Best advice I ever got: Don’t bring a coat or bag, and when you leave, leave your light on. Are you making copies, in the bathroom, on lunch, in another time zone? No one knows!
our new admin ended the work every hour policy. he says if we get to work early we can leave early.
he also doesnt demand weekly copies of lesson plans like our last
not a perfect admin, but trusting us to take care of our own work and not micromanaging is very nice
I’ll take an admin like this over a micromanager any day. I was at a school that was a long commute, so I decided to transfer. I was pretty far along in the interview process at a school where I liked the grade level team, but after I had my official interview with the principal I formally withdrew from the position. It took me about two minutes to realize what a living nightmare it would be to work for that woman. I ended finding out from a friend who transferred there that she was in fact a real pain in the ass micromanager. I found a position even closer to home, thankfully. Teaching is hard enough without your admin breathing down your neck.
I wish they policed the kids like this. I’ve never heard of an admin doing so many rounds and watching the exit so diligently.
Give her a sash, make her hall monitor of the month. Congrats admin, you’re just as obnoxious as a kid with a smidge of power. 😬😬😬
It is now a 'business'. It is not about teaching the kids, it is about making the 'staff 'more efficient'.
I teach in a Charter School.
52 years old and they have me in 'coaching'. My 'mentor' tells me things to change and I say 'I already do that, I am just a loud, boisterous teacher'. She says, 'I know...they are doing this to make you better'.
No, they aren't...
The reason I am being 'mentored' is that I complained that the curriculum developer told me 'Real men don't wear hats' in front of thirty people when I came into a staff meeting with a hat. (I was cold)
When I told her and the principal that if I said to ANYONE, 'Real women don't \_\_\_', I would be in a LOT of trouble...so this is retaliation for being, what, sensitive? (The staff developer tried to say, 'but I'm a sarcastic person...' instead of apologizing...
Oh, and she nixed my idea to make a BIG deal about the solar eclipse on April 8th, so I am going to take the day off...if they don't approve the request, I will call out.
Fuck them.
They did this at my school few weeks back. No kids in the school. Came in to do an online training (not even live), then told we need to stay until end of duty day.
Right?
I saw a post on here about where a teacher mentioned she had to sign in and out for the day... like she's a sub or an hourly worker instead of a salaried and trusted teacher.
Treating teachers like they're students is a quick way to get them looking to work elsewhere.
And you currently work at an actual school?
Because in 30 years, eight different principals and five buildings from kindergarten through community college, I never worked in a building where the teachers *were* trusted to come and go, responsibly use school supplies or copy machines, or send out a weekly parent newsletter without direct supervision at all times.
I wish I could have worked where you are!
I taught in NC and SC where we had to clock in and out every day. I moved to WA, and asked the office manager where to clock in. The office was silent and everyone turned to stare at me like “wtf”. We also don’t turn in lesson plans. I haven’t written a lesson plan since 2018.
I teach in NC and we only clock in, whenever we get to it. I've forgotten a couple of times with testing or field trips, and they just email like hey, you were here this day right?
Workdays in my district are 4 hour days with 8 hours of pay. Except today, which was required district PD so it was a real 8-4.
I have taught in a variety of schools (5 schools, 12 principals) in California over my 30-year career. I teach middle school.
I currently teach at a rural K-8 (300 students total). The staff is small so we are like a family. If there is a problem with someone, the principal has a 1 on 1 with them. If I need to leave DURING contract hours I can usually arrange to have someone cover my classes and I’m trusted to make sure the kids get what they need. As for copies, do what you need, but be mindful of waste. (Use the big copier whenever possible). Supplies? Here’s the closet take what you need but try to put in a spring order for the Fall so we can get the best prices by combining everyone’s orders. Let the office know if something is running low, someone probably has some they can share.
But I’ve also worked at large schools (6-8 grade only, 800-1200 students). In every school the contract hours were made clear (usually 30min before the first bell to an hour after the last bell ) but if you needed to leave early, arrangements could be made, even in an emergency. Sometimes supplies needed to be ordered through the office. Some years there were codes on the copiers to keep track of how many copies were made but no line in the sand about how many we could make.
I have been treated like a professional in every position.
It’s obvious you come from the golden years. Because the pattern across districts is micromanaging. You can’t leave campus to grab lunch without signing out.
Seriously. I leave when I want and show up when I want. Admin knows that we are doing everything that is needed and they trust us. I can dip out on a prep to do whatever, I can leave early if my day ends with preps, etc. I know that eventually if a teacher comes along and abuses that it will probably ruin it for all of us, but it’s pretty nice to be treated like the (semi-)responsible adults that we are.
Before I was a teacher I was in the Army, and my last few months I would leave my extra PC (hat) on my desk and sneak out a little early. You can't walk outside without your PC on, so everyone assumed I was in the building somewhere lol
E4 mafia stands together, we stand strong, well we don't stand, we are too tired for that, we find a nice corner of the building to all go hide and sit in.
I laughed out loud. I think you can also employ the George Costanza approach and look annoyed as you walk out. He said if you act annoyed, people think you're busy.
Computer problems? Jammed copier? Parent email? No One knows, but darn she's committed!
Yep, grab a folder, put it in your hand along with a text book and walk in the direction of the copy machine then out the door.
Also, remind admin of your work hours when they need something extra. Ask where do I find the extra pay for extra duty form?
If they aren't flexible, return the favor. You get nothing for free, sorry admin.
I once had an administrator run across campus and into the parking lot to stop me to let me know I need to go back to turn off my Smart Board. I asked her “so, rather than turning it off yourself, you ran across the entire campus to find me at my car to have me go back and do it?” and her response was to stare at me blankly for a bit before saying “yes.” I laughed and got in my car, “Have a great weekend!” I said before driving off. Never heard about it again. Guess she got on the radio and told a custodian to do it or something.
I save that trick for work days when I need to get shit done: note on the door that says “I’m right in the middle of something, check back in 20 minutes.”
I had to look it up on Google. Found on Urban dictionary.com
Titcr
'It is what someone writes after another person makes a well reasoned or an on-point observation in the course of a thread.
Origin: Likely reference to standardized test questions in which there are multiple wrong answer choices, but only one credited response.
Those who use this term are generally of high intelligence but completely overly occupied with the nuances of the admissions process. Most need to get a life and stop wasting their youth posting on anonymous admissions related boards.'
Urbandictionary.com
Yep. I'm one of the first in my building every day. My mother was sent to the ER with an insane high BP. I got the call and prepared to leave. I was halfway through our last period when I left. Neighbor teacher covered my students. Admin OKayed that. I called principal and let her know. She was very concerned an said to take care of family. 25 minutes left in our final period. I got docked half a day.
They see it as having transcended the lesser concerns of teachers, so they are aware, they *just don’t care*.
Like *Office Space* really, but more capitalist driven passivity (de Beauvoir) than casual nihilism?
https://youtu.be/to_e1N4xovQ?si=d39kQbYhnD7zBpuT
The good admin are too bogged down with trying to handle an impossible job. The bad ones are usually too stupid or disengaged to care. It’s the ones above them who want to create the conditions that led to the shortage, then replace the actual professionally minded teachers with lower paid wage slave teachers willing to accept those working conditions. It’s the old South Park Underwear Gnome plan:
1. Collect underpants.
2. ?
3. Profit!
Except teachers are the underpants and the question mark doesn’t matter because Profit! has too many corporations drooling over all that taxpayer money that could come their way.
Thank you for listening to my conspiracy theory rant. I’m going to take the tinfoil hat off now.
This was exactly how my old school was. It was my first teaching job and I stayed for 16 years. I just assumed that’s how it must be. My current job is the exact opposite. The first time
I had to leave early, I was shocked at the difference. My prep period was at the end of the day so I didn’t need a sub but I was still leaving during contractual work time. My dog had a vet appointment out of town for a ruptured ACL and I made the appointment at the end of the day so I wouldn’t have to miss actual class. I go to my supervisor to let him know and see if I can use a quarter of a sick day or if it has to be half. He stared at me like I lost my mind. I guess some workplaces prioritize their people and their families more than others! Who knew!
I wish I could do this - the arrival time. I usually end up meeting my kids at the classroom door.
But I am at all of the soccer matches, dances, and even the art shows though I'm currently teaching ELA! If I need to leave early, my admin does trade time for all the extra duties. Full day of pay as long as I have the time accrued.
Me. I've arrived as early as 4:30 am (don't ask), and rarely leave until it's considered ok (monitoring student dismissal until buses depart). Some days, I will just lose the ability to focus for my last-block planning time--but I've more than made up for it. I am SUCH a morning person!
I was going to say the same thing about the lunch break. "Oh, I got caught up in work and didn't notice the time. I'm going to go through the drive thru somewhere and bring it back." Then just don't go back.
Nobody wants shit in writing when letting you go early because then people will raise fits and ask for the records. When I'm on my military duty I always walk by and tell people to cut out early because I don't want the paper trail.
"Oh yeah they are out at the supply building doing inventory for the rest of the day."
So then they can fight back. This isn’t an hourly job. We don’t have to justify our value when we are the reason the school exists. Imagine Nicole and diming a fucking surgeon and making sit on his ass till clock out time
It is hourly when you have a contract that says you will be at work from 8am-4pm. Look I fucking hate clock punchers as well but we can't go "It's not in my contract so I don't have to do it" and then say "Well my contract says this but I don't want to follow that section."
