Teachers And Educators – What To Do When You Have Work Up To Your Ears
ByDescription
You start to panic when there is work everywhere and still more come through the door. Panic means you either flit from one thing to another ineffectually or stare stunned at the pile as it grows.
Cause
Excess work is certainly a problem in itself, and there are times when things all happen at once. Adopt one of the strategies below when (though preferably before) it all gets too much:
Action
Strategy I — Delegate
This may already be the cause rather than the solution of your problems. If you have anyone to delegate work to, think carefully before you add to their burden. Shifting the load to someone already overworked doesn’t really solve the problem. However, if there is a keen young colleague willing to gain experience this could be an opportunity for in-service training.
However, shifting the load back to pupils can be helpful. Set tasks which involve preparation and drafting. Set activities which involve discussion, reading and problem-solving and which can be assessed in class and don’t add to your marking burden. Have pupils try peer marking and supervise their work in class.
Strategy 2 — Time shift
This means putting off the inevitable to a time when you may be more free of immediate pressure. Setting a project which won’t be handed in until the end of term so you can mark it in the holidays may feel good now but you may regret it later. Secondary teachers tend to believe the urban myth that there will be more free time in the summer term, and forget that the combined forces of exam invigilation and planning for next year cancel out any time freed up by absent examination classes.
Nevertheless, if you can spread your burden over a longer period your load may, briefly, be lighter.
Strategy 3 — Spend a weekend catching up
Yes, you will feel very tired on Monday, but balancing that will be a smug sense of satisfaction and the lessening of the load which got you down. You must persevere, set targets, send family away, switch your phone off, take breaks every two hours or so — and most of all stop when you’re finished. Then resolve to avoid getting into this position again.
Strategy 4 — Practise saying ‘no’ to more
You may have got into this position because you willingly take on extra work. Now practise saying ‘no’. There is no shame in refusing to do more, especially when you are already overloaded. Be realistic about what you can cope with.
Strategy 5 – Prioritize
Often people who say they don’t have time for something have simply made it a lower priority than other activities. Prioritizing means deciding quickly how important something is, how imminent is the deadline and what the effects will be if you don’t do it.
Maintain a ‘To do’ list with three main categories: ‘Urgent’, ‘Important’ and ‘Long term’. Within each category place the item higher or lower according to importance, urgency and consequence. Some personal organizers and some email calendars have features of this kind, though a simple list with space for the three categories will do so long as you don’t mind rewriting it from time to time.
Strategy 6 – Regular small doses
Bite-size portions are more digestible than blow-out meals. Ten exercise books every day are less exhausting than 35 at once. Many frequent small actions diminish the effect of the load.
Priorities
Do something — anything!
Alternatives
Work harder. It may be necessary in the short term.
Work smarter. Working smarter involves rationing your energies, prioritizing, being realistic about what you can achieve and aiming for a better work-life balance (which is not a euphemism for laziness).
Revisiting your job description and workload. If there really is a need for an assistant or some extra help, then make out a case for it. Labeling, filing and photocopying might be more effectively done by secretarial staff, or your own son or daughter (in return for pocket money). If you’re expected to do too much, discuss with your line manager what you can put on the back burner or abandon altogether.
Avoid
Ignoring the problem. That really will make things worse.
Doing the nearest or easiest thing instead of the most important thing.
Storing up problems which realistically you can’t solve.
Lying about the situation. Even small lies about having left something at home or about having ‘nearly’ finished when you are far from doing so lead to a habit of ignoring the problem and damage your credibility.
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