Question:
Teachers perform many additional tasks besides working directly with students, often in non-instructional capacities (bus duty, recess supervision, filing student records, etc). If you could "give back" one such task in order to free more time to spend with students, what task would you give away first?
Replies:
Debby Lukas - Mineral Wells, TX
I would GLADLY give up before/after school duties such as bus duty or car duty. It takes a minimum of 30 mintues of time which I could be using more constructively. A teacher standing these duties does not benefit the students academically or socially. This is time I could/would spend on preparation, parent communciations, etc.
Cindy - Camp Hill, PA
So many to choose from. Can I give them all back?????
Gina - Pittsburgh, PA
filing and recording the same information that is already there
Sue Ottesen - BossierCity, LA
I would give up breakfast and lunch duties. They are time-consuming and give me no breaks until 2:00 PM two days a week!
Suzie - Arnold, MO
Recess Duty
Janet - Houston, TX
Definitely, recess supervision: This 20 minute time period could mean the opportunity needed one-on-one with a child to "open up the mystery" of the latest task at hand. So many children haven't the opportunity to stay after school/come early because of family constraints or they are simply over scheduled!
Maria - Albany, NY
morning care - We have to come 15 min earlier to greet students at buses and cars - this means the computer room/library and xerox is not available to to students that need to print out assignments neede for teh day.
Eliza Cheng - Zhuhai, China
Bus duty is the first duty I would give away if I am so heavily burdened with so many performances that a teacher must do. The second is recess supervision. I don't think these are a must do by teachers, other personnel can do as well.
Thanks
ME
In our district, we have to call the parents to set up the IEP meetings, find an administrator, a free room, a para to cover the teachers, and check with all involved to set up the IEP. Then we have to remember to remind all of these people of the date, time, location, etc. This takes a phenominal amount of time and is very frustrating. PLEASE TAKE THAT AWAY!!
TX
Car Duty, could live without that for sure! I feel like a car valet in the hot Houston sun!
Robin - Calgary, AB Canada
Typing and sending in forms for particular students. I am happy to supply the information but the typing and filing, etc are big time wasters for me.
Margaret Goodwin - St Louis, MO
SPECIAL ED PAPERWORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
MS
I would like to give up everything that is a part of "No Child Left Behind". We have to assess our students so much, post the results of every skill, do interventions, post the interventions, and the list goes on and on. We have to give assessments from several different companies in several different ways. Then we have to do progress monitoring on them all. We grade a test, record the grade in the child's test folder, put the grade in our grade book, put the grade on the computer, send out progress reports, personally contact the parent to let the parents know the problem area and how WE (the teachers) are going to correct it. No responsibility is put on administration or parents. I do not have time to teach my class for documenting everything on low performing students. Teachers are seeking other professions, then what is going to happen to education? I love the children, despise the documentation, and no longer like teaching.
NE
Lunch/recess duty
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