To not want to teach

Have you thought about trying to get a job in a teaching union? They would welcome your background and you'd earn similar and maybe more for a totally non-teaching role. The TUC have a website for all union jobs. Don't turn your nose up at fixed term ones - they usually last a lot longer and it's a way in.

I agree. It gets to the point where you are wishing away the classroom bit (the nice bit, with the children) in order to get to 3.30 so you can even begin to make a START on all the hoop jumping, because that’s the bit that SLT are baying for your blood over!

There is way way too much paperwork and pointless expectation now to be able to even manage, let alone be good at.

Another huge issue is the expectation that ‘inclusion’ is possible for all pupils, regardless of their level of need, and if you can’t cope-well, you just aren’t providing High Quality Teaching.

It starts off ok-if you have 29 keen, well-behaved pupils, you can manage one pupil say, with ASD who takes up 10% of your time. You can still probably manage if your TAs are all made redundant because of the budget-it’s much harder and the expectations that you still get every child to meet their targets obviously doesn’t change. You can probably still manage when you have 25 children with no additional needs and 5 with SEN-it’s a lot more differentiation (sorry, adaptation!) needed and you still have no TA, but it’s hard-really hard, when nothing else can ‘give’-you still have learning walks, observations to pass, deep dives and Ofsted to prepare for, book scrutinies and IEPs to write and do. But there comes a tipping point-the old boiling frog analogy-where you can’t do it all. A child starts your class in nappies-you still have no TA and have to manage that yourself. They need you to give Movicol twice a day…ok. They are non-verbal and dysregulated a lot of the time-the SENCo is gathering evidence for a needs assessment but they are taking months and you know at the end, they won’t get full time funding. You then get another consultation for a new student for your class-they are PEG fed and need a hoist to get in and out of any equipment and their EHC plan says they have 16 hours a week of support. What will happen the other 16 hours of the week when it’s just you in there?! What will you do with your 5 SEN, your pupil in nappies who runs away when unsupported, oh-and your other 25 pupils who frankly are getting fed up of never having any of your attention!?

You might just about be able to hold together what is happening in your classroom. They might not be getting the best experience in the world, but you’re keeping those plates spinning (yes, you are now on anti-depressants and your husband has left you) but the whole school expectations don’t stop…

Monday morning briefing…’Oh, remember, there’s a staff meeting you need to take after school, and are you sorted for the school trip on Wednesday-have you done the risk assessment and got enough helpers? Plus obviously Thursday’s parents meeting, can you get your books ready for a book scrutiny for SLT for Friday first things, and also take Friday’s assembly-can your class just do a song? Data is due on Friday after school, don’t forget! Next week is observations-we aren’t sure which day yet, so be prepared! That will feed into your PMR-we’ll take in your subject folder as well-you are maths, history, phonics and PSHE again this year, yes? Have a fab week!’

I think my DP is realising it’s actually the job itself and the change in behavioural traits of kids and parents today. He left his last school after years of being unhappy a mountains of pressure to go to ‘a great school’ where he could finally just teach, his enthusiasm has since waned, hopefully he’ll get his mojo back…

One can’t ignore the admin and hoop jumping shit though. And it takes up more and more time, so if you like the classroom and want to do that well your hours increase and increase and increase. Teaching is great. Being a teacher? Wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. And yes, I treid different schools. Cities, areas of deprivation, rural schools, independent schools. It’s the job now.

I fell out of love with teaching in schools ground down by the relentless cycle and SLT mission creep with the constant added extras because it is good for the students’. School need to bring in outside club providers/support/trip organisers to sort out the extra provision.

I felt I couldn’t do another year even though I was consistently in one of the three best performing teachers with exam results. I loved teaching my subject but it is all the other stuff that got in the way.

Now ex-teacher.

No child deserves to be taught by someone who doesn't want to be there

Is it only teachers who should love their jobs?

Are we bothered with dentists who don’t want to be at work? Computer programmers? Paediatric doctors? Traffic wardens?

I worked in further education.

I was teaching 18 -20 year olds.

I've never been as stressed in my life.

They didn't provide enough learning materials so I was up all night and early mornings preparing them

Then I was teaching for five hours a day non stop.

Then in the evening at home I was completing millions of othe bits of paperwork.