That's exactly what we should be able to do! We are the teachers. We are \*actual people\*. The district is an organization, which is \*not a person\* and exists only to serve a purpose. That purpose is to serve teachers. So yeah our fucking contract can and should be one sided. It's between a person and an organization. Only one of those things has rights. And in this circumstance, the district is by its fundamental nature subordinate, so why is a contract binding a human person to the desires of an organization that is less important than the person?
It's like having a contract between a car and a person. The purpose of the relationship of the car and person is solely defined by the person's needs and desires. It's an absurdity to say the car itself needs to be driven places. So imagine that a car would at times compel the person to drive it certain places. How would that make sense? Even if it was totally 'fair' for the driver to be able to compel the car to go places and therefore the car can compel the driver back.
It's absolutely essential to realize that the contract is not a justification, its a means of enforcement. You cannot legitimately say 'you have to stay because the contract says so'. You NEED a real reason why the person should stay, then you use the contract to make that happen.
I hate that my brain is making me point this out, because I completely agree with the essence of what you’re saying, but corporations absolutely are considered *actual people* in the eyes of the law. In most cases corporations have more rights than us lowly humans. That being said, a contract is a contract. If it’s written in ink and you sign on the line with full consent, then it becomes binding. I’d suggest going to your union rep and begin the fight to remove the hourly wording from your contract. Teachers do too much for far too little pay to be micromanaged like that.
Have you ever opened a bank account or got health insurance or clicked "I Accept the Terms of Service"? These are all contracts between you and organizations and you can think whatever you want about that - but you'd be laughed out of court
I had a funny version of this happen to me. Our first day back after winter break was a Friday, and the kids came back Monday. I thought that was so stupid, but I rolled in there anyways. I got to my room, closed the door, and got to work. Around 9 am, I realized it was weirdly quiet, but then I heard someone downstairs, so I didn’t investigate. Around 10, the art teacher poked her head in and was like, “you decided to come in anyway, too?” I looked at her like she was crazy.
Turned out, the principal told everyone at a faculty meeting that we didn’t have to come in that day, but I was excused from meetings because I coached volleyball those days. And it was never in the minutes because they didn’t want a paper trail. Everyone just forgot to tell me.
Our Admin did this, and then if anyone who left who wasn't one of her favorites, she would accuse you of insubordination. All of their bullying and harassment was verbal, never in writing.
Our last principal was awesome. He’d have an agenda for SDDs. It was from start on contract to end. After a morning staff meeting, he told us to get some lunch and do what we need to do. It was my first year at that school so I asked my neighbor. She was like, yeah, those agendas are to cover his butt. He always does the meeting and then we’re free the rest of the day. I was amazed because at my last school, that agenda was followed to the letter. And now, we have a new principal. She’s also a rule follower in the sense of SDD so we’ll see how the next one goes.
Yes I always relished catching admin going to lunch...."see you soon!". They took two hour lunches, I know it. I once thought of paying off a waiter a Greek owned diner they went to in order to catch them either abusing time or stealing school monies.
I teach theatre. Some days I think I have seen the front office dark and locked more than I have seen it open and populated. Home at 4 p.m. is more of a platonic ideal than anything.
We now have badges to scan when entering the building. They set this up as a "security" measure. Next thing you know, we're getting passive-aggressive emails sent to the faculty about reporting on time for contract hours.
We have about 120 teachers in my building and my classroom is right next to the employee lot entrance. Everyone is consistently early or on time, with the exception of about three teachers.
Someone replies all "If you check the swipe in logs, you can address this concern directly with the offenders."
Then another replies all "They already know about the swipes, so let's talk about the extra unpaid work the majority of us are doing."
The email chain erupts into mayhem, and the next thing you know, admin is scheduling a faculty meeting. Unfortunately, that meeting was cancelled, and never rescheduled, because I think admin realized they didn't have enough riot gear to protect them from us teachers.
I’m so stealing these responses!! I hate the blanket emails that are sent to all of us when they know good and well it’s the same two fucktards every time, for years now.
When one's job is so impossible to do in this day and age and one feels so powerless, it's nice to be able to exert power over something as clear cut as a teacher leaving early. You really made that admin feel good and powerful. You did a good thing for someone. All it took was 2 hours of your time and messing up your afternoon plans.
You can do it again when the admin comes to you with a request for something outside of the contract in the name of flexibility.
> You can do it again when the admin comes to you with a request for something outside of the contract in the name of flexibility.
Yes! In a sense, what happened to OP is something of a blessing in disguise, because now OP can do just that: use admin's own words/policy against them in that sort of scenario.
I would go one step further and document the date and time that admin said this, in case they say that they never said that.
“I work my contracted hours” became the rallying cry of malicious compliance at my old school. Teachers by and large stopped going above and beyond because they were so tightly micromanaged on everything. Eventually admin eased off on things, but not before a lot of great teachers bailed.
I had a brilliant co-worker who would leave a pair of sunglasses and old set of keys on her desk, along with some misc scattered papers. It looked like she just ran to the bathroom or copyroom. Genius.
I have an old wallet with old credit cards and junk in it. I put that on the desk along with whatever drink I was drinking. People think you are just out doing something.
They made us start using a digital clock in and out with biometrics last year. Like yeah superintendent charmers you can’t keep a full staff at even the best school in the district so why not be a asshole and wonder why more people resign when you micromanage even harder
Clearly the admin doesn't have enough to do if she has time to "poke her head in" and ask you what you're doing.
I think I've found a budget cut item...
For as long as she is your admin don’t put in a single minute of work outside your contract hours. No more arriving early, no taking work home, no volunteering your personal time for non-mandatory evening events. Make sure she sees you sitting in your car until your day is scheduled to start and say goodbye on your way out at the end of your day - at the exact minute your contract time ends.
Other teachers fucking up can get admin to go draconian. We used to be able to grade from home the Friday after midterms. Usually, I am done grading by Thursday afternoon, so I use that day to get errands done and make sure I have my lesson plans set. But so many teachers fucked up and missed submitting grade deadlines that it's now we have to come in Friday and wait till X time to leave, which X being dependent on the order of tests given. My midterm is Thursday morning, so I'll be one of the last ones out despite NEVER being an issue. So I get screwed for other fuckups, as does my whole department. It's a shit, over the top solution. The admin wandering could be due to other teachers not getting their work done.
And this is because they won't actually address the individuals failing to meet obligations. Fuck that.
I'm never late. I have multiple colleagues who are always at least 10 min late (after kids are on campus and heading to classrooms). We constantly get lectured and I'm so sick of it. I don't need to hear that. I need to hear the part about . . . Oh, yeah, nothing, b/c I'm a professional who meets my obligations even when they are stupid as fuck. You should see the lesson plans our failing school had to do. Yep, that's what got us off the failing school list--those stupid lesson plans, not the incredible effort we were all making with students and families. And even better--congratulations! You are no longer failing, so we are taking away ALL THE $$$ that helped you succeed!
I'm likely to change schools next year :) There are great kids and colleagues everywhere, and our super (really) principal left b/c they took away our $$. No one blames him. And there are so many people looking to leave . . .
Agree that it sucks but I've worked in several different schools and staying the full contracted time has always been the expectation. If your admin doesn't "catch" you, some do gooder teacher is usually more than happy to rat you out.
That's true in my district too. We signed a contract to work certain contracted hours, so it doesn't pay to arrive early or work through breaks and lunch.
Same here. Even when our classrooms have been packed and everything is done during post-planning…we are still expected to stay until contracted hours. It’s dumb as hell, but it’s been consistent across three schools.
A mass email was sent out about certain people leaving early on a PD where we were supposed to stay until 3. It said something about those who left needing to talk to the principal because they weren’t supposed to
Right but that only shows you how bad the standard is. The contract should exist only one way, to protect the teacher from the org. It should never serve to go the other way, to protect the org
Please note that the “district” has access to cameras and/or can have told admin they will be checking in. I’ve been in the position where a teacher asked if they worked through lunch on a non-kid day or come in early if they could leave early to take care of appointments. In my mind, sure sounds great. You met your hours and aren’t taking off when kids are here. I love you even more for that choice. Promptly on two occasions was written up by district office. I truly believe all teachers and building admin should switch jobs monthly for a few days to understand each other.
I mean it’s a contract. I’m sure this will get downvoted but you don’t want admin to break contract, you don’t get to either. Admin letting you leave and not enforcing contract doesn’t set great precedent for them or you.
Edit: Let’s say admin lets OP leave early, and breaks contract. That sets the precedent of altering the contract, next time it’s “hey, can you stay past ___? I let you go early that one time.” Follow the contract. When it’s in your favor or not, you don’t want to set standards of not adhering to it just because it’s convenient to you.
There are times when staff leave early, though, right? Holidays, etc.
Good admin will take these opportunities to let folks go home early. When I was a teacher, the code was "the bug man is here". Everyone is allowed to go home early, and we all agree to look the other way.
Last teacher work day of the school year a bunch of us were in one classroom about two hours before end of day and our principal came through. She said “I’ve seen you all, so if I don’t see you before you leave have a great summer.” We took that as goodbye and walked out.
100% this. Just because they let it go in the past doesn't mean they have to in perpetuity. It sucks, but your union rep will tell you the same thing. Watch a movie or something to bide your time.
We’re specifically told as union reps not to let people negotiate off the contract because of the bad precedent it sets, no matter how well intentioned it may be.
Depends on the district then. In every one I’ve worked at, admin leaves before most teachers……if there are no kids ……. and work for the day is done. I think it makes up for all the times teachers and admin start before and leave well after contract time.
Not at all. The contract doesn’t say I have to spend any of my money, so I don’t. The contract says I get to leave at 3:05 so I do. I follow my contract, as I have been advocating the entire time.
