JCT Wellbeing Day

Bobtheman

look lads and lassies-kids dont need no medication. No phyciatrist or psychologist. They dont need de media to stop shoving useless **** to buy or telling them they need to look thin or eat kale. Man they need a teacher with a one day course telling them what is what!

maynooth_rules

mtoutlemonde wrote: »

That's the problem - no one is thinking at all!!! It's all fun and games (well being and post-its) until someone gets hurt (our students).

But its worth it for the post its.

Its shameful that this has been allowed to happen to the Junior Cert. Good teachers would have always cared for their students wellbeing within their assigned class, we don't need airy fairy workshops to help

mtoutlemonde

Excellent post on Voice for Teachers - not everyone on Facebook. Sums up what the majority of teachers are feeling. If only we had stood our ground

Hi,

Having attended my 2nd cluster day a couple of weeks ago I voiced a concern I have regarding the new JCT to one of the JCT facilitators (who by the way was lovely and very supportive). He unfortunately was the wall to who I threw my biggest frustration at but also the wrong person because he has his job to do and at the end of the day he cannot change things but hopefully voice my concern to the people above him. And again what will this actually change? Nothing. But that said I cannot let this go and need to voice it until I feel it’s heard but the right people.

I am an MFL, SPHE/Well-being and Geography teacher embracing the change before us and doing everything I can (when I can) to get to grips with it. However, I just cannot get my head round why a team of subject experts weren’t employed to create a template Scheme of Work and template Units of Learning (and I don’t mean a few samples) I mean the whole 3 year course load and allow the teachers the ‘autonomy’ to alter these as they see fit within the realms of their own schools/areas/student cohort etc. Not to mention create top notch active learning resource packs, subject specific for teachers to make a start within an already rolled out system.

This just baffles me. In an ideal world I would have a year off purely to create the necessary planning behind such a massive change in my classroom and feel happy I know what it is I’m doing and also that I am doing it to the best of my ability and to the betterment of all my students. It would also mean I would have the time to be creative and come up with wonderfully laminated active learning resources/games/methodologies that I could use year on year and build up a repertoire of not good but EXCELLENT teaching methods and tools.

Instead autonomy has been given to teachers. No it hasn’t. What I believe has been given to us is a highly inspirational yet unbelievably demanding, time-consuming, next to impossible task. I feel like a headless chicken at the minute. Even if I was to spend every single waking hour I have to this task I would fail because I would be burnt out and useless in the classroom. What about our wellbeing???? There I am teaching SPHE/Wellbeing to my wonderful students and advising them on how they should look after themselves and make themselves be more aware, connected, resilient etc. Yet i am the biggest hypocrite in my classroom at times.

I have two very young children at home and have recently started a Postgraduate Course but that doesn’t make me less enthusiastic as a teacher or make my drive to achieve the best out of each and every single one of my students any less. If anything it makes me appreciate my job and my pivotal role in a child’s education more intense. Hence my further education during an already extremely busy personal life. It also makes me more efficient with my time. Well at least try desperately to be. I am working like a Trojan in school and utilising every moment to work and get my job done but I am failing and failing miserably in every which sense of the word, in work, home and personally.

With trying to get to grips with a new system, create brand new plans, units of learning, CBA’s (in more than one subject also). I also have to actively teach the brand new system (always doubting myself because I have nothing to go by and not knowing what the 90% accredited final destination consists of). I’m doing this aswell as teaching the old JC system, dealing with every day occurrences - behaviour, student issues, extra-curricular (varying forms of this and very dependent on the individual teacher and their ‘other roles’), trips, marking, lesson planning, resource making. Oh and teaching a senior cycle curriculum which now has the added worry that if the new JCT system will fully equip seniors in their senior cycle studies in my subject(s). This now adds more pressure to my new JCT planning because I am now extremely conscious that this will impact dramatically on my future senior students. Wait. Have I eaten? Have I actually spoken to a colleague? Have I collaborated with them? I’ve spent ages creating a lesson and they did it another way and I was really good, better than my way and if I actually had time to sit down properly and share ideas we could have cut our workload. Damn. Sure spend more time outside of school hours and plan, collaborate, share resources. Take more time away from your personal life/family life/relationships/relaxation/wellbeing. But life is work is it not?

I love teaching, I have always wanted to teach and to mentor young children/adults and help them strive to be and achieve the best versions of themselves. Build their self-confidence, make them feel important, reach their highest potential (whatever that may be) live their best life. But am I such a good role model if I’m permanently stressed out, always worrying that I’m under-achieving/failing at a job that I always knew was a learning experience but the goal post is constantly being pushed further and further back. Teaching/facilitating is my main job, yet is possibly the last thing I get to turn my attention to because I have so many other ‘important’ things to do also. What good is a wonderful scheme of work, units of learning, active resources etc. when I am possibly worked to the bone and so burnt out from all the ‘planning’ but my teaching is going to pot because I literally cannot stretch myself any further.

