Are there any teachers who still like doing that job?

In a recent 'if you love your job what do you do?' thread, a lot of people answered that they were teachers.
It was quite nice to see actually compares to what you usually hear.

This is my 36th year teaching secondary and I’m retiring in the summer. Every single one of those years has had its (different) challenges.
There has NEVER been a golden moment where the job was a joy. I’m part time now and my work-life balance is ok.
The pupils would never know of my struggles though. Professional to the end.

I love the bit that happens 9-3 so the children would never know… but I hate the bits around it. The endless meetings and paperwork and admin and being berated for lower results than last year despite a completely different set of pupils with different needs… etc etc etc. But do I enjoy spending my days with 30 funny, creative, energetic 5 year olds? Love it! That being said, I’m 10 years in with two children under 3 of my own & no way I’ll be doing it for the next 30 years sadly.

I love teaching.

I hate dealing with arrogant and rude teens and their appalling parents

I enjoy teaching in the school I’ve been at since September. It’s a leafy suburb school and the students are respectful and on the whole want to learn. I was very miserable at my previous school because the behaviour was so out of control and it didn’t feel safe.

I am 49 and I have been teaching for 22 years. I have worked in both primary and secondary state and private schools and even in academies. I have also taught overseas as an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) Tutor for nine years as well.

I teach both GCSE/IGCSE and A Level English Language and Literature and a few other subjects (some of which are related to English such as 11 Plus) including Politics, Philosophy, History, Sociology and Ethics.

My experience is a little different as I prefer to not stay in any one place too long and now I mostly teach online 1-1. I also teach face to face privately and it is usually in small groups. Because I decide who my students are and what my class sizes are, it is very rewarding and amazing.

I'm MUCH happier part-time (3 days) than I ever was teaching all week. I still find the expectations and paperwork stressful, which can really make me dislike the job.

I'm due back from Mat leave in a few months and looking forwards to working with the children again but dreading the overwhelming workload.

@Lolapusht My school is part of a national "Trust" but each school is unique. We have two campuses for ours, for example, and even those are different. One is an inner city school and the other is out in the sticks. The catchment is different and while we mostly teach the same "content" and follow the same curriculum, it doesn't mean the children's experience is the same.
I've always found that a rather weird idea, to be honest. One of my previous headteachers insisted that children needed the same experience in a two-form-entry school. My colleague was completely different to me, the class made up of very different children (yeah, they put all the "issues" in my room...thanks) but lessons had to be exactly the same. I get the idea but I still thinks it's a stupid idea.
My current school allows me to teach my class as I like. My kids make very good progress but we are a lot less stressed about it. I work within my Year team and we have lessons that we can all do but if I decide to teach and objective differently, then that's up to me.

I do. Part time helps but I find it very rewarding and enjoyable.

I love teaching. I love being with the children and seeing them achieve. I really really do. Do I sometimes cry on the way to work because I’m so overwhelmed with the pressure of everything and the fact there are literally not enough hours in the day to do everything I need to do? Yes. Do I spend entire Sundays on my laptop and saying no to family and friends about everything because I work on Sundays? also yes.

Do you think there is a difference in the education the children are receiving? We’re having issues with our school/trust so I’ve been looking into education and it seems that the trust system has basically broken teaching. Seems to be not enough emphasis on letting teachers teach and giving them the flexibility to tailor their teaching to their kids.

I am primary and have been doing it a very long time. I love being with the children but the workload, expectations and pressures caused directly by Ofsted have ground me down-I’m hunting for an ‘out’.

It’s not recognisable as the same job as the one it was when I started :(

Oh Middle 😔 . That is so sad.

I want out but in the last few years have been saying this and too scared to leap without knowing where I'm leaping too. I'd love to have retrained as an Ed psych but the universities that do it are an hour+ in either direction so completely impractical.

I’ve just gone back to work after mat leave. I love being in the classroom with the kids, but all the unnecessary admin work and meetings, and jumping through hoops etc. really make me dislike the job.
It’s also parents evening on my sons 1st birthday, and because we are understaffed I have a full evening, meaning I won’t see my son at all on his first ever birthday.
We are all just so burnt out.

I hate a good 70% of it.

I love the children and teaching them during class time. The rest, I hate.

I’ve had enough and I’m done in. I’m considering leaving and actively looking at other opportunities but can’t afford a pay cut right now. I’m at the top of the scale and don’t have the qualifications or experience to do other things with similar pay.

I taught in the UK for close to 15 years. We moved abroad due to Brexit and have taught here ever since. I love my job. I earn way more than I used to in England and don't need to work much beyond my contracted hours. I don't tend to take work home. The kids and parents are generally really nice and SLT are supportive when there are issues.
I wouldn't go back to teaching in England. It was ridiculous even back then.

The only ones I know who really enjoy their work still are both in private primaries.

TA here, and I'm tired....so tired. I adore the kids in my care and love them like they were my own, but that's part of the problem. I have nothing left for my own child after trying to meet the needs of increasingly demanding children/parents/curriculum. I'm talked out, touched out and exhausted from running on adrenaline all day every day.

I'm slowly realising that I need our. I have never felt so close to burn out and its beginning to show in my health.....my smart watch shows a dramatic rise in resting heart, stress and low "battery" on the days I work (I'm PT). Days off, all is calmer in my body. I'm worried its beginning to take its toll.

I’ve been teaching secondary for 23 years (part time for 18 since I had my eldest.) And this year I am seriously considering it being my last.

I spend my days off working and the days I’m in I’m just exhausted by the end of it. Even the holidays have lost their appeal as I’m usually too tired / ill to do anything at half terms and Christmas. The summer off is the only holiday I truly relax for a few weeks, until results day.

I used to say the actual being in the classroom teaching is fine, but even that seems to be getting harder.

Maybe it’s just my age.

I like the actual teaching bit. The 'extra job' as my husband calls it ie the paperwork is ridiculous and the stress levels are high, adrenaline all day every day is exhausting. I've dropped to part tine and planning to leave in next few years.

I wonder if job satisfaction varies depending on whether you're a primary or secondary teacher?

Funny I was talking in the staff room about this today. I love the actual teaching and the kids but today completely fed up when told in a couple of weeks I've got parents evening on the Monday, a peer review Tuesday where we just be criticised, a twilight Tuesday night and then have to give up my ppa to host the other part of parents evening, not even a please or thank you. Not sure when I'm going to see my own child that week or do any planning or marking unless I work into the early hours each night. I've been looking at jibs this evening.

I loved it until I had kids- and working every evening wasn't sustainable. Then I dropped to part time.

But I really want a wfh flexible hour job eventually...

My daughter is a teacher, admittedly only in her second year, and absolutely loves it.

She seems to have landed on her feet. The school (a Catholic secondary) seems very well managed, the SLT are extremely supportive and appreciative, the students are mainly great and she hasn't yet had any trouble with parents.

She is working very hard but is enjoying it enormously.