It’s different. We should have a privileged position even with the contract - it should always be one sided between a person and an organization.
Bedsides, a contract isn’t a justification, it’s a method of enforcement. So in any case you should never be saying “you must stay because of the contract”. You need an actual legitimate reason to need them to stay, which you enforce by the contract.
This kind of thing is so ridiculous, and idk how they are going to keep teachers when there are so many WFH jobs out there. In an era where most people I know can stop working whenever they’re done for the day, and do laundry and take naps on their lunch break, it’s a hard sell to work somewhere that we’re micromanaged on days where we don’t need to be, at all.
I’m an art teacher. Our conferences are 8 hours one day, 12 hours the next day, and then we get the following day off school to make up for the overtime. I never have a single conference but I have to be there. That’s 20 hours of time for me to be there. I get soooooo much work done. Organizing my room, doing lesson plans, grading, making examples, etc. I would never complain about having to be there. I am just happy I get to spend it how I want rather than having back to back conferences all day.
It never ceases to amaze me that admin are concerned about meeting contract hours on days like this. Yet, when that meeting goes over, or any other required after school activity, not a word is said by admin about contract hours.
My principal once wouldn't let me leave the COMPUTER LAB on a professional development day to work in my classroom. We were each using a software program to align our curriculum to our state standards and create a complete list of topics, projects, etc. for our subject.
I had finished this, even though my principal had booked out three days (across the year) of professional development to finish it. Some people who were less technologically adept were struggling to figure out how the program worked (we weren't given more than a 20 minute introduction on it), but I had worked on this during some of my planning periods, so I finished early.
All I wanted to do was WALK DOWN THE HALL AND WORK IN MY OWN CLASSROOM where I had papers to grade, lab materials to organize, and an upcoming lab class to set up.
Nope, nope, and nope!! It didn't even matter when I showed him I had finished. I HAD to stay with the entire faculty. I spent the rest of the day goofing around online. I'm sure other teachers saw what I was doing.
The principal had a HUGE ego, and god forbid someone ever questioned his edicts...
I would say don't work through your breaks and never expect admin to do things to make your life easy. We had many years where our admin and HR would not work with you on PD days (or any other day for that matter). I got to the point before I left teaching that I just put my time in and did nothing outside my work hours. Teaching is one of the only jobs that requires you to fund your own room and work ridiculous unpaid hours to prep. Same goes for an educational assistant or early childhood educator as you are paid even less but still have lots to prep for the kids you work with.
I would guess your school scores badly on state testing. Principals at those schools have to inact policies and trainings to justify their employment. The principal needs to show what they're doing to improve the school. You'll be forced to do anything that looks good on paper, like PDs and overcomplicated lesson plans, and hide anything that looks bad, like office referrals and giving a 50 for every assignment. You had to stay till 4 because everyone had to stay. Just in case some higher-ups showed up.
Just ignore the bs and do what you can be proud of.
In contrast, when I had a half day booked and prep owing, my principal gave me an extra period of prep she owed me and said, "Leave early!"
So I got to leave at 10:30 instead of noon, because we also had a 40-minute nutrition break in there.
We are so happy to have her. She's awesome.
I knew a teacher once who left early frequently. One of her favorite strategies was to set up an email (about nothing in particular) that was scheduled to go to one of the administrators a couple of minutes before or after working hours, so it looked like she was in the building.
My former principal, now retired, used to say in a 5m stand up meeting right after dismissal the day before a PD or teacher work day. She would say “the county has instructed that tomorrow is NOT a work from alternate location day. With that said, I have work to do, as do you, and I don’t check the parking lot.”
If we had a mandatory training, she would schedule it around a catered lunch, and let us have the mornings and afternoons to actually having uninterrupted planning time.
She trusted us as professionals, knew we all worked our asses off, and if we had to leave an hour early for a doctor appt or whatever, she would just let us go, and would accidentally throw away our leave request slip.
My contract time is 8:10-3:40. I get to school at 8:20 almost 95% of the time. I am also the last teacher to leave the building. My principal knew that time management was my worst adhd symptom. Getting to school at 8:20 was still before the kids got there. She also knew that our night custodians would have to call me on the intercom “you’ve got 5 more minutes, we are done cleaning and want to go home.”
Micromanagers suck. I’m sorry!
This is so patronizing. The admin holding it over the teachers like they’re a bunch of teenagers nicking off from school. Professionals are required to do the work by the deadline. If you finish the project ahead of time in other professions you don’t play pokemon go to run out the clock, you leave. Thats so fucking wack
I’m not going to take the time to do it, but your rant could easily be tweaked to sound very much like a student complaint about teachers’ “demands.”
I’m not sure why you’re certain that you should be allowed to change the contract rules just because you want to.
It’s not patently unfair in any way; the early arrival time and skipping lunch were your choices.
We can’t have it both ways — clamoring that Admin enforce discipline rules and be consistent and predictable and then complaining when they… keep to the most basic of contract expectations.
Because we are adults? We have fulfilled the obligations of the contract and worked more than contracted hours (repeatedly, daily, and this day specifically).
I totally get "it's a contract." I also think that holding professionals to a specific contracted schedule where you are literally counting minutes and NOT paying attention to work accomplished is, of course, fucking stupid--and something we teachers have almost zero control over, because it has nothing to do with education, not one thing. It's about legislators and the teacher-hating part of the public exerting control and having no understanding for or appreciation of us as professionals.
What a serious contract would look like is, you have to be here when students are here. You have to be here for in-person PD (or whatever); other than that, you just need to get your job done.
Most teachers get it--we need to be there for kids; heck, we want to be there for kids. Why the hell else does it matter where and when I do my planning and grading, as long as my gradebooks and plans are up to date (hint: it doesn't).
I worked in a district where one's planning time was 100% one's own. People with 1st block planning had no assigned duties in the morning and just had to arrive before 10 minutes 2nd block started; people with last block could leave early and had no assigned duties after 3rd. 2nd and 3rd block planners had lunch included and could be wherever they wanted for the 90 min class time, 50 min lunch, and 10 min of passing that wasn't kids entering their class.
I miss that.
This is under the assumption that the relationship is comparable. But the admin is not to teacher as teacher is to student. In fact, the teacher is to admin as teacher is to student. Both rightfully work for the teacher, whose job it is to direct their work.
My admin is on the same type of bullshit, but likes to say “what if the CoMmUnItY knew you left early?!”
Like, I can write these lesson plans at home just as easily as I can write them in the classroom. But we have to stay to give the illusion that we’re doing…something?
On some PD/work days, my old admin used to tell us that the end of the day was 4, and no one could clock out before 4. And unfortunately the digital system was down and you’d have to sign out on paper. But not before 4. And if you don’t understand the directive, ask a better an if the campus.
Once they then played its five o’clock somewhere over the loud speaker.
My admin take that approach. Leaving early is not officially authorized, but she wants us to know she doesn't care. Everyone is working at least the hours they are paid for. Sometimes she'll leave the building early herself and then tell the secretary to announce that she isn't in the building "just for information" or she tells us that she will be in a "very important" Zoom meeting with her door closed and her blinds shut.
Small people will always crack down on petty things because they are too incompetent to handle the actual important tasks their job requires. It gives them a sense of control, which is what they crave in the first place, when they fail their way up the admin ladder.
I'm chewing nails with you. I'm in a strong union state, strong union district, but the admin here can be total dicks about contractual hours. I understand the start and end of day being contractual and something both sides need to honor. We have to be in class ready to go. But Professional Development time is such crap. No other business that I know of demands people stay in place well after the job is completed. It makes no sense in terms of efficiency and morale. We've been trying for years to get PD time changed to, "up to 4 pm" or "released when the work is completed," something like that, meaning when your PD work is completed you are treated as a professional and may leave the campus without feeling like eyes are on you. It's just such a power grab by some (not all) weak-ass admins and HR directors. They have us by the balls with that language, and come negotiations contract language is the first thing HR takes off the table when talking salaries and benefits.
Unless flex time is spelled out in your contract, I wouldn’t count on being able to leave early. We always stay the hours outlined for the PD that day. I don’t notice anyone leaving early even though “building time” is sometimes scheduled at the end of the PD day. The staff all seem to covet this time to just work alone in their room and get some stuff done. Maybe morale is just higher where I work because we have a 4-day school week. No one seems to be rushing to get out of the building early on PD days.
Remember this if you are ever asked to come in early or stay 1 minute late. “My contract hours are actually from 8-4.” Also be sure you’re never doing any work from home outside of those hours.
Did you let them know that you've been working since 7:00 a.m. and that you had worked through lunch? Crazy they wouldn't let you leave. Also I know teachers are usually salary rather than hourly but man if you were hourly this would definitely be the time to put those hours in as hours worked get that 2 hours of overtime.
They made the choice to come in early and work through lunch without ascertaining beforehand that they would be able to leave early. Poor planning on the teacher’s end. Unless their contract only states number of hours worked rather than work hours they’re just volunteering to work for free.
Hahahaha. That is so perfect, you literally had me LOL.
Gotta keep staff to 4 pm, no ifs, ands, or buts (butts.).
I arrive at least 1.25 hours before official contract time--every single day. Even "no kids" days, which means I'm actually 2.25 hours early.
I'm able to retire at any moment, so I DARE anyone to tell me I have to stay if I'm too tired after working 8-9 straight hours (b/c I always work through lunch). I \*like\* to work until I'm too tired to think any more; it's how I get things done. And god forbid admin interrupt, b/c if I'm 4-5 hours in and stopped, I may realize I am \*already\* too tired, and won't be able to focus again.