I know I have lost myself in this heartfelt message but this is just a small (and I really mean small) insight into how I (one teacher) feels right at this moment in time. I have a lot more to say.

That said I will conclude with my opening argument...in this turbulent, ever-changing profession (this is natural and I do embrace the changes) but why on earth could a small team of subject specific experts not be taken out of the classroom for a year or a team of unemployed, qualified teachers be hired and their expertise in the field and subject be used to create at least a bench mark for ALL educators and ALL students. This would have been monumental for all active teachers in the classroom. make something that little bit easier and stress-free. It wouldn’t be doing our job it would be facilitating our learning in the roll out of quite a significant change to our current education system, to our jobs, our vocation. It would fully empower us with the knowledge of the change and allow us to actively and successfully teach/facilitate the intentions/aims/outcomes/features of quality/key skills/strands intended by the JCT. instead it is a free for all making many of us question our vocation/career path and abilities.

Just a thought that needed to be voiced before I go mad and beat myself up more for wanting to spend time with my children and create memories but at the same time actively worry about the fact that I’m not lesson planning or creating resources or brand new plans - that could actually be so far away from the intended (secretive) 90% summative content driven assessment my students have to sit and then I have to start all over again. I barely have time to unpack a suitcase when I return from a relaxing holiday let alone unpack many learning outcomes and create meaningful, active based units of learning for at least one if not more subjects while fulfil all my other duties as a teacher/educator/role model/form teacher/wife/mammy/friend.
Wellbeing?? What wellbeing??

Studentblogger

That's certainly a right rant and this person's anger and frustration is palpable.

With respect to the autonomy part, this is the kind of autonomy the DES / Inspectorate / NCCA want. They're not shy about this. It's called 'Teacher as Curriculum Developer'. That's why Junior Cycle is being reduced to specifications: they specify outcomes, not content.

A (good) syllabus, and to a certain extent, a 'standard' (see some US states for example) will convey content (knowledge) as well as refer to outcomes. Specifications don't do this.

You bring the content, through your own labour.

A good friend of mine had a subject inspection recently. One recommendation the inspector made was to reduce the use of text books. They, in the inspector's opinion, were too reliant on them.

This Wellbeing lark is simply another thick layer of work foisted onto teachers. And teachers will be required to do the heavy lifting.

Bobtheman

Im out at sea over this. What happens to Religion? Has that been thrown under the bus?

maynooth_rules

Bobtheman wrote: »

Im out at sea over this. What happens to Religion? Has that been thrown under the bus?

Our junior cert education system has been thrown under the bus. It's depressing to head science and bus studies teachers today say how dumbed down the sample papers that were released yesterday are.

solerina

maynooth_rules wrote: »

Our junior cert education system has been thrown under the bus. It's depressing to head science and bus studies teachers today say how dumbed down the sample papers that were released yesterday are.

Common level = dumbed down unfortunately !! Science paper was quite wordy in parts which won’t help students with SEN

evolving_doors

maynooth_rules wrote: »

Our junior cert education system has been thrown under the bus. It's depressing to head science and bus studies teachers today say how dumbed down the sample papers that were released yesterday are.

Where's the sample papers hosted?

mtoutlemonde

evolving_doors wrote: »

Where's the sample papers hosted?

examinations.ie

evolving_doors

mtoutlemonde wrote: »

examinations.ie

Checked there but obviously didn't go to the right place.

Can ya be a bit more Pacific?

SligoBrewer

evolving_doors wrote: »

Checked there but obviously didn't go to the right place.

Can ya be a bit more Pacific?

https://www.examinations.ie/?l=en&mc=ex&sc=jc

PureClareGold

evolving_doors wrote: »

Checked there but obviously didn't go to the right place.

Can ya be a bit more Pacific?

And here we can see one of the biggest issues in Irish Education. We want everything handed to us. The link was examinations.ie and when you go there all you have to do is read what's in front of you. It clearly states Junior Cycle Sample Papers.
As teachers some of us have to move with the times and not stay stuck in the past.

evolving_doors

PureClareGold wrote: »

And here we can see one of the biggest issues in Irish Education. We want everything handed to us. The link was examinations.ie and when you go there all you have to do is read what's in front of you. It clearly states Junior Cycle Sample Papers.
As teachers some of us have to move with the times and not stay stuck in the past.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYOZ3IzRaf4

maynooth_rules

As teachers some of us have to move with the times and not stay stuck in the past.

