People think teachers have the summer "off" -- BUT!!!

[Rachel]

But, but but! I have to build all my course content into our new online learning management system--for every class I teach, every activity, every assessment has to be online, and it isn't just a matter of uploading a bunch of documents to Google Drive---THAT was last summer's project. Now it all has to be interactive with drop-down menus and grade weights and videos and on and on. Ok, that's just for starters.

Second--I have to learn a new digital citizenship "architecture" -- another online platform that is integrated into various other aspects of the curriculum.

Third--I have all the regular reading and learning I need to do over the summer to keep up with the profession.

Fourth--I need to learn a bunch of new iPad Apps that the school is "encouraging" (requiring) teachers to use with the students. Every one of these Apps requires major content input from the teacher. They are not games that just babysit the kids (I wouldn't condone that in any case)--they are interactive things that the teacher has to set up, test out, and understand.

I like my job, I like my profession, I am incredibly lucky to have it. I know that. And I am grateful every day. But during this summer "vacation," I am basically working 30 hours a week, butt on the chair, computer open, to get ready for the next school year. I am trying to make myself just walk away from it by around 2 pm in the afternoon every day. I don't dislike the actual work, but it is intensive screen time---NOT a healthy way to spend a day in my opinion.

So, if anyone runs into me this summer and says "Oh you're so lucky, you get the WHOLE SUMMER OFF" -- Watch out!!

Thank you for listening!!!

[TxZen]

I know many teachers who have second jobs during the summer while putting together curriculum. Many are tutors or summer care teachers, making less than $10 a hour. A Teacher's work is never done.

[goldensmom]

I have a few teacher friends who truly have the summer off. One of my friends has had the intention for 30+ years to get a summer job but never has done so. It may be the exception but there are some out there.

[rodeosweetheart]

I have a few teacher friends who truly have the summer off. One of my friends has had the intention for 30+ years to get a summer job but never has done so. It may be the exception but there are some out there.

I teach online at the college level and do not get summers off--teach year round, at computer 8-12 hours a day. 6 days a week.

My sister in law teaches 3rd grade and has summers off, does not go back to work until August 15, I believe, and definitely is not required to work during June, July, and first half of August.

Which is great! She deserves a break.

[ApatheticNoMore]

I teach online at the college level and do not get summers off--teach year round, at computer 8-12 hours a day. 6 days a week.

I'm on the computer 8 hours a day for work too - of course I'm not a teacher and that is my job. But that doesn't make the intensive screen time a healthy way to spend the day. 50 weeks a year I'm on the computer for work 8 hours or more a day. Seems extremely unhealthy to me! I do try to avoid the extreme overtime when I can though, so 6 days a week happens but not that often.


Which is great! She deserves a break.

actually everyone does, but that's what I always say. 3 months real vacation for everyone!

I often think I should have gone into something I'd get vacations from, if any such thing exists. Maybe it's not teaching?

[Tussiemussies]

That is quite a lot to integrate before the school year starts. Have three in my family that are teachers and they do have most of the summer off. Maybe your school has higher standards? Hope you get some down-time..chris

[ToomuchStuff]

Are you and the students provided with an iPad?

[nswef]

Apathetic no More As a former teacher ( 31 years) I always felt that the entire world would be a better place if everyone had 10 weeks off with nothing piling up back at the office. Even when I had work to do in the summer, classes, curriculum, etc. I did not have things piled on my desk in August that I had to do before I could start the school year. Clean slate. So, if that could be done , and I think it could, in every business- Wow- what a great world it would be. The 10 weeks would not need to be in the summer- just a true break from work.

[Rachel]

Yes, everyone has an ipad.

[Rachel]

That is quite a lot to integrate before the school year starts. Have three in my family that are teachers and they do have most of the summer off. Maybe your school has higher standards? Hope you get some down-time..chris

Yes, the standards are high, and they should be. It just feels like an awful lot to me right now. And it ends up being a lot of screen time for the students---I think they need a break from their screens during the school day but most people in my workplace don't see it that way. The school is introducing one major new system this year and my department is taking on its own internal new system. As an older employee I don't think it is wise to say one word about moderation in the area of change. So easy to get stereotyped as a change-averse "old" person! I'm hoping that if I can really get some of these systems "down" over the summer I will feel better and less stressed when the school year starts.