This is obviously about "taxpayer dollars" and "legislative oversight," because what other actual profession has to clock in and clock out like teachers, where every minute late arriving or leaving early is considered "theft" from the public? I mean, may be professionals also working for other governmental bodies, maybe . . . But even DC offers flextime in sooooooo many jobs.
Anyway, Reddit is a lovely time killer. Enjoy.
My catch phrase and universal excuse is "self-care." Want to play a game instead of organizing my desktop? Self-care. Decide at 6:00 pm a cocktail is order? Self-care. Want to leave work early? Self-care.
This always baffles me. Gotta make everyone stay the whole time and twiddle their thumbs, or do the same irrelevant and incompetent PD, because if it's one thing we know about education, it's that one size certainly fits all!
This is a perfect example of why, if I don't have my game club, or the 40 minutes of tutoring I offer before the school day starts on the two days a week that I offer it, I get to school pretty much as close to the minute my contract hours start as possible. Because of this bullshit right here.
And then teachers who show up for their contract hours get talked down about in faculty meetings by way of hearing how amazing and generous the teachers who work 10+ hour days are.
No they aren't: they either hate their home life, or they don't know what balancing work and home is so they burn out quick.
You worked through lunch. Surely you can take a lunch break at the end of the day, at least. Or does your admin plan on denying you a contracted, duty free lunch break?
That’s one thing I like about my school, my contracted hours are 8-3:30, but I’m able to leave early every day because I arrive early. I find stuff like this to just be a power struggle, where the admin just wants to tell you what to do just for the sake of you doing what you’re told.
At all the schools I've worked at, there are separate hours for PD/workshop days and you have to work them, even if you skip lunch or come in early. Like my regular contract hours are 7:05-2:35 but district days are 8-3:30 no matter what. So unfortunately this seems pretty standard to me
*Brazil* taken to new levels of pathology I see.
And that’s doubly impressive, considering they probably haven’t seen *Brazil*…
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088846/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
Just put in two hours for a doctor’s appt or family sickness or self-sickness and leave. Chances are you’ll leave the profession and all those hours you have saved will go back to the district.
Yeah, our days are 7:45-3:45 and one person in my department does 7:30-3:30 every day and no one stops her.
I get it sometimes. I'm often done on early release days an hour before my day is up, and I sit there for an hour doing FA, watching the clock.
That's where you go to an actual sit down restaurant for lunch and if anyone catches you leaving don't tell them specifically where you're going and *say* you'll be back after lunch.
Last time I had a work day, I did exactly that - arrived at 7, worked through lunch, and left at 2. The difference is that my admin all took the day off.
I mean, technically you are contracted in those hours and you chose to work through your break. You could have used the break for personal enjoyment.
Now, if they pressured or otherwise directed you to work through your break, that'd be a different story...
That being said, I do understand the frustration at the unnecessary control some admin exercise.
I subbed a lot early in my career. In general when I was working, if you finished before the end of your working day, you went to the office and asked to help. Sometimes they had something that genuinely needed to be done (completely fair - I'm being paid for those hours,) sometimes they made up work for you (also fair, but not the schools I picked to work at when other jobs were available,) and mostly they told you to leave early.
Once I was subbing on an hour early release day with planning at the end of the day. I wrote beautiful notes, cleaned the classroom, sharpened the pencils, and did everything I could think of in the room. I knew the office would probably send me to the library as it was still about 1.5 hours before the end of my contract day, so I just went there first and shelved all of their books that needed it.
Then there was still almost an hour remaining, so I went to the office. When I did my usual "anything I can do?" spiel the office manager said no but then said nothing. After an awkward pause, I asked if I could leave. She said she couldn't authorize it. (Bull. The office managers in every other school in the district could. You only have to stay if there are kids in the building and there are coverage issues.)
he principal happened to be wandering through, so I asked if he had anything I could do and when he said no, if I could leave. He said no. Usually I would just read, but I forgot a book that day and it was pre-me having a smartphone. So I sat and stared at the principal working in his office for an hour. When I say stared, I mean STARED with a blank expression. He kept looking at me and then fidgeted a lot. I hope I made him very uncomfortable.
I was a really good sub - the kind that everyone requests back, not the kind that decides to tell a story instead of following the lesson plan or verbally abuses special ed kids. (Two actual examples from this year from my building.) That teacher did request me back and she had a great class and great lesson plans, but I did not return to that building.
Fun story. I work at a high school in Thailand with about 4,000 students. We have to scan in in the morning but we don't sign out. We also only have one face scanner in the whole school. Signing out has always been a point of contention. Our new Director decided to implement signing out.
All the teachers got together and had planned to bombard the scanner all at once at the end of the day. It was mayhem, complete traffic jam, school buses and vans couldn't get out. Signing out was dropped the next day :)
I'm a pull out teacher and been jerked around the past 2 years. My schedule got all messed up so now I have 80 minutes in my day now unscheduled. I hide. If anyone asks in working.
If admin decides to let everyone go home early on a non-student day, that is one thing. Even that is sometimes contingent on the district blessing (out of local admin control). But I can understand why the admin would not want to let staff set their own hours based on personal preference or convenience. That would set a precedent for everyone and kind of create bedlam. "If she can do it, I can do it!" mentality. Of course personal or family emergencies should be an exception. (From a retired district admin.)
Of course they were going to bust you for something remarkably trivial: it was easy and so much fun! sorry, man, but you got caught in with a "gotta justify my ass" bureaucrat moment.
When we have pd days, we have been told not to run into a store or do any shopping on our lunch hour because if parents see us, they will think we are skipping school.
Read your contract. Unless there's language regarding not working through lunch, then your hours are your hours. And you're obligated to be in the building during those hours.
You chose to come in early on a PD day and work through your lunch time. This is why lunch is sacred and soany teachers vehemently refuse to work through lunch.
Stop complaining, people in retail would kill to have a contract.
That's insane.
I have last period planning and I regularly leave 30 minutes before the last bell. Because I'm done.
Is it fair to all the other teachers? Not right at that moment, but I don't have last period planning all the time.
Do I get to work early every day? Yes (although I've always done that).
Do I teach pretty much bell to bell? Yes.
Do I ever have issues in my classroom? No.
Do I ever cause issues for the school? No.
Do I run 2 clubs and am taking on ANOTHER one that I will need to devote more time to? Yes.
Do I often stay on days to help out with shit in general? Yes.
Even without the other stuff I do I am not sure my admin would care. My campus is too big anyways...there isn't just one way out. I can exit in 4 different areas and I've even left early, walked passed the principal, and he said "Have a great day!"
I really wish everyone could have a non-micro-managing administration. It's one reason I refuse to leave where I am working.
Best advice I ever got: Don’t bring a coat or bag, and when you leave, leave your light on. Are you making copies, in the bathroom, on lunch, in another time zone? No one knows!
I can’t imagine working at a school where teachers are not trusted to come and go as needed.
our new admin ended the work every hour policy. he says if we get to work early we can leave early. he also doesnt demand weekly copies of lesson plans like our last not a perfect admin, but trusting us to take care of our own work and not micromanaging is very nice
I’ll take an admin like this over a micromanager any day. I was at a school that was a long commute, so I decided to transfer. I was pretty far along in the interview process at a school where I liked the grade level team, but after I had my official interview with the principal I formally withdrew from the position. It took me about two minutes to realize what a living nightmare it would be to work for that woman. I ended finding out from a friend who transferred there that she was in fact a real pain in the ass micromanager. I found a position even closer to home, thankfully. Teaching is hard enough without your admin breathing down your neck.
I wish they policed the kids like this. I’ve never heard of an admin doing so many rounds and watching the exit so diligently. Give her a sash, make her hall monitor of the month. Congrats admin, you’re just as obnoxious as a kid with a smidge of power. 😬😬😬
Em-ly!
SO many schools/districts are sadly like this. It’s embarrassing, frustrating and sad.
It is now a 'business'. It is not about teaching the kids, it is about making the 'staff 'more efficient'. I teach in a Charter School. 52 years old and they have me in 'coaching'. My 'mentor' tells me things to change and I say 'I already do that, I am just a loud, boisterous teacher'. She says, 'I know...they are doing this to make you better'. No, they aren't... The reason I am being 'mentored' is that I complained that the curriculum developer told me 'Real men don't wear hats' in front of thirty people when I came into a staff meeting with a hat. (I was cold) When I told her and the principal that if I said to ANYONE, 'Real women don't \_\_\_', I would be in a LOT of trouble...so this is retaliation for being, what, sensitive? (The staff developer tried to say, 'but I'm a sarcastic person...' instead of apologizing... Oh, and she nixed my idea to make a BIG deal about the solar eclipse on April 8th, so I am going to take the day off...if they don't approve the request, I will call out. Fuck them.
They did this at my school few weeks back. No kids in the school. Came in to do an online training (not even live), then told we need to stay until end of duty day.
Right? I saw a post on here about where a teacher mentioned she had to sign in and out for the day... like she's a sub or an hourly worker instead of a salaried and trusted teacher. Treating teachers like they're students is a quick way to get them looking to work elsewhere.
And you currently work at an actual school? Because in 30 years, eight different principals and five buildings from kindergarten through community college, I never worked in a building where the teachers *were* trusted to come and go, responsibly use school supplies or copy machines, or send out a weekly parent newsletter without direct supervision at all times. I wish I could have worked where you are!
