Calling fellow teachers. Please help. Feeling desperate

[MimiCaeger]

Feeling broken and desperate

I’m wondering if anyone has had any luck at all securing a first teaching post after some time out in between the degree/pgce and the NQT year.

I got my QTS in September 2018 I was 60:40 mixed secondary and primary, and had planned to go onto supply to increase my confidence, as some ill health during the first part of my training left me feeling a bit out of my depth. (I only had a couple of weeks off but I did a pgce and the first bit was really intense)

However my partner was made redundant from his job after injury and I had to be the main earner.

I have been working in social care since then, and despite taking all my a/l to do half days in a school each week for a term, and to attend Teachers CPD I just feel like I’m falling further and further away.

I can’t get a TA job or do supply as I can’t afford to pay my bills as it is and I get top ups from UC and if I “deliberately worsen my financial situation” I will get universal credit sanctions.

Jobs don’t come up often near me, and I’m quite rural, so it’s limiting. But I have been applying for jobs since June and the response is always “you’d be better with more experience”. But, how can I get this?!

I work in the day, and do sleep ins at the weekend, I visit schools on my lunch breaks and volunteer with children in care, a youth club and young offenders. But I can’t quit my main job, or I’m homeless and bust.

Is there anything I could do, to help me get a teaching job at this point. Or any mentoring schemes or groups that I could join so I can stay in the loop and keep up to date with things. I feel like if I don’t secure anything this year I will be so far behind that I won’t ever be able to teach. 🙁💔

Thanks so much x

@Clementinesandchocolates I was thinking more about the value on her cv rather than necessarily expecting a job in the school where she volunteers. I agree with you that it can happen if you pin your hopes on a specific school- I’ve seen a lot of mums volunteer at primary level with an eye on getting a LSA job when they come up and of course they’re like gold dust so most people are disappointed.

It’s worth a try - just wondering if OP is going to end up half dead if she’s working nights!

I do think moving, if you’re serious about a teaching career, is the best thing you could do now Op.

Just to second what others have said. My DH is a teacher in the West Country and had to do supply before he got a job. He was speaking to one of the head teachers and in the vast majority of cases they have someone in mind for the job before it’s advertised. So anyone trying to break in would be very unlikely to get a job. I guess if you have no other option you’d need to keep volunteering and hope a job comes up at the school. Best of luck, it’s really tough

Get registered with agencies as most do permanent post recruitment now too. It should not cost anything to do this and can be very helpful to secure a job. I would at least have a chat. I left my full time permanent post unsure of what was out there and found agencies to be very helpful. TES also do recruitment services for schools now too, so do get signed up with them.

I would also apply to do exam marking - at the minute you’re not attractive to primary schools because you have no ks1 experience and you’re not attractive to secondary schools because you have no ks4 and ks5 experience. Exam marking would put you on a better footing to work in a secondary school.

Where I am in the north east you would be able to get maths supply with that; my school currently has 3 supply staff in maths. I didn't know you could still do a middle school pgce admittedly...

Someone mentioned exam marking; you need 2 years experience teaching it. I mark for 2 boards and have been trying to get other members of staff in for a few years now in science and maths, but you need the experience.

Thanks all so much.
Tied into social housing here (affordable rent so much more than council, but a good £100 cheaper than private), and I don’t think we could afford the up front costs to move like rent in advance, deposit, fees, removal van etc.

I can’t get onto be a marker because I don’t have enough experience 😓

I’m going to call the jobcentre and see if there’s a way that I can do supply without being sanctioned?

Just to clarify, I work 8-4 Monday to Friday and then 6pm Saturday to 10 am Sunday so my time to get anymore in, and particularly to get school experience other than the 1h a week is literally 0 😭

I also didn’t actually apply for middle years. I applied for secondary humanities, three of us were totally screwed over by the ITT provider, who could only get us placements teaching up to year 9.

It was then get what you’re given or what you can find yourselves for the other two days.

Thank you so much for all your help though. I’m starting to feel like there’s hope. ❤️

Sorry, I didn’t realise the rules had changed about exam marking. I first did it as a pgce student and have done it ever since so didn’t realise you couldn’t do that any more.

Social housing swap, as a longer term thing?
Many people at a different stage (retiring or whatever) would kill for social housing in the rural West Country. You’re at a different stage trying to break into a career (which ultimately will give you more options other than social housing anyway) so it makes sense for you to maximise your opportunities

Moving would be a last resort I think. Given that DP still needs a lot of support, as well as physical stuff he has PTSD from his injury and guilt about impacts to other people, (he’s being silly it was his managers fault) but I get support from his family and my family (we’ve all lived here our whole lives and have large extended families here)
But I do have a sister who lives up country where there are many vacancies (Birmingham) and is married to a train driver who suggested I look at vacancies near her and if I’m living at her address I would get concessionary faires back home for the weekend?

