I’m a teacher AMA

[boredsoscrollingonMNagain]

I started teaching 3 years ago . Did half a year ECT and almost had a breakdown . The pressure , alongside a very toxic school , was unreal.

Ive been in so many schools - amazing ones , awful ones. I’ve seen terrible things that make me lose faith in the system and I’ve also seen wonderful things that make me appreciate it .

EDITED TO ADD - AMA about primary - I have no experience of secondary

AMA

I agree with @BrumToTheRescue. I’m sorry you feel it’s passing judgement, but you’ve set yourself up here to answer questions, including those about SEND and you have limited experience.

From reading plenty of other posts, I know that @BrumToTheRescue has extensive of experience in SEND and I was a teacher for 35 years, 20 of which was specialising in SEND, with post graduate qualifications. I wouldn’t set up an AMA on here.

OP, my daughter (22), has just passed her PGCE and starts teaching English as an ECT ( 11-18 year olds) in Sept.
( Actually, in her old school; she left as a student 4 tears ago and returns as a teacher this Sept).
What would your advice to her be?

My oldest us also a teacher abd did 1 BQT year, she reckons my youngest will have it tougher than she did, ( and she is pretty resilient).

Urgh, so for typos...NQT

Ah, just seen that you are primary.
It may be a bit of a different scenario.
But all the best OP. x

Ok I feel very silly right now .

The SEND code of practice - yes , I am familiar with that . I used it for assignments during university , I am familiar with it . Never heard it called SENCOP - I thought it was something else that I hadn’t heard of .

I didn’t say anything in my post about SEND. Nor did I claim to . It was about teaching - the career , the environment . I never said I had extensive knowledge of the education system so AMA about it. In fact , I have said that I am an ECT and detailed in my post that I have only worked in one school and then supply .

It’s becoming more about my knowledge of SEND - which isn’t what I intended . I most certainly do not have more knowledge and experience than a very experienced SEND teacher and nowhere in my posts have I claimed to .

I think it’s very tough and I don’t really enjoy it . I enjoy the 9-3 part with the children , but get very overwhelmed with everything else and the only time I have any kind of work life balance is when I’m on day to day supply .

However , I’m still an ECT . I also have no experience of secondary . I have heard that it’s stressful in terms of marking and planning - but I don’t understand that , I thought it would be worse !

No ,never , not at all .

@BrumToTheRescue and @Bluevelvetsofa may I gently ask you, very much respecting your long years of experience and in depth knowledge, whether you agree that the OP who wanted to be a good teacher and trained and is still teaching despite great difficulty early on, is a good representative of the many individuals who start off with high hopes, energy and determination but want to leave quite soon? Surely her AMA is helpful for parents who want to know the perspective of early career teachers and supply teachers both of which may feature in their child's school experience?

SENDCOP is not a familiar acronym to me. Does it mean Special Educational Needs Code of Practice? Is it something nationally imposed or an individual schools' policy document? If no one had brought this to my attention how would I have discovered it's existence and importance?

I'm aware that the system for children with additional needs and the language used has changed and developed a great deal. As I have a primary aged child with an EHCP it sounds as if this document is one I should read.

Don’t worry OP I’ve been teaching for over five years and have never heard anybody refer to the SEND code of practice as SENCOP. Teaching has enough acronyms, it’s hard enough just trying to remember the existing ones.

I’m starting my primary 5-11 teacher training in September - what words of advice would you give? Any essential bits of kit?

I’ve been a TA for four years in two very different t schools, so think I’m going into this with my eyes as open as possible!

Thank you , I’m really glad you said this . I felt really silly when I realised but I have never heard it referred to as the SENDCOP. I also feel that now I have said that I have opened myself up to more judgement .

I am familiar with lots of government policies related to education but I don’t know them off by heart. It’s been picked up that I don’t know you don’t need a diagnosis for a funded 1:1 . I have always been told that you do . From friends with SEN children and in schools , in conversation. It’s not something I have encountered personally , my child was diagnosed aged 2 and had an EHCP ( which was a statement of special needs ) since starting school .

