Congratulations! Term 4 is officially here in every state and territory around the country, which means that you have made it ¾ of the way through the school year. Considering the staffing issues that are still impacting many schools, as a relief teacher you are probably staring down the barrel of a busy term. Whether you’ve been snapped up and booked on an extended contract at one school or are continuing to do the rounds, there are some things you should be doing to make sure you end the school year on a high note.
Update Your Availability
If you only have time to do one thing on this list, make sure you update your availability. We’re serious when we say that updating your availability takes 30 seconds to do from your teacher profile and can make all the difference to the schools you work with. It’s no secret that schools prefer to book teachers who update their availability, and some may even remove you from their list if you leave your availability blank for an extended period of time. So, what are you waiting for? Whether you’re available and ready to work, booked on an extended contract, or choosing to take some time off, take a moment to update your availability to reflect your current situation and keep the schools you work with happy.
Make Sure You Have Bookings Switched On (Or Off)
Recently we gave teachers the ability to turn bookings on or off on their ClassCover profiles—effectively giving you the option to hide your profile from view when you’re not available or interested in being booked for work.
The goal here is to put the power in your hands. Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of this feature is that even if you choose to turn bookings off on your profile, you still retain access to some of our most popular features, like our PD platform ClassCover Learn and ClassCover Jobs where you can browse and apply for full-time, part-time, and contract roles at schools right around the country. You can turn bookings on or off from your Teacher Profile.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to turning bookings on or off.
Plan some “Me Time”
This year (and the couple before it) has been big! Because teachers are notorious for putting themselves last and taking care of students, families, and everyone else in their lives before themselves, we’re using this opportunity to remind you to take a breather.
You’ve made it through three quarters of the school year, so take a minute to stop and check in with yourself. Me time, self-care, whatever you want to call it, looks different to everyone so it’s worth asking yourself what it is that you need.
You know the saying “you can’t pour from an empty cup”? That’s truer for educators than almost any other profession, so take a little time for yourself so you can be your best self when you show up for your students, your family, and yourself.
Keep Active on ClassCover
Did you know that schools can see when you were last active on ClassCover from your teacher profile? This information is visible to schools when they are searching for new teachers, browsing their list of existing teachers, and also when they are sending a booking request.
Here is what it looks like for schools:
What does this mean for you as a teacher? It makes sense that a teacher who has been active recently will be more appealing to a school than one who hasn’t logged in for a month. If it comes down to two teachers that a school is considering sending a booking request to, chances are, the one who has been online recently will get the job.
So, what’s the fix? Make it a habit to open the ClassCover app regularly, update your availability, make sure all your information is up to date, and keep your profile active.
One last thing: Enjoy term 4 and have an amazing holiday season!
