To not want to go into teaching

[Favouritethings]

I've recently completed a BA Early Years and had planned to go on to study a PGCE and teach in primary education. However, I hear more and more that teaching is not an advised career route.. working in preschools, nurseries etc is notoriously poorly paid. Can anyone advise well paid jobs which involve working with children? I really want to put my degree to good use!

YANBU but most work with children is poorly paid unfortunately, and you may struggle to find something that pays as well as school teaching (as you say, nursery work is low pay). Maybe you could look at some sort of social work/family support role? What is putting you off teaching and do you have any school experience as part of your BA?

Working with children will not provide you with a large salary but why don't you develop a long term plan? Do the extra study if needed, work in the field which will give you invaluable experience and then set up your own business which will hopefully pay you more in the long term. Not only that you'll be in a better position should you ever decide to have a family as you'll be your own boss. You could look into setting up a childcare provision, nursery, preschool etc or become a tutor. Just some ideas.

I volunteered in a reception class during my studies. I'm put off by so many people telling me 'oh god don't be a teacher.. It's so stressful.. All the planning and marking etc'

Ive heard that the private sector is better paid. How about publishing? You could specialise in early learning resources. Although you wouldnt work directly with kids. Or you could try for education posts in ngos like rspb, national trust etc and take school groups round.

Could you work as a nanny?

Or you could try teaching and see how you like it, rather than what others say about it.

Definitely to be avoided.

Whilst I am firmly of the belief that any enjoyment of teaching is now outweighed by the planning/marking/targets etc., a PGCE would still be a good way to find out for yourself and qualify you for teaching-like jobs even if not in a traditional school.

Just make sure that if you do any volunteering, placements etc. that -however well a day goes - you ask the teacher what they did the night before and what they will be doing that evening.

How much of a salary are you after??? It's really not that badly paid and you quickly move up the scale (certainly for the first 6 years!). You might not earn an absolute fortune but it's a decent enough salary. And it's also a vocation rather than just for the money!

I work in the private sector and take home a pretty decent salary. (about £47k)

...it's stressful (long hours) but I have a lot of freedom as a teacher, far, far more so than in the state system in which I worked for a long time.

Open a nursery...

What exactly do you mean, that teaching is not an advised career route?
What does it mean for you?

I have a lot of primary teacher friends (you meet one, you meet all tier friends!). Maybe 20?

Every single one of them thinks teaching has changed for the worse in terms of expectations, administration, and stress levels.

But none of them are leaving, because despite increased stress, they all feel:

• the pay is either OK or good, depending on their level
• the pension is still good
• there are clear progression opportunities
• the women have had no difficulty returning part time when they wanted to after children. They've had to be flexible but all have hours they're happy with now
• on the whole it has been family friendly, because of the aligned holidays (not so much in term time!)
• they all love the long holidays! (that's not teacher bashing - by god they earn it, and yes they sometimes work during parts of it - but all my friends recognise that the number of weeks off is still fab!)
• should probably have put this first not last - they all really love their rewarding daily time in classes with kids that they like and enjoy

I think you need a better reason than "other people say it's not a good career" before writing it off!

My advice would be that if you're having a lot of doubts now, think carefully about pursuing teaching.

I qualified years ago to teach 7-12 years and my first post was in a large inner city school. The class number was huge with a large range of ability and also two non English speaking pupils.I found the planning, differentiating lessons, marking and assessments hard work and stressful and came to the realisation that the for the best teachers, their job was a vocation they were passionate about.

I really enjoy working with children and went into nannying instead, which I love.

With a degree you could fast track into being a paediatric nurse.

I know two recently qualified teachers who are really enjoying their jobs. I think older teachers feel it has changed for the worse, but maybe younger ones who haven't seen the changes think it's still a pretty good profession on balance?

Lunchtime on a Thursday in term time is not a great time to get a balanced view on this.

The vast majority of teachers who love their job will be at work!

I went into teaching 15 years ago (currently out while my kids are little) and more experienced staff said the same thing then, for what it is worth. But yes, the stress level is high and many schools do not have the support from parents that we may remember from our childhood. On the upside, it's not a secret how much you will get paid teaching in a state school. Look at the pay scale and look at your living expenses and see if it will work well for you or not. I found it was a few years before I made any big changes from student lifestyle in terms of budget, but that mindset let me live within my means and focus on the work. It would be different in different circumstance, so I think you have to compare the two.

I would also suggest looking at the long term because it is statistically likely you'll want a break at some point. If you love working with kids and love teaching but find the other stuff gets you down, the teaching shortage can actually work in your favour as you can take a break and then go back, especially if you are flexible on geography and are happy to go back to a classroom teaching job rather than a very specific management post.

But as someone who loved teaching kids and managed a team with many who saw it as just a pay cheque, if there is not some part of you that is joyful at wanting to teach, then keep looking at other options.

I'm a secondary maths teacher in an international school and love it. If you want an adventure, there are always openings for British teachers in international schools round the world. The Middle East pays very well, so does SE Asia.

What kind of money are you wanting to earn? Senior leadership earn (what I consider to be) decent money but obviously you would need to be a teacher first. Set up a private company providing resources/teaching for schools? The school in which my sister works out source some science teaching and have people come into school to do special p.e. type stuff. My sister is currently signed off work due to the unbearable pressure and stress. I don't blame you for your reticence- I simply would never even consider it having spoken to my sister and her colleagues.

Considered a teaching degree 8 years ago. During placement in a secondary school no less than 4 teachers attempted to dissuade me from choosing teaching as a career, citing excessive paperwork, being party to increased testing of children often before establishment of proper readiness, and increased pressure from targets and the constant need to take extra training and courses. One teacher told me she was taking a teaching support role in another school so she could avoid having to take her work home with her everyday. Another said she had no time to help her own DD with her exams because of the workload and pressure. It was quite since many were great teachers.

You will get as much out of it as you put into it and if you let it it will consume your life. Do not go into it if you will regret spending your life's energy on other peoples' children, as your own children will be like the shoe makers as far as your time and energy are concerned.

I would train as a teacher and then you could always sign up as an agency and do supply work which is pretty lucrative.

My DH qualified as a Primary PGCE mature student in 2014 and quit in 2015. Look at local authority jobs. They're often well paid for much less stress.

I'm a primary teacher in Scotland. It can be tiring, stressful and all the long unpaid holidays are never without extra work. I work about 50 hours a week on average. I love teaching. The kids are fab and I could never sit at a desk. England is a different ball game though re planning and assessment expectations.

I think that if you want a job in education you should teach first.

I like teaching. I'm probably in a minority, but I do enjoy my job (primary) and, though it's tough, it's rewarding. And you can't beat the holidays!!