It's non stop and it's not sustainable. People have breakdowns

"No child deserves to be taught by someone who doesn't want to be there"

I don't think many teachers hate the actual teaching.

It's the "giving you more tasks than you are possibly ever able to complete in a 24 hour day".

That people hate. Oh and the bullying and lack of respect too

Specialist teachers like ToDs are centrally funded. Many councils still employ them and they visit academies and LA schools alike.

Some of us do! I love my job as a middle leader in a large secondary in an area of high deprivation .

The kids are challenging but that's OK, we can deal with it because the systems are good, and there is a strong sense of shared moral purpose.

OP have you considered changing schools? Different schools can offer a very different experience for staff - I was pretty unhappy in my previous role, and thinking of quitting - now my work is a genuine pleasure, though the school on paper is "more challenging".

Do you still enjoy the core things, like being with kids in the classroom? If one could ignore the admin and hoop jumping shit?

Move into SLT 😬

Your job sounds fab and with teachers’ pay and conditions too!

But I haven’t seen anything like this advertised for years. I think many LAs have long since done away with advisory or specialist teachers, plus academies having their own arrangements will have had a knock on effect on these posts.

Nope. I was middle leadership so had a TLR but have never been SLT. Probably 90% of us never have been!

I've worked very closely with a number of SENCO's from various schools and my best friend is a SENCO. I honestly don't know how they do it. The responsibility is immense. They also deal almost exclusively with the most challenging/dysregulated children and the parents they are working with are often (justifiably) frustrated or highly anxious. Trying to meet the needs of increasingly complex children with ever-dwindling resources and next to no support from external agencies or the Local Authority. Not to mention in some schools the SENCO is still expected to have a teaching timetable, and they often have to take on additional responsibility such as the DSL role and other Leadership duties. The SENCO's I know are all either childfree or have adult children who have flown the nest, I imagine doing the job with small children at home would be very difficult.

You just have to make the decision - but it sounds like you've made the decision to stay in teaching OP, which is fine. I made the decision to leave and took an huge pay cut - but after 2 years in corporate L&D was earning more than as HOD.
You just have to take the leap. If you wait for the perfect job (money, location, hours etc) you'll never do it.

I did that. It was better for me too, until it wasn’t. Then I burnt out and had to retire early.

Oooh really? What did you need to apply for the role+ I'm happy to learn things. Was it specific to an education company or general L and D? I keep thinking I'm not qualified for general L and D.

@Milkandacookie I don't code (apart from very rare occasions when I need to edit a bit of html to embolden text... but that's very rare)!

I've been looking at neurodiversity type roles and still surprised sendiass and ipsea pay £23000

Wow. Were you already smt? I saw one recently but it wanted lots of relevant experience.

I would love a role like this.

Wow! Did you need to be able to code to do this?

I would love to be a specialist teacher-working for the PNI or VI teams particularly interest me, but I haven’t seen any jobs advertised in my LA for years :(

Have you looked on local county council sites for teaching jobs that aren't school-based? They usually come under the "normal" job search, so along with other council roles. I'm a peripatetic Teacher of Deaf Children and Young People. I visit children in schools who have a hearing loss, advise staff on reasonable adjustments, do language interventions 1:1, lead INSET sessions, attend annual reviews etc.

I have no displays to do, don't have to be at school for 8am, can do online meetings and PPA from home, only ever work with 1 student at a time, no big loads of marking, no sitting in assemblies, no playground duty, no data-driven performance management etc. A couple of days a week my first visit of the day is 9:30 so I can do the school run.

I do have to write reports, do paperwork, language assessments, email schools, ring parents etc. but it comes with far, far less pressures.

And the best thing? UPS3, plus SEN points, Burgundy Book and all the school holidays.

I had no SEN training before starting the job and work paid for me to do my mandatory qualification.

There are other advisory teachers, not just ToDs.

Most teachers don’t want to be there though

I completely agree. I have never heard so many colleagues say how unhappy they are at work as since the start of September this academic year.

If people want this statement to apply in teaching, No child deserves to taught by someone who doesn't want to be there.

we need to have huge changes in education asap.

I quit teaching. I earn more than UPS3 as a learning designer in HE. I work 35 hours a week (flexibly) and have 44 days leave a year. Plenty of my colleagues work p/t. I also WFH 4days a week. There are options out there.