[Miss Cellane]

Well, I suspect Rachel *could* put off learning the new software and apps, and loading information into the systems. There are certainly some of her colleagues who will.

And those will be the teachers running around helpless the first week of school, asking all the teachers who did spend the time learning the new tech for help and generally making life miserable for the rest of the staff. There will be parents calling in because promised things aren't working, students upset because they are supposed to be using the new apps and they can't, etc., etc.

And if the teachers want good reviews at the end of the year, they'll put in the time now, while they have it, to learn the new tech. Once school starts and they have correcting and lesson plans, they won't have much time to learn the new stuff.

It's just that in most jobs, you get sent to seminars or have classes while you are at work, i.e. getting paid for your time, to learn this stuff. Teachers are expected to put in the time when they aren't working--at home during the school year, at home over the summer, to learn it.

Think of the assignments your kids have in school. Rachel has the summer to get all of them in shape to be put on-line, then get them all on-line. Is she getting paid for this time?

Yes, she can take time off when she wants to over the summer. But that doesn't mean her job doesn't make demands of her just because she isn't in the classroom.

[TxZen]

Just met another teacher who does doggie daycare during the summer. She is an animal lover with some land. She says it supplements her income, gets her exercise in and it's relaxing to her. :)

[ApatheticNoMore]

It's just that in most jobs, you get sent to seminars or have classes while you are at work, i.e. getting paid for your time, to learn this stuff. Teachers are expected to put in the time when they aren't working--at home during the school year, at home over the summer, to learn it.

I have NEVER found that to be the case. I've often had to learn things for my profession. I do it on my own time mostly and I've paid my own money (a large part of why I've taken the life long learning credit tax deduction - it's not all basket weaving even if it's occasionally something non-work related I just want to learn - it's mostly work related). It's something that has often exhausted me just thinking about the profession - how much learning is required on one's free time. Yes I have seen people go to workshops but that's almost always reserved for management and the most senior people, that's not always me. It doesn't mean I don't have to learn stuff just to keep up. So no I don't think companies paying you to learn stuff on there time is how the world works. Not hardly. How an ideal world might work? maybe - shrug.

Though taking a class or reading technical books on top of a 40 hour week truthfully probably does take less motivation, than Rachel's whole self-motivated intensive training program on the "summer off". 6 hours a day when you're "off". I might goof off on that one :) Spend all my time at the beach instead :) Because six fully hours of daily self-motivated unpaid work - whew.

[Gardenarian]

Hi Rachel,

I feel for you! I am a college librarian and am taking my first summer off in about 15 years - it's heaven. Of course I'm still getting all the emails about what I'm supposed to be up on, but I'm doing my best to ignore them.

My sister teaches at a Monstessori school and truly does have her summers off.

As a homeschooling parent, all this technology and preparation strikes me as overkill. I do admire teachers for their love and dedication to the children, but I wish every teacher (and educational administrator) could homeschool for a few months to see that keeping up with the curriculum is not what learning is all about.

[Miss Cellane]

I have NEVER found that to be the case. I've often had to learn things for my profession. I do it on my own time mostly and I've paid my own money (a large part of why I've taken the life long learning credit tax deduction - it's not all basket weaving even if it's occasionally something non-work related I just want to learn - it's mostly work related). It's something that has often exhausted me just thinking about the profession - how much learning is required on one's free time. Yes I have seen people go to workshops but that's almost always reserved for management and the most senior people, that's not always me. It doesn't mean I don't have to learn stuff just to keep up. So no I don't think companies paying you to learn stuff on there time is how the world works. Not hardly. How an ideal world might work? maybe - shrug.

