Homeroom teacher

[lockstock]

Erm...what is a Homeroom Teacher please? And don't tell anyone else I asked in case the answer is glaringly obvious and I should know. I can't say I've ever heard the term here in the UK.

[Marie P]

Hi I work in a High School as a Teacher aide .

My department is called the ILC ,Intergrated learning centre and our Kids work mainly in their homerooms for English ,Maths ,Science and go of to other classes for options and other subjects.

So basically our kids have their formteacher who has them for most of the subjects and work at their level ,wheras mainstream kids have a different teacher and different room for each lesson.

Does that help ?

Marie x

[lockstock]

Thanks Marie - it helps a lot. Do these children have special needs then? Perhaps literacy/numeracy?

[Marie P]

Yes.......some are just struggling because English is second language ,some improve and move back into mainstream ,but the rest are either really lazy or naughty kids ,or have special needs which must have been ignored through primary and Intermediate Schools.

They say "are we the Dumb kids Miss ?" ,It breaks my heart with some of them to be like this at their age .

Marie x

[movefromus]

When I was in primary school we had the same teacher for all our subjects. At high school we would have our home room where we would go for a short period each day....the teacher would check the roll and a few other bits and pieces. The rest of the day we were off at our different classes with different teachers. The teachers in our home rooms did teacher other classes though at other times of the day.
Carly

[lockstock]

I thinks the US system is bit like our 'tutor group' or 'form group' system here - part of the pastoral system. Now I may have worked this out wrong but it looks like the younger years of High School in NZ have a kind of halfway system - core subjects with one teacher (like in primary) and specialist subjects with specialist. All other options welcomed!

[movefromus]

Yes, that's right. 13 and 14 year olds do the halfway thing then after that it changes.
Carly