To consider doing PGCE with two young DC?

[Friedeggsandwich]

Would I be completely mad to do this? DC would be 6 and 3 at the time. Pretty good family support. No part time options near me unfortunately.

Has anyone done this and lived to tell the tale? I've worked in schools and know how hard it is even for young single people so I am struggling to imagine what it'd be like with young Dc to consider....

I'm also thinking of doing training on the job in school (scitt) but not sure if this would be any more family friendly?

I did it full-time with three children under 8 and as a single parent. I coped. I am not the most organised of people generally but all it took was thinking things through. I did stay up till midnight most nights and am still doing that on a semi-regular basis a couple of years later but I love the job and am glad I made the change. I trained with a number of older people - we all seemed to find it easier than the younger people - possibly because we were far more aware of what's expected in the world of work generally. My children have been very supportive and all want to be teachers when they grow up! If it's what you want, you can do it. If you are in any doubt - hang on till there is no doubt.

I'm with CaptainTripps and miaow. I coped with the PGCE with two very small children, but four years of teaching in a very difficult primary school ground me down and I hate the job now. I would never work full time as a class teacher again. I had no Sundays when I didn't spend the whole day working, and as soon as the kids went to bed in the evenings, I worked. It was a nightmare if they were ill, or simply wanted to come downstairs and tell me something. Work took priority all the time. They hated me teaching too. Although they loved their childminder, they were out of our home from 7.20am to 5.30-6pm five days a week and that's not what I wanted for them. The place I worked in was crap, admittedly, but I can't see the workload being very different in any school these days.

I did a pgce 8 yrs ago with one young dc (1yr old) at the time. It was HARD, but doable. Things have changed so much in teaching, that I would recommend doing a pgce to anyone now!

I agree that the last 5 years in teaching have been verging on insane in most primary schools.

Sorry - should say 'I would not recommend pgce or teaching to anyone now'.

I've been teaching secondary for about 15 years now and I'm taking voluntary redundancy at the end of this year.

Please reconsider - my boys are 6 and 4 and I've worked full time since they were five months old because I used to love my job. Then everything changed and now it bears no resemblance to what I signed up for - teaching children to cook.

I spend most of my time at home shouting at my children to leave me alone or quieten down so I can mark endless piles of books and the rest of it too knackered to get up off the sofa and take them for a bike ride or whatever.

I have the most amazing support at home. But they all, dh included, deserve better so I'm taking my money and intend to run as far away from the godforsaken mess that is English state school teaching as possible. Don't do it!

I did a PGCE in secondary maths 7 years ago. Youngest DC was 11.
It was a fucking nightmare. I wouldn't recommend it. Everyone underestimates the workload for a PGCE, it's horrendous if you have DCs.

I'm glad I didn't stumble across a thread like this before I started my PGCE. Good luck, OP, in whatever you do. My experience isn't particular valid as I had no kids to look after when I was doing my PGCE. I would imagine it's hard but do-able as long as you have additional and unflinching support at home.

How long ago did you do your PGCE, Normal?
I trained back in the early 80s with no children and found it absolutely no problem.

I did GTP with two primary age dc (5 and 9) as single parent without family support. It was fine. Definitely depends on school though!

I should add am now working in failing primary school, part time, and the strain is immense!

I had no problem either. But I would imagine running a family at the same time presents additional problems.

Dh has just done it part time whilst still holding down a full time job.We have 2 young children, one with special needs and are also carers for a disabled Mil.

it wasnt half as bad as he expected, he sailed throught it to be honest. He was a mature student coming from a profession that was very stresssful with long hours. He wishes he had made the jump years ago as he thoroughly enjoys it and finds it a far better work life balance.

I'm not saying teaching isn't a difficult job but sometimes I wonder whether some paint a unnecessarily gloomy picture.

I did a PGCE three years ago, and had two children at the time. I found the PGCE bearable and coped. But when it came to working afterwards I gave up after ten months. I was working all of Sunday, till eleven every night and I was constantly stressed and worried. It was the worst job I have ever had, I have never worked so hard (and I speak as someone who used to be a management consultant) and although I was technically at home with the children, the family pointed out after two terms that since I was mentally absent, I might just as well not be there physically, either.

I think the broader issue is that teaching as a job is simply not doable. The standards to which you are supposed to adhere are an unachievable dream. So you spend much if your time aware that you are "failing" to deliver what the students need. And the rest plotting to find short cuts to cover up the fact that you are not doing what you should. The crunch point came for me when I realised that none of the teachers in my department were doing the job properly: we were just finding different creative ways to cover up the fact that the job is not manageable.

'I'm not saying teaching isn't a difficult job but sometimes I wonder whether some paint a unnecessarily gloomy picture.'

Maybe, I truly hope he's still in the classroom in five years' time and still enjoying it. There are so many posters that I want to keep an eye out for and find out.
I suppose for me, I went into teaching years back and I loved the job as it was, for twenty years. The last decade has stopped me enjoying it, it's not what I signed up for, the values and priorities have changed way beyond what I am comfortable with.

Goblinchild

I have no idea really if he will still be enjoying it in x number of years time and can certainly appreciate that professions change over time and consequently attitudes towards them....I know I personally am now quite scathing of a career in law which i would have never dreamt of being 20 years ago.

However, as to the OPs question, we as a family with some difficult personal circumstances were surprised at how manageable the PGCE was. Both the workload and indeed the standard were really not that difficult and certainly not anywhere near as bad as we had been led to believe.

I want it to be possible wishful.
I want children to be taught by knowledgeable professionals who truly love what they are doing and know how to give each child what they need to achieve and understand and love learning.
For every disillusioned, exhausted and depressed teacher leaving, I want a bright-eyed bushy tailed replacement who is up to the challenge.
I'd also like English education, from nursery to postgraduate to put the learner at the heart of the philosophy, and make policy accordingly.

So that's my three wishes...

YY to shesalwaysright and the job not being doable, abso - bloody - lutely. I went to a party with DS1 last week and was telling his best friend's mum about my decision. She is a primary school teacher and told me how she falsifies her paperwork and advised me the best way to go about it. . . . .

I left that party thinking exactly the same, that we're all constantly covering up what we haven't had time to do. It's madness.

But I could probably have done a PGCE with two kids, you're on student hours although I know it doesn't feel like it at the time!

It's not the PGCE year, or even the NQT year, it's when you're a few years in and burning out and feeling trapped but teaching is 'what you do' so you stick with it even though you're growing to loathe it. I've been there.

Shesalwaysright is spot on, that's my experience too. I guess there's always a place for people who are good at 'winging it' but my need for things to be done right meant that my stress levels were enormous. Simply not enough hours in the day to achieve all that needed doing.