Though taking a class or reading technical books on top of a 40 hour week truthfully probably does take less motivation, than Rachel's whole self-motivated intensive training program on the "summer off". 6 hours a day when you're "off". I might goof off on that one :) Spend all my time at the beach instead :) Because six fully hours of daily self-motivated unpaid work - whew.

I'm not talking about anything other than software or other tech. Each profession has it's own continuing education requirements--that's a different matter.

The jobs I've had, if I had to learn new software, the company or organization (for the non-profits) either sent me to a seminar or provided time and resources for me to learn the stuff on the job. The jobs I've had, it is important that the employees be able to use the new hardware and software the day it goes live, so that clients or customers get the service they need/want. The only way to get that is for the company to make sure everyone is trained. Now, the quality of the training has varied, I'll admit.

Your work experience has been different, obviously. But the only time I went out and took a software course on my own was when we had a totally incompetent IT guy who clearly didn't know Access. I took a couple of classes and learned enough to do the basics that we needed on my own. And when the owners of the company found out, they reimbursed me for the courses.

[Tammy]

Just want to say that nurses have to learn new software on the fly as we care for our regular load of patients. Updates to the electronic medical record are pushed out and we discover it the next time we log in while caring for patients. Not everyone gets seminars.

[Tammy]

My grandchild is homeschooled through the k11 online public program. All lesson plans etc are prepared and my parent just teaches it. I don't know for the life of me why regular teachers couldn't have pre-developed lesson plans ready for their use. Each teacher duplicates the work of developing a lesson plan individually. So inefficient.

[Miss Cellane]

Just want to say that nurses have to learn new software on the fly as we care for our regular load of patients. Updates to the electronic medical record are pushed out and we discover it the next time we log in while caring for patients. Not everyone gets seminars.

And as someone who would be a patient, that scares me. What if someone made a mistake?

Heck, when I worked for a library, they trained us for two months on the new software, so that people could get their books checked out without a hassle. I think medical personnel should get more training than we did, not less.

[Tammy]

I agree totally. I watched med errors drop by more than half after going to an electronic record. That was great. But now I spend so much time looking at a screen. I really would rather do patient care than typing. :)

[Rachel]

Well, I suspect Rachel *could* put off learning the new software and apps, and loading information into the systems. There are certainly some of her colleagues who will.

And those will be the teachers running around helpless the first week of school, asking all the teachers who did spend the time learning the new tech for help and generally making life miserable for the rest of the staff. There will be parents calling in because promised things aren't working, students upset because they are supposed to be using the new apps and they can't, etc., etc.

And if the teachers want good reviews at the end of the year, they'll put in the time now, while they have it, to learn the new tech. Once school starts and they have correcting and lesson plans, they won't have much time to learn the new stuff.

It's just that in most jobs, you get sent to seminars or have classes while you are at work, i.e. getting paid for your time, to learn this stuff. Teachers are expected to put in the time when they aren't working--at home during the school year, at home over the summer, to learn it.

Think of the assignments your kids have in school. Rachel has the summer to get all of them in shape to be put on-line, then get them all on-line. Is she getting paid for this time?

Yes, she can take time off when she wants to over the summer. But that doesn't mean her job doesn't make demands of her just because she isn't in the classroom.

Thanks, Miss Cellane! You get it! I just started back with the teacher meetings this week and already they are throwing so much at us that I am very, very glad I did so much over the summer. I am one of the "older" teachers on the higher end of the pay scale and I do not want to give them even a smidgen of a reason to try to push me out...I see it happen every year to people in my age range. On the more positive side, I find I can relax a bit more and learn the kids' personalities faster at the beginning of the year if I'm not frantic about getting a lot of infrastructure in place. So, it works out. Thanks to everyone for the comments, it's always helpful to get a range of perspectives.

[awakenedsoul]

You were smart to stay on top of the work, Rachel. I know what you mean about being a older teacher. Sorry you didn't get to relax more over the summer.

I am friendly with the school principal at our local elementary school. (We run our dogs there.) She seems so stressed out all the time. She's always there, working. I see her car in the parking lot at night, on Sundays, etc. It's really sad. Teaching has really changed in the last 35 years...