Hi all

Just wondering what working in the FE sector is like? I'm in my 5th year of teaching and not really enjoying it anymore. I would still like to teach, but am more interested in teaching older teenagers and adults.

Any comments about the sector (good and bad) welcome.

SH

safe_hands:

Just wondering what working in the FE sector is like?

It is a very, very broad church.

Jude's description is valid.

But it depends what you teach, where you teach it, and who you teach it to exactly.

Unlike schools there is no NC or national pay and conditions agreement that bind colleges together.

When I'm asked this question by teachers I used to answer that it is 'like a cross between working in a school and the real world'.

But then I came to realise that the majority of teachers have never worked in the real world.

Oh dear, you seem to be carrying a lot of baggage there, Jude.

Safe Hands, After 15 years in industry I worked in secondary for 20 years and have now been in FE for five years. It was a relief to get away from children! To people out there who have not experienced working in secondary, I cite my friend, the psychiatric nurse. We have separate psychiatric services in the NHS, for adults and children under 16, because, in her words - "you can not normally tell if they (the under 16s) are acting out or not"! In other words, the behaivour of some under 16s is difficult to distinguish from mental illness! I am not making a joke here.

Jude does makes some valid points though, but he spoils them with hyperbole. There is far more admin in FE because we have to chase the funding, whereas primary and secondary don't, to the same degree. That's ok though. It may be irritating, but it stays outside the classroom. Also, there are a whole load of none teaching services that young adults need. Counciling, careers, legal advice. You will be glad of them though when you have a young person with personal problems in your class.

I have had the problems with rooms like Jude says. No big deal. We find one in the end. My job is teaching and thats what I concern myself with. I have had time tables change on me without a lot of warning and that irritates me, but I get over it. I have my teaching schemes worked out and they are reasonably transferrable between my classes. I do have my own desk and PC to work at, although I also have a trolley to carry my teaching resources around. Again no big deal. In fact I'm grateful for the trolley!

Stealing schemes of work? I'm not sure I understand what this means. We work as a team. If somebody else uses my schemes of work, there will always be something in return. I get on well with all my collegues, which may be the single most important thing in a job. One thing I will tell you - I have not seen the staff bullying that went on in all the secondary schools I worked in!!! Going back to when I was in industry, I did not see it there either. What is wrong with secondary school senior staff?

The bottom line for me is my relationship with my students. Apprentices and self funding students are motivated and know why they are in the class. They are a delight to teach. Full time students are a bit more of a pain because they are often there because they have got nothing else to do. That is where my child centred skills gained in secondary come into play, that my FE only collegues seem to struggle with. It is very gratifying to see a student, who has not figured out that they are not at school anymore, begin to embrace adult hood and become a good student by the end of the year. Dosen't always happen, but if so, the student tends to find something else to do.

It is by no means all sweetness and light though. I have to admit that I have seen my college deteriorate over the five years I have been there. We have financial problems at the moment that have caused an increase in the size of my classes. Eight, nine, ten or so, up to fourteen or fifteen. Not too much of a problem but more marking. But worst of all, we have had redundances and a middle management review over the summer with 40 program managers (subject leaders) being reduced to 20 and consequent doubling of their work load, with all the chaos that you would expect, and with no end in sight. Hell, there are plenty of things I am very angry about, but hey!, when I look back on my career, I have been angry all the way through it - so what is new!?

I do not regret moving into FE. The pay may be slightly less, but I certainly would not go back to secondary.

Jude Fawley:

You'll have to pay for your photocopying, have no resources unless you buy them, carry all your stuff around on a trolley and have no storage space at the college. You'll have no desk or computer, no staffrooom, no pension, no timetable and no idea what you'll be expected to teach next

You almost had me there Jude.

But that last paragraph is utter tripe! 100% rubbish.

I am currently typing on my work's laptop - all teaching staff have one each. We plug into OHPs and SMARTboards in every room, get photocopying in budget (though we have to do it ourselves which I understand no schoolie would dream of doing), I have no trolley, have storage space and a desk in every teaching room, I have a pension as does every other F/T or P/T Fe lecturer I have ever met, I have a timetable that changes until about Octobner half term, as it depends entirely on each year's intake, and am always aware of the subject I will teach.

OP, FE is what you make of it. It has its downsides, but as you say you have worked in the 'real' world, so you know all about them. Take it from me, as another who has almost 20 years work experience outside of education, if you like to teach but don't wnat to work as a ajack of all trades, Fe is as good a bet as any.

I have no regrets (except the lack of research opportunities).

As Pobble has already said, every lecturer in FE (full-time or hourly-paid) s automatically entered into ther Teachers Pension Scheme unless they choose to opt out. As for 8 managers to every lectuer, that would mean my college having 2,400 managers!Actually, the number of managers in FE is going down - this is the group that has taken the hit with redundancies over the past few years.

I take it that you don't actually work in FE - in previous posts you have alluded to a certain factor that appears to put prospective employers off?