How often are you pulled to cover during your planning period(s)?

Discussion in 'Secondary Education' started by zmp2018, Feb 22, 2019.

  1. zmp2018

    zmp2018 Rookie

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    Feb 22, 2019

    This is something I find interesting. Where I student-taught, my school had a ten-period day, and most teachers had two 40-minute prep periods. 99% of the time, my mentor was pulled every day for one or both of his preps to cover for another teacher.

    Where I am a sub right now, we have six 1-hour long periods. All teachers get one prep period. I am not typically asked to cover a class during that period (which is good and bad -- it's nice to have that time to myself, but because I do not necessarily have anything to "prep," I am sometimes bored.)

    How often are you pulled during your prep(s)?
     
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  3. czacza

    czacza Multitudinous

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    Feb 22, 2019

    Never
     
  4. MissCeliaB

    MissCeliaB Aficionado

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    Maybe a couple of times a school year. It's very rare, and usually in an instance of an emergency, or a school event has a lot of teachers out of the classroom. But it is very rare!
     
  5. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    A lot, actually. I get paid extra for subbing so I don’t mind at times, but sometimes I feel like I’m being taken advantage of.
     
  6. MrsC

    MrsC Multitudinous

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    Our teacher-librarian gets pulled quite a bit, and our ELL and Special Ed Resource teachers do get pulled in a pinch. As classroom teachers, we are occasionally asked to keep our class if a specialty teacher is away without a sub. If we miss a prep, or have to cover, we are always paid back the time.

    If we have a sub, they should never be asked to cover during a prep period in my timetable, although many of our preferred subs to go to the office to see where they can help out.
     
  7. zmp2018

    zmp2018 Rookie

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    Feb 22, 2019

    I have heard a lot of subs being "used and abused" when it comes to coverages. I think, from the district's standpoint, that it is more cost-effective to have the sub, who is most likely only paid a daily rate, to cover for another class. Many districts either give teachers comp time or pay them extra money.
     
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  8. TrademarkTer

    TrademarkTer Groupie

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    Feb 22, 2019

    About once a week---we have 3 free periods a day though, so it isn't the end of the world to give up one of them. We do get paid, but not much. I don't mind when I get called to cover another math class or something, but when they make me cover like PE or band, it's a little annoying.
     
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  9. MrsC

    MrsC Multitudinous

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    Feb 22, 2019

    I'm in Ontario, and our subs have their own collective agreement. Part of that is that they follow the schedule of the teacher they are replacing and not be assigned additional duties or responsibilities. It makes sense, and does show a lot of respect for these guest teachers in our buildings.
     
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  10. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    Feb 22, 2019

    I, too, get three preps and your situation very closely mirrors mine. Though, I get $25 for each class that I sub for — subs in my area get paid $175 per day and I have 7 classes, so $175/(7 classes) = $25/class.
     
    Last edited: Feb 22, 2019
  11. TrademarkTer

    TrademarkTer Groupie

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    Yeah, we get $20 per class, which is fine if I am covering a regular class in a nearby classroom. $20 to walk down to the gym, set up the equipment, and babysit in there isn't worth it. I don't recall how much our subs are paid, but it ends up being cheaper for the district to have teachers fill in for the classes than to hire the sub for the day.
     
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  12. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    Yeah, I had to sub for PE once and had to walk all the way to the other side of the school. I was quite irritated.
     
  13. teacherintexas

    teacherintexas Maven

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    Never
     
  14. vickilyn

    vickilyn Multitudinous

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    Feb 23, 2019

    I work in a smaller private school, so sometimes, if people are out, or there is a need to cover IEP meetings, it helps to be flexible. After all, you may cover today, but someone else may end up covering for you tomorrow. We do get paid extra if we work through a prep or a lunch, but it's mostly about supporting colleagues and an admin that tries very hard to support us. I tend to go with the flow without any ill feelings. Maybe it is a result of the number of years I subbed; I always tried to be useful while still being pleasant. It could be the reason that I was asked to sub about 170 out of the 180 day school year. If you see the big picture, that people are doing the best they can, it makes it somewhat easier to be flexible, without ill-will.
     
  15. MsMar

    MsMar Fanatic

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    Feb 23, 2019

    I teach at at middle school and I have one prep period each day and one period that is team planning every other day and a duty every other day. The duty changes each marking period and is either cafeteria, ISS, hall duty, or cover as needed. When my duty is cover as needed then if I have to cover a class, I cover a class. If not, I get an extra prep period. Same with ISS, if there is ISS then I have a duty and if there isn't ISS it's an extra prep. We're not paid extra for coverage as we always get the prep period, so all we're losing is an extra prep beyond what our contract states. I would estimate I only have to do coverage once every other week. They will always give a sub the classroom coverage before a regular teacher as they figure the regular teacher will benefit more from the extra prep period vs giving a sub two free periods in a day. We also have a full time building sub so that person often ends up with the cover as needed so that also helps reduce the amount that regular teachers have to do.
     
  16. Teacher234

    Teacher234 Cohort

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    Feb 23, 2019

    I do not actually have a formal prep period, so I am unable to cover another class.
    I have lunch (during the student's lunch) to work on plans and help students who stay for lunch work time.
     
  17. whizkid

    whizkid Connoisseur

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    Almost daily.
     
  18. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    I’m so sorry. Why are your colleagues seemingly chronically absent?
     
  19. whizkid

    whizkid Connoisseur

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    Horrible kids.
     
  20. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    Feb 24, 2019

    Oof. It can’t be that bad, can it?

    And I don’t understand how the teachers at your school can be absent so much as they are only allowed a certain number of sick/personal days per year. Could you elaborate on that?
     
