Your PPA And NQT Time Is Important, But Your Class Should Come First
Is your planning, preparation and assessment time sacrosanct? While teachers need time out of the classroom, it shouldn’t come at the expense of relationships with the kids, says Zak Willis… It was just as I was about to become an acting head when the government of the day introduced PPA time [PDF] for all teachers. […]
- by Zak Willis
Is your planning, preparation and assessment time sacrosanct? While teachers need time out of the classroom, it shouldn’t come at the expense of relationships with the kids, says Zak Willis…
It was just as I was about to become an acting head when the government of the day introduced PPA time [PDF] for all teachers. Despite the whingers on the sidelines (yes, they were around even then) I had to admit, I was a fan. Many, many years on, I still am – if I’m honest. I think it may well have saved a whole generation of teachers and professionals who might otherwise have thought that despite all their passion, the job simply wasn’t worth the impact on their health. I still believe it is a good thing, and have always done my best to protect it – as I hope my current and past colleagues would agree. Similarly, the advent of formalised NQT time (only a vague notion when I too bore that moniker) has handed us a gilt-edged mandate to create better teachers.
‘I’d rather not…’
However, as each new generation of teachers leaves enters the profession, I feel the expectations and philosophy around PPA and NQT time has altered – and not necessarily for the better. I have long since stopped asking staff if I could see them for a quick chat, because I can no longer waste the time it takes for them to formulate a response along the lines of, “I’d rather not. It’s my PPA, actually.” Okay, fair comment. But I’m just after a few minutes. Never one to be in a good mood on interview days (just ask my deputy), I’ve got a little bored of getting to the end of exchanges with candidates, sitting back and saying, “Have you any questions?” only to be bombarded with saccharin-coated demands for NQT time. Before Christmas, I was unwittingly privy to a conversation that almost broke my heart. Two of my young teachers (and yes, I know how patronising and old that makes me sound) were discussing the production in which their children were performing that day. One was asking the other if she could help do the costumes for the dress rehearsal that morning. “But it’s my PPA time,” replied the NQT. I was slightly reassured that the first teacher shared my silent exasperation over such a response – clearly, I had taught her well. She calmly continued, “Then could you please do it at the main production this afternoon?” There was a brief pause before the answer we were both dreading came along. “That’s my NQT time!” replied the NQT. “Do I have to?”
‘Putting People Ahead’
As I’ve said, I’m a big fan of these professional opportunities, and hope they remain in place ad infinitum. However, what kind of philosophy or vocation can a person truly hold if she deems her NQT / PPA time – even 10 minutes of it – to be of a greater import than supporting and bonding with her class? How does it sit with a profession that seeks to be inclusive and caring, to only pretend to be so for certain hours of the week?
How can our new teachers ever aspire to be the next generation of outstanding practitioners if they refuse to give a little of themselves? How can you turn up to interview and profess to ‘Go the extra mile’ when you don’t even take the first step?
I just think it’s a real shame that a device that was supposed to ease the burden on our professionals has become a battleground of lines drawn and never surrendered. I have often said to good, aspirational teachers that I never met an outstanding member of staff who wasn’t first and foremost an outstanding human, and I still believe that. Missing your own class’s – your first ever class’s – big production is, to me, unbelievably sad, and not, I would suggest, the kind of profession we seek to build. Please, colleagues. You are the amazing people our children desperately need, and I have nothing but respect for the wonderfully creative ways you manage to overcome the constant trudge of dullness thrown at you by suits like me. But just bear in mind that every so often, your PPA actually stands for ‘Putting People Ahead’ – and ensure you are the outstanding humans you know you can be.
Zak Willis is headteacher at Badock’s Wood Primary School in Bristol; you can read his blog at badockshead.blogspot.co.uk and follow him at @willis_zak