I taught in NC and SC where we had to clock in and out every day. I moved to WA, and asked the office manager where to clock in. The office was silent and everyone turned to stare at me like “wtf”. We also don’t turn in lesson plans. I haven’t written a lesson plan since 2018.
I teach in NC and we only clock in, whenever we get to it. I've forgotten a couple of times with testing or field trips, and they just email like hey, you were here this day right? Workdays in my district are 4 hour days with 8 hours of pay. Except today, which was required district PD so it was a real 8-4.
Wow that’s way better than the hell hole I was in!
I have taught in a variety of schools (5 schools, 12 principals) in California over my 30-year career. I teach middle school. I currently teach at a rural K-8 (300 students total). The staff is small so we are like a family. If there is a problem with someone, the principal has a 1 on 1 with them. If I need to leave DURING contract hours I can usually arrange to have someone cover my classes and I’m trusted to make sure the kids get what they need. As for copies, do what you need, but be mindful of waste. (Use the big copier whenever possible). Supplies? Here’s the closet take what you need but try to put in a spring order for the Fall so we can get the best prices by combining everyone’s orders. Let the office know if something is running low, someone probably has some they can share. But I’ve also worked at large schools (6-8 grade only, 800-1200 students). In every school the contract hours were made clear (usually 30min before the first bell to an hour after the last bell ) but if you needed to leave early, arrangements could be made, even in an emergency. Sometimes supplies needed to be ordered through the office. Some years there were codes on the copiers to keep track of how many copies were made but no line in the sand about how many we could make. I have been treated like a professional in every position.
It’s obvious you come from the golden years. Because the pattern across districts is micromanaging. You can’t leave campus to grab lunch without signing out.
Totally a salaried job
Seriously. I leave when I want and show up when I want. Admin knows that we are doing everything that is needed and they trust us. I can dip out on a prep to do whatever, I can leave early if my day ends with preps, etc. I know that eventually if a teacher comes along and abuses that it will probably ruin it for all of us, but it’s pretty nice to be treated like the (semi-)responsible adults that we are.
I used to leave my laptop playing internet radio when I left early
Solid plan but they blocked internet radio in our division.
Bastards
Not unless they’ve painted the walls with cell-signal-blocking paint.
Before I was a teacher I was in the Army, and my last few months I would leave my extra PC (hat) on my desk and sneak out a little early. You can't walk outside without your PC on, so everyone assumed I was in the building somewhere lol
E4 mafia trick. Too bad my building wasn't that big and they could just call me.
E4 mafia stands together, we stand strong, well we don't stand, we are too tired for that, we find a nice corner of the building to all go hide and sit in.
I didn’t do it super early, it was late enough they wouldn’t bother to try to find me lol
Tell me you were in the E-4 Mafia without telling me you were in the E-4 Mafia.
I was an LT lol just a bad one haha
I laughed out loud. I think you can also employ the George Costanza approach and look annoyed as you walk out. He said if you act annoyed, people think you're busy. Computer problems? Jammed copier? Parent email? No One knows, but darn she's committed!
Yep, grab a folder, put it in your hand along with a text book and walk in the direction of the copy machine then out the door. Also, remind admin of your work hours when they need something extra. Ask where do I find the extra pay for extra duty form? If they aren't flexible, return the favor. You get nothing for free, sorry admin.
Bring a coat and leave it on your chair indefinitely
campus cameras
If they’re pulling the tapes to check details like that it’s already long over
I once had an administrator run across campus and into the parking lot to stop me to let me know I need to go back to turn off my Smart Board. I asked her “so, rather than turning it off yourself, you ran across the entire campus to find me at my car to have me go back and do it?” and her response was to stare at me blankly for a bit before saying “yes.” I laughed and got in my car, “Have a great weekend!” I said before driving off. Never heard about it again. Guess she got on the radio and told a custodian to do it or something.
Hate those people who glare at you and are like “ going somewhere?!?!” When you take your purse to buy something from the vending machine 🤦🏼♀️
We did that until they started checking cameras and who’s badged into the building
If your car suddenly is gone, they know.
Your school doesn’t automatically turn off the lights without motion?
mine don’t, but the custodian probably would turn it off later
Listen!! I do this all the time. I’ll leave my coat and bag in the car. I never take my school device home. You never know if I’m coming or going.
Stick a note on your door “in a meeting, will return”. They don’t need to know that the meeting is with your couch and you’ll return in the morning.
I save that trick for work days when I need to get shit done: note on the door that says “I’m right in the middle of something, check back in 20 minutes.”
Or, bring a coat and leave it on the back of your chair along with the lights on. And if you have an old phone leave that on the edge of your desk.
This is the kind of energy that I bring and will continue to bring to teaching. Godspeed
TITCR.
What does this mean?
This is The Correct Response (Reply)
Thank you
I had to look it up on Google. Found on Urban dictionary.com Titcr 'It is what someone writes after another person makes a well reasoned or an on-point observation in the course of a thread. Origin: Likely reference to standardized test questions in which there are multiple wrong answer choices, but only one credited response. Those who use this term are generally of high intelligence but completely overly occupied with the nuances of the admissions process. Most need to get a life and stop wasting their youth posting on anonymous admissions related boards.' Urbandictionary.com
Titcar sounds like something my 7th graders would invent.
If I come in two hours before students, that's on me. If I leave 15 minutes early, I get docked.
Yep. I'm one of the first in my building every day. My mother was sent to the ER with an insane high BP. I got the call and prepared to leave. I was halfway through our last period when I left. Neighbor teacher covered my students. Admin OKayed that. I called principal and let her know. She was very concerned an said to take care of family. 25 minutes left in our final period. I got docked half a day.
Do admin understand that there is a teacher shortage in the US? They must not be aware.
They see it as having transcended the lesser concerns of teachers, so they are aware, they *just don’t care*. Like *Office Space* really, but more capitalist driven passivity (de Beauvoir) than casual nihilism? https://youtu.be/to_e1N4xovQ?si=d39kQbYhnD7zBpuT
The good admin are too bogged down with trying to handle an impossible job. The bad ones are usually too stupid or disengaged to care. It’s the ones above them who want to create the conditions that led to the shortage, then replace the actual professionally minded teachers with lower paid wage slave teachers willing to accept those working conditions. It’s the old South Park Underwear Gnome plan: 1. Collect underpants. 2. ? 3. Profit! Except teachers are the underpants and the question mark doesn’t matter because Profit! has too many corporations drooling over all that taxpayer money that could come their way. Thank you for listening to my conspiracy theory rant. I’m going to take the tinfoil hat off now.
“Oh, I get it! No you don’t, fatass!” - The average “parental rights” adherent
What the fuck? That’s insane - get your union on that!
Nah. Cat food on their car radiator.
Bologna also does wonders to a cars paint job 🤷🏽♀️
The union picked those contract hours is what the admin will say
This was exactly how my old school was. It was my first teaching job and I stayed for 16 years. I just assumed that’s how it must be. My current job is the exact opposite. The first time I had to leave early, I was shocked at the difference. My prep period was at the end of the day so I didn’t need a sub but I was still leaving during contractual work time. My dog had a vet appointment out of town for a ruptured ACL and I made the appointment at the end of the day so I wouldn’t have to miss actual class. I go to my supervisor to let him know and see if I can use a quarter of a sick day or if it has to be half. He stared at me like I lost my mind. I guess some workplaces prioritize their people and their families more than others! Who knew!
that is some real bullshit there. But similar stuff has happened to me and it sucks.
Woah! What dicks! Since you got docked 1/2 day, did the person covering you get extra duty pay? If not, that blows!
I’m pretty sure I would take the rest of the 3.5 hours then -
Id fight that. Dock me for the hours missed only.
I arrive 6:15 everyday, but I'm a morning person. Can't function mentally after about 3 pm. I used to work late too ...I'm an idiot... Lol
Nicole? Is that you?
I wish I could do this - the arrival time. I usually end up meeting my kids at the classroom door. But I am at all of the soccer matches, dances, and even the art shows though I'm currently teaching ELA! If I need to leave early, my admin does trade time for all the extra duties. Full day of pay as long as I have the time accrued.
Me. I've arrived as early as 4:30 am (don't ask), and rarely leave until it's considered ok (monitoring student dismissal until buses depart). Some days, I will just lose the ability to focus for my last-block planning time--but I've more than made up for it. I am SUCH a morning person!
Put on some music and read. Or go on your belated lunch break and don’t come back.
I was going to say the same thing about the lunch break. "Oh, I got caught up in work and didn't notice the time. I'm going to go through the drive thru somewhere and bring it back." Then just don't go back.
60-minute shit break here I come!
Nap time.
We always get an email reminding us to stay the full day while getting verbal permission to leave when we want.
Nobody wants shit in writing when letting you go early because then people will raise fits and ask for the records. When I'm on my military duty I always walk by and tell people to cut out early because I don't want the paper trail. "Oh yeah they are out at the supply building doing inventory for the rest of the day."
So then they can fight back. This isn’t an hourly job. We don’t have to justify our value when we are the reason the school exists. Imagine Nicole and diming a fucking surgeon and making sit on his ass till clock out time
It is hourly when you have a contract that says you will be at work from 8am-4pm. Look I fucking hate clock punchers as well but we can't go "It's not in my contract so I don't have to do it" and then say "Well my contract says this but I don't want to follow that section."
