To jack in teaching in Covid times?

[Firefin]

Yes, it's a secure job, relativey speaking, and maybe I should be grateful.

But less than a month in and we have been told that we will, effectively, lose all of our lunches and break times as we are now required to escort students to lunches and breaks, supervise lunches in bad weather, collect students at the end.

My line manager also thinks all the normal stuff (displays, regular phone calls home, book work in five colours) should still go ahead, while my timetable does not even allow for my own responsibilities to take place. In addition, we are being forced to wear face masks everywhere, have to change rooms all the time (sometimes on no notice), have to set up before the kids get in, even though we are the ones moving and collecting them from social areas.

In my worst week I do not get lunch breaks some days and most days struggle to even go to the toilet.

We have meeting after meeting, request for remote learning on top of a normal teaching load, request for detention duties, over-and-above duties, interventions etc. as well as a strict covid-friendly behaviour system, all without the support needed.

Less than a month in and I'm burnt out, have no time for my family and my complicated home life. My mental health is back to a point I want to, effectively, not be here (I have all the numbers, no need to point them out).

I am good at my job, but this is not a job I know. I want to quit, but can't afford to. I am trapped, but my mental health is suffering, so I may just get in debt. This is not primary school, either.

You have my complete sympathy, our Head and SLT are amazing and being in primary helps!

All of the above was enough to make me leave before covid (marking in five colours, oh what fun indeed . It sounds even worse now. Why don't you look into tutoring - I feel there's going to be a big market for online tutoring in the not so distant future.

You poor thing op that sounds appalling. I would resign and have a break personally. Working in a school during a pandemic is hard hard work.

Lunch
Most days I get 5 minutes to grab a sandwich

I hear you. I have days where due to varying breaks and lunches at teach from 8:50-3pm with one break....at 9:50am. Someone comes to cover but inevitably they're late as they're rushing about, so i shovel food in 5mins and rush back to my class. The other "stuff" hasn't decreased: in fact there's more assessment, the videos being recorded for virtual open evenings, the multiple evenings for each year being planned to do parents evenings over zoom.

I'm just not sure it's sustainable.

What else will you do?

I want to leave. Apart from all of the above, and having to resource and live stream every lesson for the self-isolaters, the very worst thing is the vilification from parents and the media.

That sounds tough. Can you get support from your union to push back on some of this? Get signed off sick? I’m not a teacher, my apologies if these suggestions are wide of the mark.

Maybe try a different school. I totally sympathise I have all the same issues except one. In my school the management have realised how difficult times are now and they have basically cut all the crap. It's still harder than normal times but so much easier not having to try and also fit in cpd and the rest. A small gesture but very much appreciated by the staff.

Your head is taking the mick. Teachers campaigned for years to have a lunch break and you are entitled to it. Some heads are ridiculous. I know of one making staff do booster classes 4/5 evenings a week. She hasn’t got the right. The unions should be involved.

YANBU
Teachers are extremely vulnerable.
I already personally know one with covid.

We're doing booster classes, break duty has tripled, we're cleaning classrooms in between lessons and having to set, stream and mark online work which takes a lot longer than on paper. We're still doing twilight CPD and there's a learning walk (observation) and book scrutiny coming up soon. There has been no recognition of the extra workload. This is quite separate from the fact we're not protected in any way. We now have to wear masks on corridors but as we've been told repeatedly, they don't protect the wearer. I have year 7s who are barely capable of logging on to a computer by themselves. I can't avoid some proximity contact (oh and if laptops are used I have to clean them all between sessions).

Oh I so know how you feel. I'd successfully got off my ADs before the return, and now my mental health is terrible.

I feel so angry whenever a politician describes schools as 'Covid-secure' - they have no idea of the reality. And not only are we teaching or supervising every minute, but we are then spending every evening adapting the lessons for the isolators as well. And then I come home and see threads about how lazy teachers are.

It's a terrible job to be in right now. If I could afford to quit, I would. I'm sorry that you feel like this too.

Some of the other stuff you mention outside of Covid would have me running for hills- marking in multiple colours- wtf??

1. Are you in a Union?
2. Is there a rep in your school? The things you mention need to be challenged because they are unreasonable. Legally you HAVE to be given 30 mins lunch break. If you school can't ensure that then they are breaking the law. Challenging this type of thing is always done best as a collective- who else feels like this in your school? It takes a strong stomach but on things as clear cut as 'not having lunchbreaks' etc. you would easily win with support of Union. I would also be looking for a new job- I work in a secondary and our SLT are on the whole incredibly reasonable. Is that perhaps because we have over 80 staff members part of the NEU, with an active in-school rep i wonder...?

Do you teach A level or GCSE and which subject? So many people are looking for 1 to 1 tutors willing to pay 40-50 pounds an hour for their Year 11-13s to catch up right now.

You say you can't afford to - have you been through your finances, cut down on everything possible, switch gas and electric etc - get everything as low as possible then look at how much you NEED to earn. Lidl for example pay £10 an hour and you don't have to take your work home with you. They'll still need teachers when all this nonsense has died down. Just go back to it then. For now, do what you need to do to look after your own MH.

All work is shit
I’m working 10-12 hour days
On 30% salary cut
With game of thrones politics
I don’t have a choice , 40% lost their job

Suck it up , no one is having a great time

Suck it up , no one is having a great time

Are you for real? OP is deciding whether or not to quit their job due to change in working conditions. They are entitled to do that if they choose. Your race to the bottom mentality can fuck off.

It’s not a race to the bottom
And sorry OP I had a horrible day so a bit Ranty
But right now work sucks , and what sucks worse is that
Once furlough end it’s going to be even worse

So I don’t think stating brutal facts is a race to the bottom

And is OP can afford to not work well bloody great

But it’s really hard right right now , so she might want to pause before quitting a paid job
And know it’s tough for other people too , really tough

@Thisisworsethananticpated

All work is shit I’m working 10-12 hour days On 30% salary cut With game of thrones politics I don’t have a choice , 40% lost their job

Suck it up , no one is having a great time

What unfeeling arse hole of a comment. well done for being horrible to someone who is clearly struggling.

She's not asking for your sob story.

Wouldn't blame you one bit.

I can't quit either, for financial reasons.

It's horrible. You have my sympathy.

Is there any way in which you can push back against these demands? Work to rule, so to speak?

If not, your mental health matters. Being actively suicidal is a health emergency. Someone close to me has had to quit a secure job b/c of mental health issues. It's possibly the worst time for a long time to do so. It will have a lifelong impact on their career trajectory. But it's better than being dead.

If you quit, are you in the kind of area (or can get to the kind of area) where there is a demand and capacity to pay for tutoring in your subject?

I’m with you OP. I’m receiving messages as I start teaching that so and so is off self isolating and can I set them some work - when??? I have no break As we are on duty every day, lunch is spent cleaning desks between classes, washing/sterilising resources which are shared between classes, sorting out afternoon lessons/marking/putting up displays (as they’ve halved my TA support and my PPA from last year too - not covid related just money saving). I have realised I really depend on the social side of work - a 5 minute chat in the staff room before lessons, at break, eating lunch with a colleague - none of which happens now. It’s miserable. I’m considering leaving but my notice period means I have to work til Easter now anyway 😩