Teaching load calculator

Schools express staffing as a mix of contracted hours, full-time equivalents (FTE), and scheduled teaching hours on the timetable. This calculator uses the same ratio planners put in staffing spreadsheets.

FTE share = scheduled teaching hours ÷ max teaching hours per full-time teacher

Example: if a full-time teacher may teach 24 hours per week and someone is scheduled for 18 hours, FTE share is 18 ÷ 24 = 0.75 (75%).

Overload means scheduled teaching hours are above the teacher's contracted hours. Underload means scheduled hours are below the contract. The contract line is what HR and union agreements usually reference; the full-time ceiling is what leadership uses for staffing models.

This calculator uses your school's numbers only. Statutory minimum instructional hours by country are not included here.

A part-time teacher is contracted for 18 hours per week. The school defines 24 hours as the max teaching load for a full-time teacher.

Scheduled teaching on the draft timetable: 20 hours.

FTE share = 20 ÷ 24 = 0.833 (83.3%).

Remaining capacity against full-time max = 24 − 20 = 4 hours.

Contract remaining = 18 − 20 = −2 hours, an overload of 2 hours against the contract.

Click Load sample in the calculator to enter these numbers.

This page checks one teacher at a time with your inputs. It does not optimize allocations, enforce limits during timetable generation, or roll up workload across departments.

Teacher workload planning in Smootables applies contracted loads and overload rules while the solver builds the timetable, with roll-ups by teacher, subject, and period from the same year plan.