Also - when I say diagnosis - I’ve worded that wrong , I don’t mean a diagnosis I mean an EHCP .

Thank you - this was my intention . Not to give advice about things I don’t know about . I’m still very early in my career- I do not know everything nor do I claim to .

You are right - I started with high hopes . It was all I ever wanted and I worked very hard for a long time to get here and now I feel very disillusioned.

One thing I learnt - don’t spend loads on a big fancy trainee teacher planner ! I did and I never used it 🤣 it was beautiful too!

Things that helped me :

A twinkl account - some schools don’t like you using it but you can still get good ideas from there .

A big , good notepad - a hard back one . Write all your notes from watching other teachers etc .

Keep some lesson plans from schools and note down websites they use - songs , games etc , there are so many and you start to build your own toolkit !

A flask !

a pencil case with different colour pens ( a lot of schools use green ) maybe a glue stick , some highlighters … just so you have what you need on you.

Observe as many teachers as you can - the pgce is great but what you need to deliver lessons and manage behaviour etc comes from watching those more experienced teachers .

Throughout both placements on the pgce you have to collect a certain amount of evidence for each teaching standard . This looks really difficult but then you realise that you use just short statements signed by your mentor or the class teacher , pictures that children give you count towards the ones about relationships with children , lesson observation feedback counts , lesson plans count. You can get documents online - twinkl do them - all about this to help you know what you need . Start collecting this early - as on my first placement I didn’t know and had a crazy few weeks at the end trying to get it all so I started early with my second placement and it was much easier .

Good luck !

@Doable yes, SENCOP is an acronym for Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. Sometimes it has a D after the N for disability. Sometimes there is a space between N and D. Sometimes it has a little O. But it is an existing acronym. It isn’t new. It has been around for many years. The old code of practice was also called the SENCOP, see this government publication from 2013 not long before the current COP came into force. I am amazed teachers have never heard it called the SENCOP. If you have a child with an EHCP, it would be useful to read it.

It is statutory guidance. All teachers should, IMO, have read it. Professionals can’t support DC with SEN adequately without having read it and having a basic understanding of SEN and the SEN system. Lack of knowledge is commonplace, unfortunately. Not only with less experienced teachers but also more experienced ones and even some SENCOs.

I haven’t said OP can’t post her AMA. I haven’t been critical of her thread at all. I wasn't the one who raised SEN. I responded to the OP posting about SEN and asked a related question. Then followed up the reply. I haven’t said others won’t find it useful. Although it isn’t helpful to tell others 1:1 requires a diagnosis or consent is needed for the school to provide support - that just adds to the myths floating around.

My pp should say a space between the N and the C.

Completely understand that you can still put interventions in place, but I’ve been under the impression that without an ehcp there can be no 1:1 funded . I have a girl in my class who is being assessed . She cannot write or do any task independently. She needs someone with her all the time , the TA does her best but she isn’t a 1:1 so is called away a lot and has others that are having interventions. I have queried this as I believe she really needs 1:1 support and have been told by the school that she can’t as she doesn’t have an EHCP so they can’t provide a 1:1

Some schools can provide some 1:1 without an EHCP. It depends on the school. Full time 1:1 is unlikely long term without an EHCP or high needs top up funding. Schools can apply for high needs top up funding. They could do this whilst the pupil is going through the EHCP process. Neither top up funding nor EHCPs require a diagnosis.

I do apologise for my previous snarky comment, OP, and am sad that you are feeling disillusioned. My partner's god daughter has just started as a primary school teacher and I hope she will be OK. I wish you all the best, you have a very hard job and teachers seem to get a lot of flak, no surprise that they are leaving in large quantities. I hope you can stay as you clearly care.

She also spent a lot of her own money setting up her classroom. She's living at her parents' home, so could do this, but she shouldn't have to.