As teachers we also have to call out pointless change for changes sake as well. We all want the best for our students, I personally believe in 5-10 years time we will finally admit we failed them with this new JC

evolving_doors

maynooth_rules wrote: »

As teachers we also have to call out pointless change for changes sake as well. We all want the best for our students, I personally believe in 5-10 years time we will finally admit we failed them with this new JC

And they would have gotten away with it too if it wasn't for those pesky teachers.

solerina

maynooth_rules wrote: »

As teachers we also have to call out pointless change for changes sake as well. We all want the best for our students, I personally believe in 5-10 years time we will finally admit we failed them with this new JC

Hopefully it will be closer to 5 and not 10 !!

PureClareGold

maynooth_rules wrote: »

As teachers we also have to call out pointless change for changes sake as well. We all want the best for our students, I personally believe in 5-10 years time we will finally admit we failed them with this new JC

And I believe in 5 or 10 years time we will say how right we were to change as our world had changed so much. All depends on your own point of view and what you value

Inspector Coptoor

PureClareGold wrote: »

And I believe in 5 or 10 years time we will say how right we were to change as our world had changed so much. All depends on your own point of view and what you value

So we go from having students do one set of “high stakes” exams in the old Junior Cert that was 10 exams in 2-3 weeks to now doing 8 CBAS in 2nd year, 8 CBAS in 3rd year as well as 8 ATs and 8 exams worth 90%?
And some have the gall to claim they think this is good for them and their well-being?

PureClareGold

Inspector Coptoor wrote: »

So we go from having students do one set of “high stakes” exams in the old Junior Cert that was 10 exams in 2-3 weeks to now doing 8 CBAS in 2nd year, 8 CBAS in 3rd year as well as 8 ATs and 8 exams worth 90%?
And some have the gall to claim they think this is good for them and their well-being?

Many of the CBAs are a deadline for submission of pieces of work they have been working on over time. A great skill to learn. Let's not equate CBAs to SEC exams. If done correctly they will happen naturally in class. A little less sensationalism and more realism will help people understand things better

km79

Inspector Coptoor wrote: »

So we go from having students do one set of “high stakes” exams in the old Junior Cert that was 10 exams in 2-3 weeks to now doing 8 CBAS in 2nd year, 8 CBAS in 3rd year as well as 8 ATs and 8 exams worth 90%?
And some have the gall to claim they think this is good for them and their well-being?

Had this discussion today ahead of our Wellbeing day.........when CBAs come in fully extra curricular activities will be decimated. It just wont be possible to run them all and avoid hitting CBAs. Kind of ironic........

Inspector Coptoor

PureClareGold wrote: »

Many of the CBAs are a deadline for submission of pieces of work they have been working on over time. A great skill to learn. Let's not equate CBAs to SEC exams. If done correctly they will happen naturally in class. A little less sensationalism and more realism will help people understand things better

You don’t take the point that that kind of workload - 8 x 3 week CBAs in a 33 week school year will be overkill, could lead to anxiety in some students and would go against their well-being?
The very thing this thread is about?

That price of work is meant to start and finish in a 3 week period.

PureClareGold

Inspector Coptoor wrote: »

You don’t take the point that that kind of workload - 8 x 3 week CBAs in a 33 week school year will be overkill, could lead to anxiety in some students and would go against their well-being?
The very thing this thread is about?

That price of work is meant to start and finish in a 3 week period.

Not all CBAs have three week windows. Look into it. English CBA 2 is a year and a half where students create pieces of writing in class (as normally would have been done in the past) and the CBA is a deadline. Art has a four month window and no AT. Let's get the facts right please.

acequion

PureClareGold wrote: »

Not all CBAs have three week windows. Look into it. English CBA 2 is a year and a half where students create pieces of writing in class (as normally would have been done in the past) and the CBA is a deadline. Art has a four month window and no AT. Let's get the facts right please.

Why don't you get your facts right!

The second year CBA for English has only a three week window as is the case for all the second year CBA's. A lot more pressure on young second years than used to be the case.

And on the subject of English. While preparing the collection of texts over that year and a half, let's not forget all the other stuff that has to be prepared for the final exam. Two novels,as opposed to one in the old JC, a Shakesperian play and an extract, as opposed to just the former in the old JC. A film, none in the old JC, selection of poetry as in old JC and a wider range of texts and modes of expression to be familiar with. Which all amounts to WAY more work.

Fine if you love all this new stuff. But as you love facts,the big fact is that most people are struggling with it and most see it as change for the sake of change and are far from persuaded by it.

PureClareGold

acequion wrote: »

Why don't you get your facts right!

The second year CBA for English has only a three week window as is the case for all the second year CBA's. A lot more pressure on young second years than used to be the case.

