I thought it was terrible that the DOE and UFT agreed to waste the services of "great veteran teachers" by making them day to day subs but to use guidance counselors as glorified substitute teachers is ridiculous and a massive waste of talent. How, in this time of tight City budgets, can the DOE be paying up to 160 million dollars yearly for ATRs while allowing principals to hire "newbies" with no experience with students. Worse, some principals were using the guidance counselors as paras until the UFT complained about using them inappropriately.It's time that the union get a commitment from the Mayoral hopefuls that they will end "fair student funding" and bring back the unit system for a school's staff. Furthermore, eliminate the ATR pool entirely by requiring principals to hire excessed staff before a "newbie" can be hired by the school. For the union to fail to receive such commitments along with a moratorium on closing schools and a contract with full retroactive raises as the minimum requirements for these mayoral candidates to get our support is a union that is not representing its members. Nothing less is acceptable.
Earlier in the school year, I received an email from Rosemarie Thompson, UFT chapter Leader of the guidance counselors, that guidance counselors cannot be used as pedagogues. She also provided a list of items that fall within the purview of the GC's roles and responsibilities:
ReplyDelete•Assist with completing Planning Interview Forms
•Run attendance and cutting reports for over-age and under-credited students
•F/u with 407s from attendance teacher
•Distribute, collect and analyze progress reports on at-risk students for f/u
•Promotion in Doubt entry in ATS and letters home
•Summer school entry in ATS
As per Ms. Thompson, GCs must follow the guidance counselor collective-bargaining agreement when sent to a school.
This I know they are NOT supposed to be subs and the chapter leader in the school is supposed to resolve this if GC are being used improperly.
Chaz
ReplyDeleteSadly i see the atr pool not going away any time soon. Principals do not want us and the city does not want 'bad teachers' in classrooms. That is how we are viewed
I feel as wasteful as the atr pool is its here forever
ACR's (Absent Counselor Reserve)were not to be used as substitute teachers but in counselor duties. There are none, so they are treated as ATR. Speaking up will only cause problems and the UFT does nothing and/or is completely ineffective.
ReplyDeleteIt is not about getting the best teacher in the classroom. Breaking the union, getting rid of experienced and higher paid teachers, removing institutional knowledge and not having teachers stay on long enough to have any real pension are the true motivations of corporate reformers.
I believe you but two different guidance counselors have told me that the union advised them that they are required to handle a classroom and have a lesson plan.
ReplyDeleteIt is one thing for someone to say what the rights of GCs are but another thing when the union tells you otherwise.
Chaz,
ReplyDeleteThere are some GCs who would rather not affirm their roles and responsibilities with administration; so they'll sub in the classroom knowing it's not their job.
If the union is telling them to go sub in the classroom, then the GC should get it in writing from the UFT. This way if there's a fight in a classroom and the GC and a child gets injured, I would like to see who should get blamed. Having a GC instead of a pedagogue is educational negligence on administration.
I'm pretty sure that the union told them "obey and then grieve" it.
As for other GCs that I know very well, they do stand up for their rights and will show the principal what their roles and responsibilites are as per their CBA.
It is a sad, sad system we're in when teachers are not in the classroom but are nomads wandering from school to school. GCs are being used in the classroom when they should be providing essential guidance to students who need support. Up is down and down is up! Nothing makes sense anymore.
Only hoping that our new Mayor will come to senses and get guidance counselors back to working with students. Only bloomterd can have a system such as we currently have. Bloomterd is totally out of control as per teacher evals blow up. Even albany is fed up with bloomterd
ReplyDeleteJust to add to this insanity, I've now seen schools using "not for profit" organizations that have people working as "advisors" in the schools acting as guidance counselors and social workers..... and... the ATR social workers and guidance counselors are sitting around doing nothing!!!! you cant make this up Chaz. Do you hear that??? The DOE and our out of touch mayor have really hit the wall people.
ReplyDeleteChaz, do you see two areas being reverted back to its ole self?
ReplyDelete1. eliminate atr pool and revert back to tenure
2. eliminate these bogus small schools which no one likes.
cmon get it straight chaz,,,you are supposed to be our spokesperson...atr guidance counselors DO NOT TEACH in the classroom period...Please do not post that counselors have to have lesson plans, etc...Please again, counselors DO NOT TEACH AND ARE NOT REQUIRED TO HAVE LESSON PLANS...THANK YOU
ReplyDeleteThat is not what was told to me by at least two guidance counselors.
ReplyDeleteCheck with UFT's Amy Arundell if you don't believe me.