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I was going to extend the name of this blog to include ‘as a new teacher’, but I think it’s going to contain information that will serve even the veterans amongst us. We never stop learning and with my last form class, I certainly didn’t.

 

You see, I met my last Form Class in 2020…online. At first, all they were to me, were names with log-ins on the school’s LMS platform. It’s hard enough to build relationships with a new form class, much less do it online. And even though we got used to each other through assemblies, me teaching them French and having cameras on… when they returned to physical school, it was like I was meeting them all over again. They didn’t know what the school compound was like, they were putting on their uniforms for the first time and meeting the ‘full body’ versions of Ms. Sankarsingh and my wonderful team teacher, Mr. Adams. 

 

It’s no secret, they were a ‘trying’ class and the majority of my contact with them took place in Form 3 (an already difficult year with the hormones raging and subject selection happening). I made countless phone calls (some parents were on speed dial), I sent and received WhatsApp messages, had in-person meetings, communicated in an email group to parents…and ...basically, took on a full-time job besides teaching French.

 

So that’s the first thing we need to talk about when you’re a form teacher:

 

It’s a whole job in itself: Being a Form teacher requires you to be up-to-date on student attendance/ punctuality, a collector of funds for every event and field trip, a record-keeper, a listener, a disciplinarian, a mentor… the list is endless.

 

It requires sensitivity and systems: For example,  it’s easier and faster to just ask the class who needs to receive meals. But it doesn’t cater for the child who may feel ashamed to raise his/her hand. What about the child who comes from a home where both parents are gainfully employed and just don’t want to prepare a sandwich for their child? (Yes, I had a case where they were both highly paid professionals and thought their son should qualify, over a student whose parents were unemployed during/ because of the pandemic.) Using my email group, I asked parents to indicate if and why their child should be placed on the programme and I compiled a most-in-need list. No one saw this list, but the Dean and Admin. I gave them my feedback and they vetted/ verified my choices. I informed the individual students who qualified, and they organized amongst themselves to collect the lunches. It took more time, but the system of selection allowed for confidentiality. So advice? Don’t be lazy when it comes to a student’s well-being and health. Fill in and follow up with documentation.

 

It requires building relationships with parents: Honestly, I was forced to build relationships with some of my parents. Or maybe, it happened organically…after all, with at least 4 particular students in my class, I communicated with their parents almost weekly. Sometimes before I even said anything, they would sigh, “Hi Ms Sankarsingh, how are you…” (clearly they’d also saved my number due to the frequency of my calls/ messages). 

 

And that’s what I would tell any Form Teacher: call…message…email…send a smoke signal (kidding)....but stay in touch with your students’ parents. I fondly think back of one mother telling me that her son calls her ‘Ms Sankarsingh 2.0’ (lol), because she says the same thing to him that I do. Which leads to my next point:

 

You need to be on the same page with BOTH parents and TEACHERS of your form class: So in addition to having a Form 3 Parent email group, I also had a Form 3 Subject Teacher group. I knew who taught them each subject and where to find them at any given time. In addition to posting my own teaching timetable, I kept my Form Class’ timetable pinned to my desktop. I made sure that all their subject teachers knew that I was their Form teacher. What that meant, is by the time their, let’s say Spanish teacher, came up to the staffroom and told me they’d acted the fool…I’d already have a group of students waiting outside the staffroom to hit me with the: “So what had happened was….” story. Point is, they knew I kept my ear to the ground and spoke to my colleagues. You can’t and shouldn’t be a Form teacher in isolation. 

 

Give them autonomy as time passes: I spent 3 years with my Form Class and over that time, I ceded organization/ running of assemblies to them. They knew the drill⇒ Anthem-Prayer-Teen Creed- Reflection. I would ask individual students to volunteer to share a reflection or some form of inspiration with the class. And those who answered the call, did it well. We ended our time with the Form 3 Year Group with something called a “Level-Up Programme”. Part of it involved professionals from different fields coming in to talk about their jobs. The planning team agreed that we wanted the students to do the vote of thanks to these professionals, and yes, we did hold 2 training sessions with them, but ultimately, we believed in their ability to take it from there. I can safely say, we were all proud of how well they managed the task, and the invited guests mentioned how impressed they were by the students. Yes, as time passes, some of the roles you would normally handle, could and should be passed on to your students. 

