Time to Do Your Job Is Not a Gift — It's a Basic Working Condition
In this video, Dr. Justin Baeder argues that providing teachers with adequate time to do their work isn't a perk or a gift — it's a fundamental working condition that should be standard.
Key Takeaways
- Time is a working condition, not a gift - Treating prep time and planning time as rewards rather than essentials is insulting
- Teachers deserve adequate time - The job requires planning, grading, and communication time that must be built into the schedule
- Stop framing necessities as perks - Calling basic working conditions 'gifts' reveals how low the bar has been set
Transcript
Do you appreciate the gift of time?
I love this comment that says, I hate it when admin says they're giving me the gift of time.
It's not a gift to allow time for me to do my job.
Absolutely, bravo.
I think this is a really important way of thinking about time as a responsibility of school leaders to really plan realistically, right?
If you want people to do things, that are part of their job but they don't have time in the work day to do them then you can't really be serious right you don't really want that to get done if you're not making time for it to get done during the work day and historically we've not looked at our profession as a job that can get done during the work day we've just thought well if i can't get it done during the school day or my contract day then i'll just do it in the evenings i'll just do it on the weekends i'll just come in over the summer and that's been fine and i think one of the Lasting takeaways from the pandemic and then the labor market disruptions that have come from that is just the sense that education needs to be a more doable profession during the contract day.
We can't just assume people want to have this lifestyle where they'll put in infinite extra time for free to get done whatever they're expected to.
expected to do.
I think it's the expectations themselves that need to shift.
And I think we've got to stop talking about time as if it's some sort of luxury or some sort of act of kindness to be given the time that you need to do the work that you're expected to do.
Like that's a basic expectation of every job except teaching up to this point.
And I think we've just got to make that change in our profession.
So let me know what you think about this idea of the gift of time.
I think it is a gift of time.
Like if you have bus duty and I cover your bus duty, right?
I'm giving up some of my time at a time when I don't have duty to do something that is your responsibility.
And of course, we could talk about how much bus duties are appropriate and all that.
But if I'm actually taking something off your plate and doing it myself, then that's the gift of time.
Yes.
But simply budgeting our professional development days, simply budgeting our opening of school kind of prep time days so that you can do your job, that's a basic responsibility of school leaders.
That's not a gift.
And I think people can tell when they're being given something basic and told that it's a gift.
Like, jeans passes also fall into this category of, like, if you can wear jeans, if it's okay to wear jeans, you should be allowed to wear jeans whenever.
It's not a gift or a prize to be able to wear jeans.
It's just a basic expectation of the environment.
Or not.
You know, you might not wear jeans in your setting.
But we've just got to stop treating people like they're kids and doling out little tiny symbolic things that just make it clear how bad things are overall.
So if you're in a great place where you get lots of time to plan, lots of time to get ready for the school year, wonderful.
I've heard from lots of people who are in that place.
If you are not, just know that it's not crazy to ask.
It's not crazy to expect that you have some time to set up your room for the year.
Let me know what you think.