From CSA to Principals:
Paperwork Reduction
Please be advised of the following clarification that your superintendent may have already shared with you regarding DOE/UFT paperwork agreement:
Last year the DOE and UFT reached several resolutions regarding individual school issues under the Paperwork Standards. The UFT subsequently distributed a document summarizing last year’s resolutions.
The only resolution that applies to all schools is the resolution regarding Other Professional Work – which was announced in the September 6 edition of Principals' Weekly. All other resolutions are non-precedental and do not apply to any other school.
If you have a paperwork complaint and the union is citing a prior resolution or distributing the UFT summary of resolutions to principals, please be advised that the prior resolution is not binding on your school and should only be considered as an example as a potential resolution; each resolution is school-specific and tailored to the program/needs of the school. Please contact your superintendent for clarification.
The DOE is committed to reducing redundant and excessive paperwork and below are a few highlights of the standards:
Schools may adopt only one school-based system for tracking student attendance (not including SESIS) in addition to the DOE source attendance system, except when expressly required by law/grant. Schools may select Skedula as the one system and require all staff to use Skedula.
Staff may be required to use Atlas or other comparable program, as well as create curriculum maps and other planning documents, as part of professional development work on Mondays or common planning time during professional activity assignments.
Lesson Plans may be collected and copied in a non-routinized manner and must be accessible to supervisors for review during observations (evaluative and non-evaluative).
Classroom bulletin boards are useful instructional tools. Bulletin boards should never be evaluated using a rubric and only in-room bulletin boards may be part of a teacher’s evaluation.
Educators and related service providers are not required to print collections or binders of documents that are available in electronic databases however educators may be required to maintain records of student progress in a manner that is organized and accessible for review, parent engagement, and professional conversations with supervisors
From the UFT weekly Chapter Leader Update:
An updated paperwork and Other Professional Work manual
When principals mandate paperwork that a member believes violates the paperwork standards negotiated by the Department of Education and the UFT in 2015, the chapter leader should file a paperwork reduction reporting form. The same form is now used for concerns about the assignment of duties during the 35 minutes allotted each week for Other Professional Work (OPW). The UFT has updated its Resolving Paperwork and Other Professional Work Issues Guide, which spells out the new reporting procedures and resolution process. The manual is permanently housed under the Paperwork tab in the chapter leader section of the website. Chapter leaders were able to resolve many paperwork and OPW issues in the 2016–17 school year by using the union’s new reporting process. That school year, the union went to arbitration to contest the fact that principals were assigning teachers to activities on a regular basis during OPW time. As part of the settlement of that arbitration, we have a stipulation of settlement that the DOE has shared with all principals. The stipulation clarifies the use of this time: “On an as-needed basis, principals can direct teachers or paraprofessionals to activities on the list but as per the contract, this direction cannot be done on a regular basis and must be the exception rather than the rule.” According to the paperwork standards, OPW time “shall not generate excessive or redundant paperwork or electronic work.” If you have a paperwork or OPW issue in your school, use this online form to report the issue to the UFT.
Notice there are specifics from CSA and a mostly general outline from the UFT with very few specifics.You be the judge on who is doing a better job of looking out for their membership.
Um, yeah right, im so sorry i got into this lousy profession.
ReplyDeleteCSA is more specific, but that doesn't make them more accurate. I know at least some of these assertions to be false. I know none of them to be absolutely correct.
ReplyDeleteRome burns while the UFT fiddles with paperwork nonsense.
ReplyDeleteNYC Educator, That is the point. The principals are specific and aggressive saying they can do whatever they want, even when contractually they are wrong. The UFT fights back one school at a time.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, where there aren't strong chapters, the abuse of our members continues.I venture to say that if there are resolutions in 300 schools (probably a generous number) and 400 other schools have enlightened principals who don't bother with this nonsense, that leaves about 1000 schools where teachers can be abused.
I absolutely agree with you about schools where there aren't strong chapters. I hear stories of principals who ignore the contract with impunity utterly fairly often. It's on us to stop that, and yes I know there are multiple issues facing us on that front. I still think the UFT response is better. Some of these are gray areas, some are not, but if we're willing to file paperwork complaints, and I certainly am, we will prove the principals wrong.
ReplyDeleteNonetheless, it speaks volumes that they will outright lie like that to their members. It explains a lot.
My chapter leader allows principal to keep us late on what is supposed to be our one shorter day, not a word...
ReplyDeleteThe principals aren't really lying Arthur. That is their position on the contract that they can basically do whatever the hell they like. CSA is fighting hard centrally and UFT does one school at a time pushback. It is not difficult to figure out who wins that one.
ReplyDeleteI understand your point. I still think they're lying. Nonetheless, I see how it works. Sorta makes you think maybe the UFT should reconsider the position of not pushing back so-called fellow union members.
ReplyDeleteExactly. CSA does not seem to give a damn that we are fellow union members. It used to be a partial two way street. Not any longer in too many schools.
ReplyDeleteBy the way,it is now time for students, made up mostly of overaged, undercredited criminals, to give us ratings. Sounds fair.
ReplyDeleteOh, this is so we can determine our weaknesses...
More unit plans due today? Paperwork reduction?
ReplyDeleteTell your CL if they go beyond the one page template.
ReplyDeleteMy AP takes an attitude when I give him the one page unit plan as agreed upon by the UFT and DOE. I use it anyway because it's my contractual right to do so.
ReplyDeleteGreat 4:56. Keep up defending your rights.
ReplyDelete