We are now entering week 5 of distance learning. A common phrase I keep hearing is, “Teachers do not have enough time.” Many teachers, me included, have said this countless times. Time is so precious since everything is now condensed at the elementary level.
Eric Sheninger, in his most recent blog post, came up with solutions to help alleviate the stress of no time. One thing he briefly touches on at the end of his blog post is that teachers should be able to control their own time (Sheninger, E). I think many people overlook that we have planning meetings, IEP meetings, mandatory professional development,
If teachers were able to control their own time when students are working asynchronously, there would be a lot of relief. At my school, it has been “suggested” that we meet twice a week with the content specialist ( 1 math and 1 reading planning). This takes up time for us to work on grading, providing feedback, creating new virtual lessons. Data is so important. But right now, we are facing new challenges and trying to overcome them. Teachers really need to have full control over how their time is spent.
As a member of the school’s leadership team, I have all my free time on Wednesday’s occupied by leadership or staff meetings. Right now, we have 2 staff meetings every month (an increase from when we were in school) and 2 leadership meetings a month (an increase from when we were in school). All the meetings are about an hour long. Some meetings are inevitable. However, Wednesday’s were designed for teachers to have a ha;f day with students, use the other 3 hours to do what they needed. Instead, it feels like I am being told what I need.
Sheninger, E. (2020, October 4). Time is what Teacher’s Need [Web log post]. Retrieved October 5, 2020, from http://esheninger.blogspot.com/2020/10/time-is-what-teachers-need-right-now.html
Life of a 3rd Grade Teacher 