| HI Everyone,
SO I began the process of working with Bluewave to find a teaching position for the September 2010 start. I just submitted my CV and references and am hoping that this process goes smoothly.
Anyway, I have been going through the forums (wish there was a search option) and also google-ing information that I cannot find. But I figured I would throw some specific questions out there to those of you who teach secondary English Language Arts and Literature, so here goes:
1) Grade Levels/Preps: when you accept a position in a school, are you required to teach more than one grade level? It seems that is what I am getting from reading though some information. That is a significant amount of planning and prep work to have different lessons for a 7, 10, 12th grade class, so I am wondering if there is a way to teach only one or two grade levels, or, do all teachers have to teach multiple levels? That is not something I would look forward to for sure...Wayy too much work for so little pay and time.
2) Mandated State Exams: WHat are the mandated assessments like? Do OTTs get any type of training and prep for these exams? In NY we have the Regents examinations for English Language Arts and we spend a ridiculous amount of time preparing students solely for these exams. I am only just getting used to the formulas and strategies for preparing and grading the assessments. What are these exams like in the UK? Here students have 4 essays to complete and 2 multiple choice sections in 2 days (one based on listening skills, 1 on reading a passage and a graphic/chart/table and using info from both to write a letter or proposal, 1 mixed genre linked through theme/controlling idea, and 1 critical lens that involves the interpretation of a quote and applying it to two works of literature). What are your exams like over there? Is there a website link I can check out????
3) Curriculum: WHo writes it? Do teachers create it together? Is it flexible? Or, like in the US does it vary by school?
THANK YOU for any responses!
|
|
That's a lot of questions/answers, so I'm going to just take a bit of it tonight, then maybe in a day or two, a bit more. Hope you understand.
First questions, the number of preps . . .
Sorry to disappoint you, but you will most likely teach a class in every year group (or close to it), so you could teach year 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, for example. If there are any odd periods, you might take a one-off for another teacher(I used to fill in one hour a week for a different English teacher, and she did a one-off for one of my classes, only because our schedules didn't allow for us to teach every lesson for our own classes. Also, if you haven't met your 90% teaching time (we get 10% of our total time as prep, so typically, that's 2.5 hours a week), you may teach an odd religion, Citizenship, or similar class, or perhaps a one-off geography or something for another teacher. It's not like in the States, with a schedule that repeats every day -- my current year 8's, to make an example, see me 1st hour on Mon, not at all on Tues, 2nd lesson on Wednesday, 5th on Thurs, and have a double-English on Fridays lessons 1 and 2). Different years have a different number of lessons a week, too -- year 6 has 6 lesons, year 7 has 4, year8 has 5, and so on. I'm sure that can vary school to school as well.
As I said, I'll try to come back in a day or two and take on another question, as time permits.
Bottom line -- you can have a LOT of preps in a week, and you may be expected to teach things you've never considered, and may not want to.
Pardon typos -- it's late, and I really can't be bothered proofing. |
|
WHoa, thanks for your reply. I know I had a lot of questions so I don;t expect any one person to answer them all.
So, that is INSANE! How is it POSSIBLE to teach like that?????? Seriously, how do you plan? SO you are reading like 4 books at a time? How do you/can you teach subjects out side of your area? Wow, I complained about 2 different ages and having to teach two books/units at the same time, all the planning... and grading. Now 4-5? How is this possible? How are there not riots amongst teachers? How are they so UNDER PAID?
You don't have to answer the above, most are rhetorical questions. I am absolutely FREAKED OUT. I cannot imagine HOW I can teach like that... I would be so burnt out and overwhelmed immediately. WOW. this changes a LOT for me.
Thanks for your reply! |
|
You know what-- I just realized that there is a thread "typical secondary schedule" and I just read through it.... Still freaked but it seems that some schools already have the lesson plans for you? I am looking into this more, so I know to seek such schools out.
Also, I know what to ask about in the interviews with schools. |
|
Hmmm, maybe this is why there's a shortage of teachers in this country? And you ask, how does one keep 4 or 5 pieces of lit going at once? It's difficult, believe me. I'll say something in year 7 about Miranda and Ferdinand, and after they all just stare for a while, I realise they're doing Macbeth -- it's year 8 who's doing The Tempest, and year 6 Midsummer Night's Dream. Ack! (And in my wekely religion clas, they're studying Christian pilgrimages, so I spent a little time on the children' version of The Pardoner's Tale, just to throw in a bit of Chaucer.)
Department heads are required to provide long and medium term plans, and you just have to do the short term (daily lesson plans). Truthfully, though, I got very little at my first school in the way of plans -- I was sort of left to figure it out on my own. Now, as dept head at my current school, I do provide those plans to the teachers who are in my area of responsibility.
Off to mark books whilst I watch a little telly . . . |
|
|