  21. TrademarkTer

    TrademarkTer Groupie

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    I'm not in the same situation as whiz, but it's probably different teachers each time. My school has close to 200 teachers so if each took off even a minimal 2 days each year that's 200*2*5(classes)=2000 classes to be covered.
     
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  22. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    This makes total sense. Thank you for clarifying! For whatever reason, I kept thinking he was covering for the same teacher or a group of the same teachers, haha! :)
     
  23. whizkid

    whizkid Connoisseur

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    It's thug central. Remember last year how said that many of these kids are someone else problem on school breaks and got flack for it?

    Well, when your district is poor, poverty stricken, and you have to deal with drugs, daily fighting (girls are worse than the boys), lack of discipline from administration, backstabbing, broken promises of necessary technology such as computers, copy machines, printers and ink, half clean restrooms, disrespectful students who make fun of teachers when they return from ISS, parents who only show up at the school because "my daughter isn't miss high school or miss elementary" but doesn't care that your daughter has been in four fights in the past month because she's messy, outdated textbooks (papa Bush was still President), teen pregnancies, oh, and girls who use water bottles to demonstrate their "techniques" in the classroom, yea, teachers take lots and lots of days. Some even get docked because they take more than they are allotted, I just get tired of the babysitting which is why I concentrate on school breaks!
     
  24. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    Oh. My. God. How horrid!

    If these students came to my campus they would 1) get “beat down” by the security guards if they tried to assault a teacher or a student (e.g. physically restrained, etc.), 2) they would be put on restrictions so severe that they would be prohibited from attending all sports games and other school activities such as rallies, field trips, dances, etc., 3) they would be made to clean the school each day for each offense, 4) they would be isolated from their peers, and 5) they would get constant lectures from the principal and three vice principals about their disgusting and abhorrent acts and behaviors until they shape up and started acting like civilized human beings.

    More schools need to start actually disciplining the students and to stop giving them slaps on the wrist!
     
  25. Ms.Holyoke

    Ms.Holyoke Connoisseur

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    Only a few times this year. I usually have 72 minutes of prep time every day, but we are guaranteed 47 minutes of prep. If we have to cover more than 25 minutes, we get to skip common planning time for the day, so we always have prep.
     
  26. TrademarkTer

    TrademarkTer Groupie

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    I don't understand why you would persist in such a miserable environment. Rather than concentrate on breaks, I would concentrate on polishing off the old resume.
     
  27. NewTeacher2016

    NewTeacher2016 Companion

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    3 days a week with no extra pay at my former school. The school is pretty much now supported by subs and parapros.
     
  28. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    I feel bad for laughing, but your sentence is hysterical. Clever!
     
  29. whizkid

    whizkid Connoisseur

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    Our district is also headed in that direction.
     
  30. whizkid

    whizkid Connoisseur

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    I'm almost vested in my state. That way I know I'll have at least one check coming at retirement outside of my ROTH distributions and SS.
     
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  31. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    Lovely, sounds like substandard education to me...
     
  32. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    What state do you work in? In California, public school teachers cannot double dip into both their state pensions and SS as it’s too expensive. As such, the state legislature made it so that SS tax is not taken out of teachers’ paychecks, but a mandatory pension contribution (8-13%, I think) is taken out instead (CALSTRS).

    However, as I work at a private school, I will collect both my Roth distributions and SS, as well as the meager amount contributed by my employer in my 403b plan (though, they are working on fixing this).

    How many years have you been working as a teacher in your district and how many years do you have to work in your district to draw a pension?

    In CA, here are the requirements to retire early and normally: https://www.calstrs.com/ask-jack/as...-and-receive-my-retirement-benefit-later-date.
     
    Last edited: Feb 24, 2019
  33. whizkid

    whizkid Connoisseur

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    8 years in MS to be vested, district and state requirements the
    same, 6.5 years experience this May.
     
  34. whizkid

    whizkid Connoisseur

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    If I go to another state, I'll know I will only have a semester to go to be vested if I leave next May and come back to this state later on and I'll have a full 8 if I leave next December.
     
  35. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    So 1.5 years left. I’m guessing you’ll switch districts ASAP once you find become vested?
     
  36. LittleShakespeare

    LittleShakespeare Comrade

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    I used to volunteer to cover classes during my prep, but some of the kids at my school are a little out of control. One time, this obnoxious student caused so much destruction and chaos. He thought it would be funny to stand on a trash can and jump into the arms of another student. I got out of my chair and asked him to sit down before I called security, but these kids don’t listen. They don’t care. I eventually did call security, but nothing happened. The kid even lied about his name and got off free. I told my VP, and she just shrugged her shoulders: “Yeah, these kids are tough.”

    We get $50 for a missed prep, but I’d rather have my prep. After that mess, I’m not covering for any more teachers.
     
  37. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    You have to be more stern and authoritative. My students see another side of me when they do not follow directives. Now, they try to discretely get away with defying me, but the general consensus is that they don’t want to see that side of me again, haha!
     
    Last edited: Mar 1, 2019
  38. Ima Teacher

    Ima Teacher Virtuoso

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    We are rarely asked to cover most years. A few times we are short subs and have to do it more often. Sometimes one person covers, and sometimes a team will take a part so we don’t miss our whole planning.

    It is not very common to be without a sub, though.
     
  39. Milsey

    Milsey Habitué

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    YES, for very little pay, and sometimes they actually expect me to teach whatever class I'm stuck in be it Spanish II or geometry. Not happening.
     
  40. Teacher234

    Teacher234 Cohort

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    I love Geometry!
     
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  41. futuremathsprof

    futuremathsprof Phenom

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    If I was asked to sub for a geometry class, then I certainly wouldn’t get “bent out of shape.” Lol!
     
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