And on the subject of English. While preparing the collection of texts over that year and a half, let's not forget all the other stuff that has to be prepared for the final exam. Two novels,as opposed to one in the old JC, a Shakesperian play and an extract, as opposed to just the former in the old JC. A film, none in the old JC, selection of poetry as in old JC and a wider range of texts and modes of expression to be familiar with. Which all amounts to WAY more work.

Fine if you love all this new stuff. But as you love facts,the big fact is that most people are struggling with it and most see it as change for the sake of change and are far from persuaded by it.

If you read what I said I stated CBA 2 has a year and a half. That is the 2nd CBA students engage with which happens in 3rd Year. You are correct in that CBA 1 which happens in 2nd Year has a three week window.

The CBAs can encorporate work that supports what is happening while engaging with the content. If a student writes a character analysis of one character in their novel that can be a piece for cba2. If they write a diary entry as one of the characters in Romeo and Julie that can be included. It's about making it work and for me it does. Maybe I'm just further along than you

Inspector Coptoor

PureClareGold wrote: »

Not all CBAs have three week windows. Look into it. English CBA 2 is a year and a half where students create pieces of writing in class (as normally would have been done in the past) and the CBA is a deadline. Art has a four month window and no AT. Let's get the facts right please.

I’m basing it off on my own subject which is science.

It’s hard enough get my facts straight for my own subject never mind other subjects.

It’s an undefined, ill thought out shambles.

Inspector Coptoor

PureClareGold wrote: »

If you read what I said I stated CBA 2 has a year and a half. That is the 2nd CBA students engage with which happens in 3rd Year. You are correct in that CBA 1 which happens in 2nd Year has a three week window.

The CBAs can encorporate work that supports what is happening while engaging with the content. If a student writes a character analysis of one character in their novel that can be a piece for cba2. If they write a diary entry as one of the characters in Romeo and Julie that can be included. It's about making it work and for me it does. Maybe I'm just further along than you

I never thought I’d see a “humble brag” about the new junior cycle.

Put the Kool Aid down

PureClareGold

Inspector Coptoor wrote: »

I’m basing it off on my own subject which is science.

It’s hard enough get my facts straight for my own subject never mind other subjects.

It’s an undefined, ill thought out shambles.

Again that's your point of view. I have a different one.

deiseindublin

PureClareGold wrote: »

Maybe I'm just further along than you

Reminds me of Homer with the 7 stages of grief, I think the rest of it are still struggling with stages 2 and 3.

acequion

PureClareGold wrote: »

If you read what I said I stated CBA 2 has a year and a half. That is the 2nd CBA students engage with which happens in 3rd Year. You are correct in that CBA 1 which happens in 2nd Year has a three week window.

The CBAs can encorporate work that supports what is happening while engaging with the content. If a student writes a character analysis of one character in their novel that can be a piece for cba2. If they write a diary entry as one of the characters in Romeo and Julie that can be included. It's about making it work and for me it does. Maybe I'm just further along than you

I would very much doubt that you're any further along than any of the rest of us. You just think you are because you've been singing the praises of this new JC off your hymn sheet for over a year now. If you took off the rose tinted specs you might just see some of the flaws so many people are flagging.

And yes I'm long enough in this job to know what works and how to make something work. And you're right that all that stuff can be used for CBA's. But they were being done before in a much less pressure environment [without the CBA] and the writing tasks were much more structured and explicitly prescribed. Now a student might just do a diary entry, a character question, throw in a letter or some such. Could completely by pass vital writing skills like a developed argument, as in the essay or an extended creative writing piece. Now all that is at the discretion of the teacher and will every teacher make sure they learn the right skills? And what happens when they go into 5th year and have never written an essay?

It's a mine field or as another poster said, an ill thought out shambles. But good for you if you love it all!

PureClareGold

acequion wrote: »

I would very much doubt that you're any further along than any of the rest of us. You just think you are because you've been singing the praises of this new JC off your hymn sheet for over a year now. If you took off the rose tinted specs you might just see some of the flaws so many people are flagging.

And yes I'm long enough in this job to know what works and how to make something work. And you're right that all that stuff can be used for CBA's. But they were being done before in a much less pressure environment [without the CBA] and the writing tasks were much more structured and explicitly prescribed. Now a student might just do a diary entry, a character question, throw in a letter or some such. Could completely by pass vital writing skills like a developed argument, as in the essay or an extended creative writing piece. Now all that is at the discretion of the teacher and will every teacher make sure they learn the right skills? And what happens when they go into 5th year and have never written an essay?

It's a mine field or as another poster said, an ill thought out shambles. But good for you if you love it all!

You can't legislate for bad practice. All I know is the students in my classes are well prepared for their CBAs, their AT, their exam and I'm finding much more depth to their answers at 5th year. That is my experience. Important to listen to the positives as well.