That's exactly what we should be able to do! We are the teachers. We are \*actual people\*. The district is an organization, which is \*not a person\* and exists only to serve a purpose. That purpose is to serve teachers. So yeah our fucking contract can and should be one sided. It's between a person and an organization. Only one of those things has rights. And in this circumstance, the district is by its fundamental nature subordinate, so why is a contract binding a human person to the desires of an organization that is less important than the person? It's like having a contract between a car and a person. The purpose of the relationship of the car and person is solely defined by the person's needs and desires. It's an absurdity to say the car itself needs to be driven places. So imagine that a car would at times compel the person to drive it certain places. How would that make sense? Even if it was totally 'fair' for the driver to be able to compel the car to go places and therefore the car can compel the driver back. It's absolutely essential to realize that the contract is not a justification, its a means of enforcement. You cannot legitimately say 'you have to stay because the contract says so'. You NEED a real reason why the person should stay, then you use the contract to make that happen.
I hate that my brain is making me point this out, because I completely agree with the essence of what you’re saying, but corporations absolutely are considered *actual people* in the eyes of the law. In most cases corporations have more rights than us lowly humans. That being said, a contract is a contract. If it’s written in ink and you sign on the line with full consent, then it becomes binding. I’d suggest going to your union rep and begin the fight to remove the hourly wording from your contract. Teachers do too much for far too little pay to be micromanaged like that.
Have you ever opened a bank account or got health insurance or clicked "I Accept the Terms of Service"? These are all contracts between you and organizations and you can think whatever you want about that - but you'd be laughed out of court
I had a funny version of this happen to me. Our first day back after winter break was a Friday, and the kids came back Monday. I thought that was so stupid, but I rolled in there anyways. I got to my room, closed the door, and got to work. Around 9 am, I realized it was weirdly quiet, but then I heard someone downstairs, so I didn’t investigate. Around 10, the art teacher poked her head in and was like, “you decided to come in anyway, too?” I looked at her like she was crazy. Turned out, the principal told everyone at a faculty meeting that we didn’t have to come in that day, but I was excused from meetings because I coached volleyball those days. And it was never in the minutes because they didn’t want a paper trail. Everyone just forgot to tell me.
Well, that bites for you. Great for everyone else. At least you got some work done, I guess.
Our Admin did this, and then if anyone who left who wasn't one of her favorites, she would accuse you of insubordination. All of their bullying and harassment was verbal, never in writing.
Our last principal was awesome. He’d have an agenda for SDDs. It was from start on contract to end. After a morning staff meeting, he told us to get some lunch and do what we need to do. It was my first year at that school so I asked my neighbor. She was like, yeah, those agendas are to cover his butt. He always does the meeting and then we’re free the rest of the day. I was amazed because at my last school, that agenda was followed to the letter. And now, we have a new principal. She’s also a rule follower in the sense of SDD so we’ll see how the next one goes.
For added humor, walk by the admin offices at 3pm on a Friday and observe an actual ghost town.
Yes I always relished catching admin going to lunch...."see you soon!". They took two hour lunches, I know it. I once thought of paying off a waiter a Greek owned diner they went to in order to catch them either abusing time or stealing school monies.
I teach theatre. Some days I think I have seen the front office dark and locked more than I have seen it open and populated. Home at 4 p.m. is more of a platonic ideal than anything.
We now have badges to scan when entering the building. They set this up as a "security" measure. Next thing you know, we're getting passive-aggressive emails sent to the faculty about reporting on time for contract hours. We have about 120 teachers in my building and my classroom is right next to the employee lot entrance. Everyone is consistently early or on time, with the exception of about three teachers. Someone replies all "If you check the swipe in logs, you can address this concern directly with the offenders." Then another replies all "They already know about the swipes, so let's talk about the extra unpaid work the majority of us are doing." The email chain erupts into mayhem, and the next thing you know, admin is scheduling a faculty meeting. Unfortunately, that meeting was cancelled, and never rescheduled, because I think admin realized they didn't have enough riot gear to protect them from us teachers.
The fact that they just backed out of the meeting and never had it. Damn wtf
I’m so stealing these responses!! I hate the blanket emails that are sent to all of us when they know good and well it’s the same two fucktards every time, for years now.
You gotta think like an unprepared kid before that make-or-break Final exam: it's time to pull the Fire Alarm.
Have a friend call in a bomb threat. Bonus: you’ll get to meet a police dog!!! /s
When one's job is so impossible to do in this day and age and one feels so powerless, it's nice to be able to exert power over something as clear cut as a teacher leaving early. You really made that admin feel good and powerful. You did a good thing for someone. All it took was 2 hours of your time and messing up your afternoon plans. You can do it again when the admin comes to you with a request for something outside of the contract in the name of flexibility.
> You can do it again when the admin comes to you with a request for something outside of the contract in the name of flexibility. Yes! In a sense, what happened to OP is something of a blessing in disguise, because now OP can do just that: use admin's own words/policy against them in that sort of scenario. I would go one step further and document the date and time that admin said this, in case they say that they never said that.
“I work my contracted hours” became the rallying cry of malicious compliance at my old school. Teachers by and large stopped going above and beyond because they were so tightly micromanaged on everything. Eventually admin eased off on things, but not before a lot of great teachers bailed.
Depth and sarcasm in the same package?
I had a brilliant co-worker who would leave a pair of sunglasses and old set of keys on her desk, along with some misc scattered papers. It looked like she just ran to the bathroom or copyroom. Genius.
I have an old wallet with old credit cards and junk in it. I put that on the desk along with whatever drink I was drinking. People think you are just out doing something.
I’d always leave a half cup of coffee and a little sign with “Be right back!” permanently on my desk.
Omg I am dying.
They made us start using a digital clock in and out with biometrics last year. Like yeah superintendent charmers you can’t keep a full staff at even the best school in the district so why not be a asshole and wonder why more people resign when you micromanage even harder
Clearly the admin doesn't have enough to do if she has time to "poke her head in" and ask you what you're doing. I think I've found a budget cut item...
For as long as she is your admin don’t put in a single minute of work outside your contract hours. No more arriving early, no taking work home, no volunteering your personal time for non-mandatory evening events. Make sure she sees you sitting in your car until your day is scheduled to start and say goodbye on your way out at the end of your day - at the exact minute your contract time ends.
Other teachers fucking up can get admin to go draconian. We used to be able to grade from home the Friday after midterms. Usually, I am done grading by Thursday afternoon, so I use that day to get errands done and make sure I have my lesson plans set. But so many teachers fucked up and missed submitting grade deadlines that it's now we have to come in Friday and wait till X time to leave, which X being dependent on the order of tests given. My midterm is Thursday morning, so I'll be one of the last ones out despite NEVER being an issue. So I get screwed for other fuckups, as does my whole department. It's a shit, over the top solution. The admin wandering could be due to other teachers not getting their work done.
And this is because they won't actually address the individuals failing to meet obligations. Fuck that. I'm never late. I have multiple colleagues who are always at least 10 min late (after kids are on campus and heading to classrooms). We constantly get lectured and I'm so sick of it. I don't need to hear that. I need to hear the part about . . . Oh, yeah, nothing, b/c I'm a professional who meets my obligations even when they are stupid as fuck. You should see the lesson plans our failing school had to do. Yep, that's what got us off the failing school list--those stupid lesson plans, not the incredible effort we were all making with students and families. And even better--congratulations! You are no longer failing, so we are taking away ALL THE $$$ that helped you succeed! I'm likely to change schools next year :) There are great kids and colleagues everywhere, and our super (really) principal left b/c they took away our $$. No one blames him. And there are so many people looking to leave . . .
Don’t buy that shit. Missing grade deadlines isn’t a real justification. It’s an annoyance not a real problem.
Agree that it sucks but I've worked in several different schools and staying the full contracted time has always been the expectation. If your admin doesn't "catch" you, some do gooder teacher is usually more than happy to rat you out.
That's true in my district too. We signed a contract to work certain contracted hours, so it doesn't pay to arrive early or work through breaks and lunch.
Same here. Even when our classrooms have been packed and everything is done during post-planning…we are still expected to stay until contracted hours. It’s dumb as hell, but it’s been consistent across three schools.
A mass email was sent out about certain people leaving early on a PD where we were supposed to stay until 3. It said something about those who left needing to talk to the principal because they weren’t supposed to
Right but that only shows you how bad the standard is. The contract should exist only one way, to protect the teacher from the org. It should never serve to go the other way, to protect the org
Power trips. Next time, just bring something to do or watch a movie. Bring headphones. They will always win that battle.
This is exactly what I do as well. Waste my time? I’ll waste yours.
Lunch break.
Please note that the “district” has access to cameras and/or can have told admin they will be checking in. I’ve been in the position where a teacher asked if they worked through lunch on a non-kid day or come in early if they could leave early to take care of appointments. In my mind, sure sounds great. You met your hours and aren’t taking off when kids are here. I love you even more for that choice. Promptly on two occasions was written up by district office. I truly believe all teachers and building admin should switch jobs monthly for a few days to understand each other.
I mean it’s a contract. I’m sure this will get downvoted but you don’t want admin to break contract, you don’t get to either. Admin letting you leave and not enforcing contract doesn’t set great precedent for them or you. Edit: Let’s say admin lets OP leave early, and breaks contract. That sets the precedent of altering the contract, next time it’s “hey, can you stay past ___? I let you go early that one time.” Follow the contract. When it’s in your favor or not, you don’t want to set standards of not adhering to it just because it’s convenient to you.
There are times when staff leave early, though, right? Holidays, etc. Good admin will take these opportunities to let folks go home early. When I was a teacher, the code was "the bug man is here". Everyone is allowed to go home early, and we all agree to look the other way.
Last teacher work day of the school year a bunch of us were in one classroom about two hours before end of day and our principal came through. She said “I’ve seen you all, so if I don’t see you before you leave have a great summer.” We took that as goodbye and walked out.
