Common use of Teacher Preparation Time Clause in Contracts

Teacher Preparation Time. The purpose of release time is to enable the teacher to be free from non-instructional duties, thus allowing time for daily preparation during school hours. Each elementary teacher will be guaranteed a minimum of 200 minutes a week for instructional preparation and the administration will make reasonable efforts to provide 40 minutes a day, with at least 30 minutes consecutively. If days exist when an elementary teacher has no preparation time, the administration will make reasonable attempts not to schedule such teachers for morning, recess or bus duties. If a week exists where a teacher does not receive 200 minutes of preparation time, the administration shall provide coverage somewhere else in the teacher's schedule or be excused from an after school meeting within two (2) weeks of the lost preparation time. Should the district have a planned shortened school day, then the teachers will still receive a proportional amount of preparation time of at least half of their original preparation time. Realizing the importance of adequate and uninterrupted planning time to the elementary level teacher, the administration will make reasonable efforts to secure substitutes when specialists (Art, Library, Music and PE) are absent and additionally will make reasonable efforts to schedule all required meetings at times other than planning periods. Preparation time will be regularly scheduled for all middle and high school teachers in order to permit them to meet their instructional responsibilities. Teachers may be assigned up to seventy-five percent {75%) of their workday as classroom/instructional time.