Total minefield

I also can’t see why you’d want to do supply instead of just getting a job. It won’t give you more experience

I respectfully disagree. I did 5 years in secondary before personal stuff meant a rethink and I went to supply. I learnt more in the first term on day to day supply than I had in those previous 5 years and strongly believe all teachers should be obliged to work at least a term’s supply in the early years of their career. It changed much of my approach to classroom management and the odd day I did as a TA gave me an opportunity to critically observe - something I found hard whilst training because the boundaries of classroom reality are so...off to one side...when you have someone else in with you. I also picked up a fabulous game from a maths teacher (I’m MFL) which all classes year 3 upwards (I work on both secondary and primary now) beg me to play!

Don’t shy away from supply for experience, OP. You can make it work. It can also show, critically, which schools you don’t want to work in and believe me, the schools you will want to avoid aren’t always the ones with the bad reputation.

There is a critical shortage of secondary maths teachers. Send a CV and covering letter to all local secondary schools. I find it hard to believe no one will want you!

Could you offer tutoring?

I know you are short of time but could you consider doing some private tuition? Now is a brilliant time to coach someone for GCSE Maths as they will have just done or be about to do their mocks. Find out which syllabus they are doing then work through that. Then when you apply for jobs, you will be up to speed and currently working with at least one specification, possibly more if you can take more kids on.

I sympathise (I have been teaching for 25 years and am seriously considering getting out) especially as you are based rurally. As others have said, contact local secondaries and let them know you are available as word of mouth seems to be the way things work in my area (Devon) & subject. I was interviewed for a job in 1998 which I got. Following the birth of DD1 the following year, every other job I have had since then has come about from word of mouth. I have worked p/t since January 2000 and although I have been interviewed since 1998, the initial contact has always come about from knowing someone, or being recommended.

You only need one school to have someone signed off for a term, which happens quite often unfortunately, and you're in. Be proactive now and get some letters written and sent ready for the start of term. Best of luck.

Any option to keep on the weekend part of your current job, for guaranteed £, while doing supply on 2 or 3 other days?
Some people get permanent jobs out of supply posts - heads can see what you are like before they buy, so to speak.

Private tutoring in maths- you can even offer this online- it’s pretty easy to get started with barely any cost. Could you combine this with supply?

I think you’re going to struggle for secondary jobs as you don’t sound very specialist. Generally it’s better to have a degree in the subject you are teaching. Also primary/Secondary are very different. Perhaps focus on primary? I’m a West Country teacher too and was surprised at paucity of jobs when relocating from London. Good luck.

I would drop the random volunteering and just concentrate on schools volunteering. Might give you more time for yourself and to do job applications.

Geography and maths are both shortage subjects, although there's more demand for maths as it's compulsory to 16. Personally I'd apply for any maths roles you see going- especially maternity leave where they might not have a lot of applicants. A lot of schools are scraping the barrel for maths teachers, so if you interview well, you will find something. You can write your application form to emphasize your maths experience.

Alternatively, you could try looking for a maths specialist role in a primary school, but these will come up more rarely.

It is a tricky time of year to find teaching jobs, as most teachers will have given notice for Christmas, and schools will have aimed to fill their posts for the new year. Any teacher who's given notice since November won't be leaving until Easter now.

However, you may get lucky with e.g. Maternity roles.

Thanks everyone

I didn’t manage to get through to the job centre to ask again but my problem is I can’t get into a school either for supply or in the week, just because I’m working, but if I stop working I will get benefits sanctions.
If I can get confirmation that this won’t happen from them, I would happily take the plunge.

I’m definitely going to send out a load of CV’s again.
I did 102 schools across Devon and Somerset over the summer and got 1 reply which was a polite no!

But I’m definitely up for trying again.

Thanks so much all of you again.

You need to visit the schools and meet the head teachers. They need to get a feel for who you are. If the ads ask to arrange a visit - do it, it’s expected.

Also have you looked at the local college evening classes for posts?

There isn't a teacher shortage in the West Country. I've worked recently in the Fringe (SE) and a West Country LA and it's a whole different world.

Are you in Somerset OP?

Would you consider going into SEN? Strikes me that your very broad range of experience age-wise and the care work you have been doing would be a perfect mix for that.

There is currently a drive to increase the number of SEN places available in the West Country so it is an expanding job market.

(P.S. SEN is SO SO much better to work in!)