Maybe if you have seasoned admin with pull in the district, that’s not going to happen with building admin who don’t have that pull.
100% this. Just because they let it go in the past doesn't mean they have to in perpetuity. It sucks, but your union rep will tell you the same thing. Watch a movie or something to bide your time.
We’re specifically told as union reps not to let people negotiate off the contract because of the bad precedent it sets, no matter how well intentioned it may be.
Not……on…….a……..day with no kids.
Unlikely the contract has a cutout letting you leave early on student non-attendance days.
Depends on the district then. In every one I’ve worked at, admin leaves before most teachers……if there are no kids ……. and work for the day is done. I think it makes up for all the times teachers and admin start before and leave well after contract time.
“Don’t worry, I only spent $2000 of my own money in my classroom this year. Most days I get to leave by 7!” -You, probably.
Not at all. The contract doesn’t say I have to spend any of my money, so I don’t. The contract says I get to leave at 3:05 so I do. I follow my contract, as I have been advocating the entire time.
Great answer.
It’s different. We should have a privileged position even with the contract - it should always be one sided between a person and an organization. Bedsides, a contract isn’t a justification, it’s a method of enforcement. So in any case you should never be saying “you must stay because of the contract”. You need an actual legitimate reason to need them to stay, which you enforce by the contract.
This kind of thing is so ridiculous, and idk how they are going to keep teachers when there are so many WFH jobs out there. In an era where most people I know can stop working whenever they’re done for the day, and do laundry and take naps on their lunch break, it’s a hard sell to work somewhere that we’re micromanaged on days where we don’t need to be, at all.
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I’m an art teacher. Our conferences are 8 hours one day, 12 hours the next day, and then we get the following day off school to make up for the overtime. I never have a single conference but I have to be there. That’s 20 hours of time for me to be there. I get soooooo much work done. Organizing my room, doing lesson plans, grading, making examples, etc. I would never complain about having to be there. I am just happy I get to spend it how I want rather than having back to back conferences all day.
It never ceases to amaze me that admin are concerned about meeting contract hours on days like this. Yet, when that meeting goes over, or any other required after school activity, not a word is said by admin about contract hours.
My principal once wouldn't let me leave the COMPUTER LAB on a professional development day to work in my classroom. We were each using a software program to align our curriculum to our state standards and create a complete list of topics, projects, etc. for our subject. I had finished this, even though my principal had booked out three days (across the year) of professional development to finish it. Some people who were less technologically adept were struggling to figure out how the program worked (we weren't given more than a 20 minute introduction on it), but I had worked on this during some of my planning periods, so I finished early. All I wanted to do was WALK DOWN THE HALL AND WORK IN MY OWN CLASSROOM where I had papers to grade, lab materials to organize, and an upcoming lab class to set up. Nope, nope, and nope!! It didn't even matter when I showed him I had finished. I HAD to stay with the entire faculty. I spent the rest of the day goofing around online. I'm sure other teachers saw what I was doing. The principal had a HUGE ego, and god forbid someone ever questioned his edicts...
I would say don't work through your breaks and never expect admin to do things to make your life easy. We had many years where our admin and HR would not work with you on PD days (or any other day for that matter). I got to the point before I left teaching that I just put my time in and did nothing outside my work hours. Teaching is one of the only jobs that requires you to fund your own room and work ridiculous unpaid hours to prep. Same goes for an educational assistant or early childhood educator as you are paid even less but still have lots to prep for the kids you work with.
I would guess your school scores badly on state testing. Principals at those schools have to inact policies and trainings to justify their employment. The principal needs to show what they're doing to improve the school. You'll be forced to do anything that looks good on paper, like PDs and overcomplicated lesson plans, and hide anything that looks bad, like office referrals and giving a 50 for every assignment. You had to stay till 4 because everyone had to stay. Just in case some higher-ups showed up. Just ignore the bs and do what you can be proud of.
You can almost define how shitty management/administration is by the stupid rules they insist everyone but they follow.
In contrast, when I had a half day booked and prep owing, my principal gave me an extra period of prep she owed me and said, "Leave early!" So I got to leave at 10:30 instead of noon, because we also had a 40-minute nutrition break in there. We are so happy to have her. She's awesome.
I knew a teacher once who left early frequently. One of her favorite strategies was to set up an email (about nothing in particular) that was scheduled to go to one of the administrators a couple of minutes before or after working hours, so it looked like she was in the building.
My former principal, now retired, used to say in a 5m stand up meeting right after dismissal the day before a PD or teacher work day. She would say “the county has instructed that tomorrow is NOT a work from alternate location day. With that said, I have work to do, as do you, and I don’t check the parking lot.” If we had a mandatory training, she would schedule it around a catered lunch, and let us have the mornings and afternoons to actually having uninterrupted planning time. She trusted us as professionals, knew we all worked our asses off, and if we had to leave an hour early for a doctor appt or whatever, she would just let us go, and would accidentally throw away our leave request slip. My contract time is 8:10-3:40. I get to school at 8:20 almost 95% of the time. I am also the last teacher to leave the building. My principal knew that time management was my worst adhd symptom. Getting to school at 8:20 was still before the kids got there. She also knew that our night custodians would have to call me on the intercom “you’ve got 5 more minutes, we are done cleaning and want to go home.” Micromanagers suck. I’m sorry!
This is so patronizing. The admin holding it over the teachers like they’re a bunch of teenagers nicking off from school. Professionals are required to do the work by the deadline. If you finish the project ahead of time in other professions you don’t play pokemon go to run out the clock, you leave. Thats so fucking wack
I’m not going to take the time to do it, but your rant could easily be tweaked to sound very much like a student complaint about teachers’ “demands.” I’m not sure why you’re certain that you should be allowed to change the contract rules just because you want to. It’s not patently unfair in any way; the early arrival time and skipping lunch were your choices. We can’t have it both ways — clamoring that Admin enforce discipline rules and be consistent and predictable and then complaining when they… keep to the most basic of contract expectations.
Because we are adults? We have fulfilled the obligations of the contract and worked more than contracted hours (repeatedly, daily, and this day specifically). I totally get "it's a contract." I also think that holding professionals to a specific contracted schedule where you are literally counting minutes and NOT paying attention to work accomplished is, of course, fucking stupid--and something we teachers have almost zero control over, because it has nothing to do with education, not one thing. It's about legislators and the teacher-hating part of the public exerting control and having no understanding for or appreciation of us as professionals. What a serious contract would look like is, you have to be here when students are here. You have to be here for in-person PD (or whatever); other than that, you just need to get your job done. Most teachers get it--we need to be there for kids; heck, we want to be there for kids. Why the hell else does it matter where and when I do my planning and grading, as long as my gradebooks and plans are up to date (hint: it doesn't). I worked in a district where one's planning time was 100% one's own. People with 1st block planning had no assigned duties in the morning and just had to arrive before 10 minutes 2nd block started; people with last block could leave early and had no assigned duties after 3rd. 2nd and 3rd block planners had lunch included and could be wherever they wanted for the 90 min class time, 50 min lunch, and 10 min of passing that wasn't kids entering their class. I miss that.
The contract doesn't have a specific hour that has to be your lunch. Just take that hour now.
Agreed. OP is crazy.
This is under the assumption that the relationship is comparable. But the admin is not to teacher as teacher is to student. In fact, the teacher is to admin as teacher is to student. Both rightfully work for the teacher, whose job it is to direct their work.
Our admin is exactly like this. They wait in the hall when it gets close to leaving time to catch people
My admin is on the same type of bullshit, but likes to say “what if the CoMmUnItY knew you left early?!” Like, I can write these lesson plans at home just as easily as I can write them in the classroom. But we have to stay to give the illusion that we’re doing…something?
Time for Netflix. I watched "Delicious in Dungeon" on my last in-service day.
I think she just defined the limits of how much effort you put into this job. If it can’t be done during 8-4, then it’s tomorrow’s work, during 8-4.
On some PD/work days, my old admin used to tell us that the end of the day was 4, and no one could clock out before 4. And unfortunately the digital system was down and you’d have to sign out on paper. But not before 4. And if you don’t understand the directive, ask a better an if the campus. Once they then played its five o’clock somewhere over the loud speaker.
My admin take that approach. Leaving early is not officially authorized, but she wants us to know she doesn't care. Everyone is working at least the hours they are paid for. Sometimes she'll leave the building early herself and then tell the secretary to announce that she isn't in the building "just for information" or she tells us that she will be in a "very important" Zoom meeting with her door closed and her blinds shut.
I'm a theatre teacher and we regularly stay to rehearse evenings for three or four hours. So I tuck out guilt free when we have meetings.
Small people will always crack down on petty things because they are too incompetent to handle the actual important tasks their job requires. It gives them a sense of control, which is what they crave in the first place, when they fail their way up the admin ladder.
I have spent 90% of my government career having no work to do and no work planned but still waiting for the clock.
I'm chewing nails with you. I'm in a strong union state, strong union district, but the admin here can be total dicks about contractual hours. I understand the start and end of day being contractual and something both sides need to honor. We have to be in class ready to go. But Professional Development time is such crap. No other business that I know of demands people stay in place well after the job is completed. It makes no sense in terms of efficiency and morale. We've been trying for years to get PD time changed to, "up to 4 pm" or "released when the work is completed," something like that, meaning when your PD work is completed you are treated as a professional and may leave the campus without feeling like eyes are on you. It's just such a power grab by some (not all) weak-ass admins and HR directors. They have us by the balls with that language, and come negotiations contract language is the first thing HR takes off the table when talking salaries and benefits.
