To leave teaching.

[Generallybewildered]

This isn’t a thread about workloads! Although my workload is high during term time I have felt it’s been made up for by having the holidays with my children.

What I’m really concerned about is that I’m bored. I think it’s got to the point now that I’m no longer as good a teacher as I used to be because I am doing the same thing each year. I’m working until late every night marking the same thing 60 times (because I generally teach two classes in each year group) so I don’t feel I have the time or ability to make my lessons more interesting. I love my subject and love reading around it and expanding within my lessons but don’t feel that I’m hitting the mark anymore. I’m lost the excitement I used to feel every year at this time and am dreading going back to work rather than looking forward to it.

Are there any other jobs available for a woman in her 40s with two children? I’ve thought about going back to train as a nurse but that really would mean leaving my family a lot.

Would you consider moving to a different part of education? Special ed/primary? That might give you the break you need from teaching the same thing year on year. Or even maybe just a change in school.

Otherwise civil service, communication/marketing or roles outside of the classroom but still in education (from what I've researched).

Yanbu. Life is too short to continue in a job you’re bored with when there are other options for a graduate with some very transferable skills from teaching.

Personally, I started my own business after leaving teaching. I run a wrap-around childcare setting. It’s not paying as well as teaching was, but I’m my own boss. If I get bored, I can change it all up. And the workload is definitely easier!

I'm in a similar position and looking for LA jobs. Advisory teacher role maybe?

I grew to hate it. I've left. I am doing some work for an exam board and hoping to also break into a creative field

If you’ve never worked in a school in a very deprived area with way below average results and way above average PP and FSM, I would suggest that a change of school might cure your boredom! But generally no, the job is thankless and I wouldn’t blame anyone for giving up.

I left a few years ago. I went back into industry. Life is too short!

Do you need to mark every night? The trend seems to be moving away from marking for the sake of it. At my secondary school we only mark once every 5-6 lessons, and sometimes that can be whole class feedback with not much at all actually written in books. This would give you more time to shake up your SoLs and include more of your reading.

Have you thought about lecturing on education to PGCE/education students? Check out the local universities. This means you would have a completely new challenge, but it would play completely to your skills and experience in teaching and leaning.

22 years of teaching and I feel the same. I keep telling myself that in 2 years when my daughter starts at secondary school that's when I can look for something else.

I don’t know whether they still have them; probably not in view of the dire financial situation in most areas, but I was an advisory teacher for managing behaviour for a few years.

We planned training for teaching staff, governors, MA students at university and supported schools with individual children. Every day was different, pretty much and some were long days, counterbalanced by shorter ones. I liked the flexibility, but the downside was not being part of a school team.

I left and I am not sorry in the slightest. I run an educational charity so I get to curate projects, work with lots of different schools and young people with no marking and no long days ever! Small fantastic team but much lower salary but I am hoping to start own business.

Thank you. There are some really good ideas there. Shopping schools seems most obvious. I work in a grammar school and am struggling with the labour with no real gratitude. However deep down I think I just don’t want to do it anymore.

I like “Wonderfulday”’s idea. May look into that in more detail.

That marking load sounds crackers.

Have a look at #feedbacknotmarking on twitter. Lots about whole class feedback, working efficiently and putting responsibility back on Ss and not us.

I moved schools last year. I'd been in the old place way too long. I left and ended up back there on supply....I thought it was me. It wasn't, it was the school.

What subject are you?

If you've got lots of experience, could you work in teacher education/training e.g. for a university? You wouldn't completely get the holidays off, but you might have more free time/flexibility in the holidays .

Alternatively, if you found something with a high enough salary that you could work part time, you'd still have a reasonable amount of time to spend with your family.

If you wanted to retrain as a nurse, there are options, I believe, that would enable you to work set shifts and have a reasonable working pattern!

I do work part time. I’ve gone down to 0.6 in order to manage the workload. But I still work every evening and my days off. We have reduced marking as well but it’s not enough. I just don’t think I’m motivated anymore.

And I’ve been teaching 16 years so quite experienced in Biology.

On 0.6 that's crackers. You have a marking/school problem.

You need to look at this website www.didteach.com they have a targeted job board for teachers who are looking for a new challenge outside of teaching & it is run by teachers, so they totally understand your situation and skill set.
Lots of companies will value you and offer flexible hours or work from home options, these can be very valuable to work around your family.
Best of luck!

I got in touch with DidTeach and it was a pile of crap!
I will just say that, when you have had enough of teaching, you do not need to only apply for: museums, local authority, another school, TA posts, childminding, the very difficult to get into publishing or anything like that! These always seem to be the suggestions, but people forget that teachers have superb transferable skills. Think outside the education box!

I totally get where you're coming from. Someone said try SEN, but I work in a special school and the workload is very high there too. Although the children are lovely. Not enough time to plan great lessons. I've been teaching 20 years, in 40's, and feel the same. With me, I think it's the accumulative effect of doing a very stressful job for many years. I feel ready for a change too.

Get yourself further qualifications and lecture in Biology on nursing courses. We need biology teachers as the curriculum is ramping up. That's very varied. No two days in HE are the same.

Try a different school! My old schools marking policy was crazy but not that bad. I’m moving to what seems like a nicer school with a TLR in a aim to relieve the ‘boredom factor’. Could you try somewhere different?

You could explore going to work for an exam board?