 

However, there are some precautions that I would ask Form Teachers, especially new Form teachers, to take:

 

Know where your legal responsibilities begin and end: There is a term in Education (and elsewhere), known as Duty of Care. It is defined as “a moral and a legal obligation to ensure that a [...] student, [...] is fully protected from any personal physical and/or emotional harm, either on the premises or when engaged in activities relating to the establishment.” https://www.educare.co.uk/news/what-is-duty-of-care

 

      Let me give you an example. A student disobeyed a directive for a school event and I wanted him to return home immediately. However, his parents could not collect him from the compound, and the next option was to have him take a taxi or bus home. My Head of Administration reminded me that God forbid, any accident happen to him on his way home, we could be held liable as we had Duty of Care, once he entered our compound. In theory, his parents had ‘entrusted’ him to us by dropping him off at the school event.  It might sound crazy to you, but you’re in the role of ‘caretaker’ or as they say ‘prudent parent’ because of Duty of Care.

 

So before you run off the compound because there’s a bomb scare, or electricity goes…Know that you are in fact responsible for ensuring your students’ safety before you leave. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, because bet your bottom dollar, if anything untoward occurs, your name will be mixed in with the melee.

 

Duty of Care yes, but you are not the legal parent/ guardian of the child: It really is a fine line, but you need to keep this in mind. Something as simple as picking up a student who goes to your school, just because you see him/her en route, is not advised. Again, remember that the student is a minor. Did his/ her parents give you written permission to pick up their child? Again, God forbid, if you get into a traffic accident with the said child in your vehicle, a parent’s first criticism could be that you had no permission to have them in the car with you. And please note a WhatsApp VN or message giving permission does not count. It’s very easy for a distraught parent to say ‘I never sent that.’/ ‘I never say that’. No authenticated signature? No ride.

 

You are not a trained counselor/ psychologist/ psychiatrist: A mistake many new form teachers make, and I did as well, is to get too close to a student/ students in distress. We’re in a profession where compassion is high (or it should be). Still, if a student confides in you about self-harm, abuse, suicidal thoughts…you are to report it to the trained professional on your compound/ police unit assigned to the school district (depending on the nature of the issue). You can offer compassion, but direct them to the necessary personnel. You are not to take matters into your own hands or diagnose anyone as depressed, bipolar or as having ADD, ADHD…or anything else. Even if he/ she complains of a tummy ache, send the student to the nurse. Bat in your crease and draw some boundaries. In this profession, it’s also important to protect yourself. 

 

Show discernment and wisdom when it comes to helping your students financially: As a form teacher, you very often reach into your own pocket and that’s understandable. Nobody is telling you to be callous and let a student who forgot his pocket change at home, to go hungry. Sometimes, they may be short on the passage fare to get back home, so you pitch in to help. But as with all things financial, keep track of who and how often you’re offering financial aid. Get in contact with their parents/ guardians and let them know when you gave their child money and how much. Not that you want it back, most times I know you don’t… but unfortunately, there are some individuals who will take advantage of your kindness. Think I’m kidding? We once had a programme called the Benevolent Fund at our school and we would give students who qualified for the Fund (again a sensitive system for selection was put in place), money to cover their weekly traveling expenses. We dispensed the money on a Friday, and lo and behold, a student on the fund, showed up on Wednesday asking for more money. When we did our investigation, we realized he’d spent the money on buying food from the cafe, simply because he didn’t like what his mother had cooked for him. So again, liaise, liaise, liaise with your parents.

 

Do not share too much personal information with your students: It should be pretty obvious, especially in this age of social media, yet some new Form teachers make this mistake. You’re not meant to be your students’ best friend, so information about your personal life, dating history, sometimes even where you live…that isn’t and shouldn’t be part of their need-to-know about you. I would go as far as to suggest, don’t add them as friends on FaceBook, don’t follow them or allow them to follow you on Instagram, or share your WhatsApp / cell number with them. Things can get ugly and accusatory very quickly. And when it comes to the law? You’ll be treated as an adult, and the student is very much a minor. Have them message/ email you via your work email address or set up a separate, professional one for your students. For example, if you teach French like me, try: [email protected] (I am not going to show preference to Gmail or Outlook..lol…hence the whichever.)

 

During the course of the week, I’ll be sharing some of these tips on easy-to-reach (and read) infographics, so you don’t forget the essentials about being an excellent Form teacher. As we always say: “You’ve got this, and we’ve got you!” #21stcenturyeducators