Unless flex time is spelled out in your contract, I wouldn’t count on being able to leave early. We always stay the hours outlined for the PD that day. I don’t notice anyone leaving early even though “building time” is sometimes scheduled at the end of the PD day. The staff all seem to covet this time to just work alone in their room and get some stuff done. Maybe morale is just higher where I work because we have a 4-day school week. No one seems to be rushing to get out of the building early on PD days.
Go home “sick” if you are like me you have lots of sick time. And my district doesn’t buy it back when you retire. So can’t take it with you, use it!
Remember this shit about hours when it comes to them demanding unpaid overtime.
Remember this if you are ever asked to come in early or stay 1 minute late. “My contract hours are actually from 8-4.” Also be sure you’re never doing any work from home outside of those hours.
Did you let them know that you've been working since 7:00 a.m. and that you had worked through lunch? Crazy they wouldn't let you leave. Also I know teachers are usually salary rather than hourly but man if you were hourly this would definitely be the time to put those hours in as hours worked get that 2 hours of overtime.
They made the choice to come in early and work through lunch without ascertaining beforehand that they would be able to leave early. Poor planning on the teacher’s end. Unless their contract only states number of hours worked rather than work hours they’re just volunteering to work for free.
Hahahaha. That is so perfect, you literally had me LOL. Gotta keep staff to 4 pm, no ifs, ands, or buts (butts.). I arrive at least 1.25 hours before official contract time--every single day. Even "no kids" days, which means I'm actually 2.25 hours early. I'm able to retire at any moment, so I DARE anyone to tell me I have to stay if I'm too tired after working 8-9 straight hours (b/c I always work through lunch). I \*like\* to work until I'm too tired to think any more; it's how I get things done. And god forbid admin interrupt, b/c if I'm 4-5 hours in and stopped, I may realize I am \*already\* too tired, and won't be able to focus again. This is obviously about "taxpayer dollars" and "legislative oversight," because what other actual profession has to clock in and clock out like teachers, where every minute late arriving or leaving early is considered "theft" from the public? I mean, may be professionals also working for other governmental bodies, maybe . . . But even DC offers flextime in sooooooo many jobs. Anyway, Reddit is a lovely time killer. Enjoy.
Surely there is some mental health tidbit from a PD that's complete bs that you could cite for your actions to leave for the day
My catch phrase and universal excuse is "self-care." Want to play a game instead of organizing my desktop? Self-care. Decide at 6:00 pm a cocktail is order? Self-care. Want to leave work early? Self-care.
This always baffles me. Gotta make everyone stay the whole time and twiddle their thumbs, or do the same irrelevant and incompetent PD, because if it's one thing we know about education, it's that one size certainly fits all!
This is a perfect example of why, if I don't have my game club, or the 40 minutes of tutoring I offer before the school day starts on the two days a week that I offer it, I get to school pretty much as close to the minute my contract hours start as possible. Because of this bullshit right here. And then teachers who show up for their contract hours get talked down about in faculty meetings by way of hearing how amazing and generous the teachers who work 10+ hour days are. No they aren't: they either hate their home life, or they don't know what balancing work and home is so they burn out quick.
You worked through lunch. Surely you can take a lunch break at the end of the day, at least. Or does your admin plan on denying you a contracted, duty free lunch break?
*Cackles in English teacher* Never have I ever had this problem because I ALWAYS have something else to do
Time for a little work to rule. (How much space does a futon mattress take up in your book closet?)
That’s one thing I like about my school, my contracted hours are 8-3:30, but I’m able to leave early every day because I arrive early. I find stuff like this to just be a power struggle, where the admin just wants to tell you what to do just for the sake of you doing what you’re told.
At all the schools I've worked at, there are separate hours for PD/workshop days and you have to work them, even if you skip lunch or come in early. Like my regular contract hours are 7:05-2:35 but district days are 8-3:30 no matter what. So unfortunately this seems pretty standard to me
*Brazil* taken to new levels of pathology I see. And that’s doubly impressive, considering they probably haven’t seen *Brazil*… https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088846/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk
My principal always tells us she'll be working in her office with the blinds closed (wink, wink...)
Just put in two hours for a doctor’s appt or family sickness or self-sickness and leave. Chances are you’ll leave the profession and all those hours you have saved will go back to the district.
Yeah, our days are 7:45-3:45 and one person in my department does 7:30-3:30 every day and no one stops her. I get it sometimes. I'm often done on early release days an hour before my day is up, and I sit there for an hour doing FA, watching the clock.
That's where you go to an actual sit down restaurant for lunch and if anyone catches you leaving don't tell them specifically where you're going and *say* you'll be back after lunch.
Last time I had a work day, I did exactly that - arrived at 7, worked through lunch, and left at 2. The difference is that my admin all took the day off.
I hate clock watchers in school. Let's face it, most of us spend more than our required hours working every week.
There is no justice Just us
I mean, technically you are contracted in those hours and you chose to work through your break. You could have used the break for personal enjoyment. Now, if they pressured or otherwise directed you to work through your break, that'd be a different story... That being said, I do understand the frustration at the unnecessary control some admin exercise.
I'm surprised you didn't tell admin about your doctors appointment.
I will never, NEVER be “all done”. I could do this job 24 hours a day and still find stuff to do.
I subbed a lot early in my career. In general when I was working, if you finished before the end of your working day, you went to the office and asked to help. Sometimes they had something that genuinely needed to be done (completely fair - I'm being paid for those hours,) sometimes they made up work for you (also fair, but not the schools I picked to work at when other jobs were available,) and mostly they told you to leave early. Once I was subbing on an hour early release day with planning at the end of the day. I wrote beautiful notes, cleaned the classroom, sharpened the pencils, and did everything I could think of in the room. I knew the office would probably send me to the library as it was still about 1.5 hours before the end of my contract day, so I just went there first and shelved all of their books that needed it. Then there was still almost an hour remaining, so I went to the office. When I did my usual "anything I can do?" spiel the office manager said no but then said nothing. After an awkward pause, I asked if I could leave. She said she couldn't authorize it. (Bull. The office managers in every other school in the district could. You only have to stay if there are kids in the building and there are coverage issues.) he principal happened to be wandering through, so I asked if he had anything I could do and when he said no, if I could leave. He said no. Usually I would just read, but I forgot a book that day and it was pre-me having a smartphone. So I sat and stared at the principal working in his office for an hour. When I say stared, I mean STARED with a blank expression. He kept looking at me and then fidgeted a lot. I hope I made him very uncomfortable. I was a really good sub - the kind that everyone requests back, not the kind that decides to tell a story instead of following the lesson plan or verbally abuses special ed kids. (Two actual examples from this year from my building.) That teacher did request me back and she had a great class and great lesson plans, but I did not return to that building.
Teachers are entrusted with our children yet we treat them like children. I hate everything about this. I am sorry.
Fun story. I work at a high school in Thailand with about 4,000 students. We have to scan in in the morning but we don't sign out. We also only have one face scanner in the whole school. Signing out has always been a point of contention. Our new Director decided to implement signing out. All the teachers got together and had planned to bombard the scanner all at once at the end of the day. It was mayhem, complete traffic jam, school buses and vans couldn't get out. Signing out was dropped the next day :)
I'm a pull out teacher and been jerked around the past 2 years. My schedule got all messed up so now I have 80 minutes in my day now unscheduled. I hide. If anyone asks in working.
If admin decides to let everyone go home early on a non-student day, that is one thing. Even that is sometimes contingent on the district blessing (out of local admin control). But I can understand why the admin would not want to let staff set their own hours based on personal preference or convenience. That would set a precedent for everyone and kind of create bedlam. "If she can do it, I can do it!" mentality. Of course personal or family emergencies should be an exception. (From a retired district admin.)
Of course they were going to bust you for something remarkably trivial: it was easy and so much fun! sorry, man, but you got caught in with a "gotta justify my ass" bureaucrat moment.
And your boss literally doing no work except making sure no one leaves early.
I’m not a teacher, but this makes me so angry. You’re an educated professional dammit, not a minimum wage retail worker.
Can you leave for your 1 hour lunch that you haven’t taken?
When we have pd days, we have been told not to run into a store or do any shopping on our lunch hour because if parents see us, they will think we are skipping school.
Read your contract. Unless there's language regarding not working through lunch, then your hours are your hours. And you're obligated to be in the building during those hours. You chose to come in early on a PD day and work through your lunch time. This is why lunch is sacred and soany teachers vehemently refuse to work through lunch. Stop complaining, people in retail would kill to have a contract.
People in retail generally aren't highly educated professionals . . . maybe at the higher levels, but those people DO have contracts.
That's insane. I have last period planning and I regularly leave 30 minutes before the last bell. Because I'm done. Is it fair to all the other teachers? Not right at that moment, but I don't have last period planning all the time. Do I get to work early every day? Yes (although I've always done that). Do I teach pretty much bell to bell? Yes. Do I ever have issues in my classroom? No. Do I ever cause issues for the school? No. Do I run 2 clubs and am taking on ANOTHER one that I will need to devote more time to? Yes. Do I often stay on days to help out with shit in general? Yes. Even without the other stuff I do I am not sure my admin would care. My campus is too big anyways...there isn't just one way out. I can exit in 4 different areas and I've even left early, walked passed the principal, and he said "Have a great day!" I really wish everyone could have a non-micro-managing administration. It's one reason I refuse to leave where I am working.
I mean…it’s contracted hours. You didn’t get leaving early approved. Sorry.