DC’s teacher left without saying

[beeonmybonnett]

I’m just a nosey cow, nothing else to it, so that’s why I’m posting this 🤣🤣

Anyway, DC went into school on Monday to have another teacher take their form class telling the class that their form teacher secured a new job and finished in DC’s school on Friday and that they would have a new and permanent form teacher in due course. Her ex-teacher never said she was leaving and never said anything last Friday, class just took place as normal.

As I say, I’m just nosey, I don’t have any other reason to question it or fuss about it, but I thought the teacher would have told her class that she was leaving and said goodbye to her students? Or do teachers generally keep these things quiet and just leave silently?

DC got on well with this teacher so she was a bit shocked at her sudden departure and a bit disappointed that she seen her on Friday, not realising it was her last day and therefore never got to say goodbye.

Oooh something’s gone on there.

That’s what I thought but it must have been planned and known by the school staff for some time if the teacher had an immediate job lined up

Sometimes a school will tell a teacher they can't say they're leaving, for whatever reason (they will say to the teacher they'll give them a good reference and/or let them leave early if they don't say anything, this like that). So the teacher may not have had a choice about remaining quiet.

we had a couple of situations like this in my dds class.

I knew the insode story because I was a governor.
But to be fair, the story was out in the playground within hours.

teaacher 1 asked to leave. He was on a temporary contract and he was sitting child minding not teacher. Contract terminated. Kids came in after half term to new teacher, no warning.

New teacher lasted until Easter holidays and then just vanished. Didn't return on first day back and no notioce, nothing. Head was furious. She had decided it was all too much like hard work apparently.

If they knew they had a new job lined up it is really crap for the kids to leave like that. At least tell them on Friday so they can say goodbye.

sorry, crap typing. He wasn't teaching.

Yeah that’s what makes me think that it was planned well in advance and that she just got a new job, handed her notice in and left.

Obviously it came as a shock to my DC and her peers as there was nothing said to indicate that the teacher was leaving.

Two teachers left suddenly one after the other? Sounds like a toxic work environment - there are unfortunately schools like that. Maybe they were signed off sick with WRS. Maybe there was union involvement. Its not normal but it happens.

Head was furious. She had decided it was all too much like hard work apparently.
This attitude from the Head proves my point. Where was the support for two teachers who were struggling?

You normally have to give a terms notice. Staff that want to start a new school in September would have handed in their notice on the day before half term.
Nineteen just did at my partners school (secondary)
Could she have been put on gardening leave? Or be on a short contract?

Not sure but she’s away and in a new school apparently.

Sounds like a toxic work environment to me. "Too much like hard work" as a comment from a head teacher on why a class teacher left is code for "the teacher was asked to do far too much with little / no support from the school, realised that there is a national shortage of teachers so she doesn't have to put up with it and decided to walk away".

@beeonmybonnett poor DD, it can be really upsetting. Just reassure her that it probably wasn't the teachers own choice not to say good bye.

plus, no matter the gossip, no one knows what happened & to try to remember why she liked her & what the teacher brought to her life.

Not long to go now, so 'caretaker' tutor until the end of this year. Hopefully a nice one for next year.

I don't think so exactly.

Original teacher retired at Christmas. They struggled to get any replies to the ad for a new teacher for January (this was a few years ago and we are not in a pretty attractive town, and often struggled to get sufficient replies to teacher vacancies, as did many schools across our town).
So they employed an agency teacher on a short term contract. He came in and sat on his arse. Not a single planning document submitted and not a single piece of work marked in the 5 weeks that he was there. The head supported him to get him up to speed. He wasn't interested. She asked him not to come back after half term.

Then found someone looking for a short term contract. Her situation was quite specific, so I don't want to give details. She was actually a fantastic teacher, brilliant in front of the class. But she hadn't been teaching in Uk for a number of years and was shocked at the amount of paperwork. She was only ever looking for a 6 month placement due to having something else lined up for September.
She decided that that amount of paper work required for a UK school was not worth it and didn't come back. The head was furious because she just didn't turn up on the first day of term, and didn't answer her phone etc.

The school had a great reputation and was used as an example school (can't remember the name of it) by the LEA. It won awards. There was generally high staff morale and low staff turnover. So I am not sure that it is fair to say that it was lack of support from the head.

and it was an unusual situation.
In the years before and since they haven't had anything like it and have managed replace teachers with no problems.

Seems very unusual, typically contracts always go to the end of term. Potentially they have gone within an academy group due to maternity leave or sickness at short notice eg stepping up a level. Could also have left under a cloud but head wasn't wanting to spread gossip

The only times this has happened in schools I've worked in was once when a teacher had safeguarding concerns raised against them and the slmt finally got enough evidence to force them out with immediate effect, and the second time wasn't a safeguarding concern but the teacher was managed out. Think he was both given the opportunity to resign with immediate effect.

A few years ago, I left like this unfortunately. Truth was I was signed off sick for some time (after a mental health crisis I won’t go into as it could be triggering for others but the worst kind) and had already handed in my notice so I never returned even after I recovered. The thought of speculation was and still is a horrible one and made me feel worse then and still does tbh. Maybe they are unwell, whether physically or mentally.

I forgot to add that I’m fairly confident nobody would have suspected the truth about what happened to me. I hid it remarkably well. Too well.

19?! How many in the school altogether?

Perhaps the two members of staff didn't like loose-lipped governors, eh @steppemum ?

It sounds like either something happened and the teacher had to leave immediately or the teacher is signed off until the end of term. I left my last school like that.

It could be a physical health diagnosis.

It could be they were on supply contract and didn't need to give notice (teachers usually do, but supply teachers don't have to)

It could be a mental health issue, they have been signed off and resigned.

It could be that their child or a close family member has a medical issue and they need to take care of them.

I've known all of the above scenarios happen, sadly the last one in three cases. I think every teacher has eventually returned to teaching in a new post.

She wasn’t a temporary teacher. She had taught there for about 13-15 years

I doubt it would happen now with the shortages, but I once worked under a head who used to explode and tell people just to go when they handed in their notice.

She never allowed them to say goodbye to the children

You have my sympathy @Kat865 I have been there too although I am now retired. I know several others who have also been through it.