What would you think if your adult child wanted to become a primary school teacher ?

[SwanWings]

Really smart, still in uni, it's that adult dc life and their choice, but I probably worry it could lead to a hard life, low pay, too many demanding parents, unrealistic expectations from the schools, being inspected alot.

Just wondering what you'd think if was adult child considering this
Of course we will support dc regardless and of course its a valuable job indeed

All those things can happen in any job really. Better to do something you really want to do. If they don’t enjoy it, they can do something else.

I would think I'd they're choosing to reach it's because they feel aligned with teaching, like a calling, and I'd be happy they are following their heart.
And then I wouldn't think about it much after that. It's their life and their choice after all.

I'd imagine it'd be really hard these days.

I'd be thrilled! It's hard work yes but also a great job... even if they give it up eventually it will stand them in good stead for other jobs

I’d support my adult DC choices (and these days, after a degree and some experience they can chose any direction - the world is there to explore!)

Primary school or secondary school?
Secondary I wouldn’t be concerned at all. Generally decent wages, promotion opportunities, long school holidays, ways to top up wages, not difficult to manoeuvre into other work once tired of it.
Actually I’d be really impressed and proud of my DC becoming a secondary teacher. It’s an interesting and rewarding career.

I'd persuade them against it.

I’d suggest they do a bit of volunteering in a school to decide if it’s really for them. If they do that and still love it - why not? They will find out pretty quickly whether they really enjoy teaching and can re-train/change careers if they don’t.
You have a very bleak view of teaching, but there are many contented, well paid teachers. It can be a great job if you find the right school. Though I agree with a pp that secondary is the way to go, not primary.

I'd be proud if they felt called to this challenging but rewarding and important job.

I wouldn't care about the low pay. I'd be much prouder of them for doing a worthy job that they love than something they hate / morally dubious like AI development or something just for the money.

My DS wanted to be a teacher. I was thrilled for him. He did an English degree then a teaching qualification. I don’t know what your problem is OP, you should be proud.

Why do you think secondary so much better ?

Oh, I do think it's very valuable, I just worry about the pay and stress, but agree alot of job are very stressful

More debt for little reward. Teacher of 25 years and wouldn't encourage DS

Depending where they teach, and the role they do, the pay is not bad - I'm not on mega bucks, obviously, but definitely not poorly paid. All jobs have stresses, and all schools are different. I would prefer DD not to go into teaching, but not due to parents or inspections, that's just clients and accountability and all jobs have that.

It's a great career if you want summer holidays to look after dc. My biggest concern would be nits.

I'm not sure where you've got low pay from. Teachers earn a decent salary. Not megabucks but there is good career progression, a great pension, stability etc. It's hard work and parents are a huge PITA sometimes ( I was/am secondary and cringed at some of the demands of parents at my kids primary school) but it's interesting work. When I look back at my choice at 25 to go into teaching, I would make the same choice again. I've taught in prisons, PRU's, did a stint overseas just after my PGCE, when I was younger I did some amazing travelling in the summer holidays and got to rabbit on about my degree subject which I loved, with a bunch of teenagers for nearly 25 years. I've moved into a teaching adjacent role now as I did get exhausted in the end but I'm doing this because I did that. Iyswim.

I’d be amazed if ds did and a bit doubtful as it wouldn’t seem like him, but he did do some tutoring of younger kids in the past and was quite good at it so would obviously say positive things. I’d encourage him to look hard at the support available for the training route he picked.

Ds’s girlfriend is training as a teacher and I’m excited. I think she’s going to be really exceptional at it.

It’s not that I feel secondary is ‘better’. However, it tends to be higher status, better paid, greater promotion prospects (bigger schools) and you can get bursaries for training in certain subjects. In some areas of the country, there is an over supply of primary school teachers and some struggle to find work.
Of course, you have to pick the age range that you are most suited to. There are many excellent primary school teachers who might not enjoy working with older children and having the pressure of teaching the exam years. I have taught across primary and secondary schools and was surprised to discover that I prefer teaching older children.

Regardless of career choice, it’s probably best to keep fairly quiet and let them find out for themselves if it’s the right career for them.

Low pay? Since when? It’s way above minimum wage. And yes, teachers get decent holidays! If someone loves it, they should do it. I know quite a few who have - mostly dc of teachers! Heads earn well and deputy/assistant head is very achievable if you are good.

Teacher of 20 plus years here. I’ve always told my children not to go into teaching. My eldest wanted to. She got a place at uni but declined it and is now doing an apprenticeship in a nursery.

if she does decide to train as a teacher further down the line, I would feel happier about it as she’d have more of an idea of what it’s like.

Theres a reason 50% of teachers leave the profession before their 5th year of teaching.

It's hard work, it's not low pay, especially when you factor in pension. It's not city banker but it's decent, like lots of public sector jobs. Ultimately the route to teaching will also leave her with a degree and post grad and she will be employable in other fields if she doesn't like it.

My mum worked in and eventually ran a nursery, it was really really hard work and the pay was much worse than teaching

Completely agree with this post. Teaching can be an excellent job and it's much better paid than lots of other jobs. I would be delighted if one of my grown up children wanted to be a teacher.
I don't understand why the OP sees teaching as some sort of inferior career choice.

I qualified as a primary teacher in 2001, I am still in teaching now although in senior leadership. It opens up a world of opportunities- UK trained teachers are very much in demand in international schools and your DC can work anywhere in the world. It's not just about underfunded UK state schools. Also, kids are kids the world over and they are what makes it all worthwhile.

If she's doing a STEM degree, then it's not a particularly well paid career. Starting salaries are reasonable, but it stagnates relatively quickly in comparison. If she's an arts stundent and unlikely to get on a good graduate scheme, it's probably relatively well paid and stable compared to other opportunities.

I would be worried about falling primary school numbers and the impact on job opportunities. Also, while it's a relatively stable arts graduate career, teachers do seem to exit the profession in droves long before retirement. While overall teachers don't tend to work significantly more hours than most people in graduate career jobs, it's compressed into fewer weeks and while the extra holiday is nice, that intensity and the inability to take time off outside of school holidays can be gruelling.

Well they will earn nearly 20% more than national average and have twice as many holidays than national average. Also much less likely to be replaced by AI.