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am i expecting too much?


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after some advice,

my 2 older early years educators have not yet familiarised themselves with the EYFS development matters. i said today that they need to be familiar with 22-36, 30-50 and 40-40 bands in order to be able to plan activities to meet next steps/assess where their children are/fill in next steps in learning journeys etc etc. am i being harsh? they seemed horrified (one has been in the nursery for 16 years, other 3. i've been there 7 years.)

what do you think? it's a school nursery

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that's what we use. well, are supposed to.... the problem is they say they haven't got time to read it all, along with learning journeys, and assessment sheets (sheets to highlight once they have seen evidence several times - development bands statements). one has 5 children - a nurture group, and other 11. i have 12. one who has 11 has 1 1/2 hours out of class to help, as she has double the amount. which is the same amount of time as i have for PPA incidentally. they say writing in next steps is time consuming. i say it shouldn't be as they should be very familiar and 'just know' next steps for most things. or how can they know what to be doing for a child to push them on in their learning during CI play etc? god am glad it's not just me

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They've practically had 2 years to familiarise themselves with it, I would be looking at an improvement plan with time limits, especially now with Ofsteds big push on the consistency and knowledge of teaching and looking at staff monitoring, supervision meetings and development needs.......but the thing that irks me most, and does with some of my staff is that they don't feel they have to keep up to date with what's changing in EY's and find out information on their own time, but magically think you can drip feed it in to them because as the managers/supervisors/leaders you automatically just know everything when changes happen, I'm not sure how they actually think you know it without putting in the effort ..... I often feel like screaming at them this is a Job/career choice not a b***y hobby......phew rant over :-/

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you have hit the nail on the head there. magically i just know everything. it didn't take lots of reading up and online research for me to do so did it? and using this fantastic forum..... it's so frustrating. i'm nursery teacher. TA's and EYE's don't have appraisals. and i know we are very inconsistent in our practise/learning journeys etc. i try to give bit of time for inset in planning meetings, but it's no where near enough. and if we spend time after the session doing anything they complain that the time should have been spent on doing their learning journeys. what to do?

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I was a TA but am now an EYE having been regraded via Single Status. I only have the EYE grade because i am a key worker and am involved with assessment etc. I get 1 hour a week to do LJs. I sort all the obs for all of our 48 children BUT the class teacher does the assessments as she prefers this. I do all 48 LJ updates and the system works well for us! WE are very much a team.

 

Our Head only agreed to the EYE garde if i was doing my share of the work!!! I have always doine more than I'm emant to and am usually ahead of the EYFS teaching staff on changes to expectaions of Ofsted etc via this forum! All of our TA now have appraisals which are like the teacher's performance management, although progression isn't performance linked. I would be checking whether their job description requires them to do the things you suggest and if so, check they are being given non contact time. I get no time within the sessions, it's all after nursery and after packing up time. I feel personally that being aware of DMs etc is a basic professional requirement!! Maybe I expect too much of others!!

Edited by Madmum
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they get 45 minutes a day extra pay. 15 mins is to set up their room first thing, 30 is to do learning journals/update assessment sheet etc. TA's in school do half an hour or more extra for nothing. just feel really frustrated. i want to move on but am still trying to embed good practise.... OMG!!

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I'm surprised that there is no appraisal for support staff in place...it's fairly standard in the schools I work in.

They should be familiar with a document they have to use to highlight next steps for goodness sake. Inconsistent practice would not be a good thing if the school was inspected, and if the EYFS gets a separate grading again this would shine a light on assessment practice and the role of other adults in just the early years.

Cx

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Please don't let my staff know yours get 30 mins a day :o mine get between 1 & 1.5hrs a week depending on number of KC, .....the one with only 5 has half an hour each week to update each LJ !!! So how are the DM's not sinking in :/

we never have time to do inset for just us, and that's what we need. so i try and do bits in planning meeting,and if i find they don't understand something, i'll go through it with them - might notice on planning evaluations, or when i moderate their assessments. foundation stage leader never does anything for FS only key 1. she's year 2 teacher. head and deputy key 2 experience only. they don't understand what the statements mean.... but they are similar to old stepping stones, so not a totally new curriculum.... oldest one just hates change, and has no wish to move on. constantly harping back to the days when she just put a few activities out and made nice adult displays! and other one struggles to understand that as you move to next age band more is expected. and assessment should be mainly from child initiated.

and i know catma. i always use my folders for moderation/literacy/numeracy trawls!! and make sure i know all children really well!! and do lots of CI post-its for them. it is frustrating, but good to offload/share!!

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I think your leadership team should hang their head in shame where is your support. Never mind your TAs not understanding the document they work with (which I find shocking) the leadership team don't either. Do they think when Ofsted come in they wont need this knowledge "oh sorry not sure of that question I will pass you on to the class teacher" they are management they should be monitoring you and your staff so should have a good knowledge if not a practical one.

I am a school governor and know that the management team and HT have a good knowledge they regularly visit and monitor each class and their team this is brought to supervision and appraisals to use as an aid for training and good practice. When they had Ofsted last year leadership and management was outstanding. That doesn't happen unless they put the work in they are letting you down you must be exhausted as well as frustrated. Oh so sorry just feel cross for you and your team how will they improve if management don't have a hand in it. You are doing a super job with one hand tied behind your back role on the end of term.

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I think your leadership team should hang their head in shame where is your support. Never mind your TAs not understanding the document they work with (which I find shocking) the leadership team don't either. Do they think when Ofsted come in they wont need this knowledge "oh sorry not sure of that question I will pass you on to the class teacher" they are management they should be monitoring you and your staff so should have a good knowledge if not a practical one.

I am a school governor and know that the management team and HT have a good knowledge they regularly visit and monitor each class and their team this is brought to supervision and appraisals to use as an aid for training and good practice. When they had Ofsted last year leadership and management was outstanding. That doesn't happen unless they put the work in they are letting you down you must be exhausted as well as frustrated. Oh so sorry just feel cross for you and your team how will they improve if management don't have a hand in it. You are doing a super job with one hand tied behind your back role on the end of term.

thank you. i agree! rant over, will dust myself off and finish my reports now which are due in tomorrow!!!

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I'm surprised that there is no appraisal for support staff in place...it's fairly standard in the schools I work in.

They should be familiar with a document they have to use to highlight next steps for goodness sake. Inconsistent practice would not be a good thing if the school was inspected, and if the EYFS gets a separate grading again this would shine a light on assessment practice and the role of other adults in just the early years.

Cx

Any idea Catma when thewre may be a decision on separate grading again?

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They've practically had 2 years to familiarise themselves with it, I would be looking at an improvement plan with time limits, especially now with Ofsteds big push on the consistency and knowledge of teaching and looking at staff monitoring, supervision meetings and development needs.......but the thing that irks me most, and does with some of my staff is that they don't feel they have to keep up to date with what's changing in EY's and find out information on their own time, but magically think you can drip feed it in to them because as the managers/supervisors/leaders you automatically just know everything when changes happen, I'm not sure how they actually think you know it without putting in the effort ..... I often feel like screaming at them this is a Job/career choice not a b***y hobby......phew rant over :-/

Soooooooo true, or was! I now have a crack team who do their best to understand and learn for themselves.

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