would be incredibly difficult to grade.

But we were paid for those days, so it doesn’t necessarily count as grading on their own time. In the past 20 years, I’ve taken a few snow days off where I’ve done nothing, but it’s disingenuous to say that working during a snow day is equivalent to being a martyr.

+1
Days over winter break aren’t paid contract days, that’s true. Snow days are still part of the 194 day contract though. They aren’t subtracted from our contract because schools were closed.

In my district, snow days are made up at the end of the year so that is a work day. The snow day is not. I don’t grade on snow days unless I choose to (I don’t).

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

This expectation is unreasonable for teachers who have small children at home. You have no idea what obligations are outside of time at school.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.

I’m a teacher and I completely agree that if they didn’t bring home paperwork or their laptop, then it would be incredibly difficult to grade.

But we were paid for those days, so it doesn’t necessarily count as grading on their own time. In the past 20 years, I’ve taken a few snow days off where I’ve done nothing, but it’s disingenuous to say that working during a snow day is equivalent to being a martyr.

+1
Days over winter break aren’t paid contract days, that’s true. Snow days are still part of the 194 day contract though. They aren’t subtracted from our contract because schools were closed.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.

I’m a teacher and I completely agree that if they didn’t bring home paperwork or their laptop, then it would be incredibly difficult to grade.

But we were paid for those days, so it doesn’t necessarily count as grading on their own time. In the past 20 years, I’ve taken a few snow days off where I’ve done nothing, but it’s disingenuous to say that working during a snow day is equivalent to being a martyr.

But we aren’t paid on Saturdays or Sundays and many of us work weekends. And ultimately: it isn’t about contract hours anyway. It’s about a job that doesn’t give you any time for the major and necessary tasks (like grading and planning).

That’s why this thread exists and all the other ones like it. Teachers could grade in a timely manner if work hours were available for tasks like these. But when we are forcing teachers to choose between grading and their own families, we can’t fault teachers for their choices.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.

I’m a teacher and I completely agree that if they didn’t bring home paperwork or their laptop, then it would be incredibly difficult to grade.

But we were paid for those days, so it doesn’t necessarily count as grading on their own time. In the past 20 years, I’ve taken a few snow days off where I’ve done nothing, but it’s disingenuous to say that working during a snow day is equivalent to being a martyr.

Anonymous wrote:It’s not acceptable to not have grades posted for a month. It’s almost end of quarter.

Don't be ridiculous. Winter break and the four snow days do not count. Teachers are off during that time, too. If a teacher did not bring home their computer or students' written work during winter break (and good for them if they did not!), they had no access to work to be graded.

Remember, they've had some classes on on January 10, January 14, January 16, January 22, and January 24; and the other classes only on January 13, January 15, January 17, January 21, and January 23. If students were absent during any of those days, that makes it even more difficult for getting work from them to grade. They've only seen each class five times since winter break.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

That’s the point. Teachers HAVE to use their own time to get this work done. Many of us did use those snow days, but the question remains: why are we accepting a system that demands teachers consistently give up their off days to get mandatory work done?

I am not afraid of working past contract hours. I often work 20 to 30 extra hours a week, but I shouldn’t HAVE to. Your statement above suggests I should, that my time off belongs to the school as long as I have work to do. And I always have work to do.

100% this.

Anonymous wrote:Which is why it makes no sense to not use 4 snow days and two late starts to get grading done.

They weren’t being paid to work those days. Stop expecting teachers to be martyrs.