Tell Me What It’s (really)Like To Be A Teacher

[LucilleBluth]

I have applied and been accepted for a couple of School Direct and SCITT places for 2022. I’m 40, I work in a special school in a support role and feel like now my own DCs are older that teacher training is something I want to pursue…I have a good degree.

I obviously work closely with teachers and have teacher friends… BUT MN is so so negative about teaching. Will some of you MN teachers tell me what you love/hate about teaching. Am doing the right bloody thing here?

I've not been in any schools where support staff are expected to take work home. And if you're on minimum wage it would be illegal to expect it.

the purple pen of pointlessness

This made me laugh way more than necessary. I once asked a child why they had purple pens and what they were used for and he rather bluntly responded. I don't know someone told us too so we do and all I could think in that moment was that's an exact description of what teaching is these days.

Someone tells you to do it and you do, the meaning of why you're doing it is often unclear and chances are the task you're being asked to do is of no value but you do it because someone more senior to you who thinks they knows better has told you to.

The first couple of years are tough, then it is great.

I would have said that was true when I qualified in the 90s.

Then it was good for a fair few years, then it has gradually got worse (I could probably trace it back to the introduction of PPA-not the time out itself but the view of, ‘oh, it’s only xyz, it won’t take long, you can do it in your PPA’.) it’s become a increasingly boiling pot ever since-it’s difficult to tell whilst your ‘in’ it.

I don’t think it is particularly true for those qualifying now, though.

It completely depends on what school you are in. In the right school it is brilliant as it is interesting, sociable, the children are lovely and great holidays. In the wrong school it is awful with micromanaging SLT, competitive work levels where everyone grumbles but then tries to outdo each other on the amount of marking they do and everyone feels demoralised.

@Howshouldibehave
Teachers are micromanaged and have no flexibility on what we teach, yet are still creating lessons and entire schemes of work from scratch rather than there being free (unchanging) documents to use

That’s a very good point. Uniform Lesson Plans across the country - “Maths: Year 4 Week 2 Lesson 1” with a recipe like A,B,C approach would at least be more honest and save huge amounts of time.
If the government is going to micro-manage Learning Objectives and Assessment Criteria, why not just go the whole hog and have uniform Lesson Plans?

I went into teaching at 40, OP. I am now in my early 50s. It has been a rocky ride. I left one school because of unrealistic (in my opinion) expectations regarding workload, marking, and ultimately results. I did supply for a couple of years which was eye-opening in terms of how good some schools are compared with those which aren't so good. I now work in an independent I first entered on supply and basically never left.

I would say it takes 5 years for you to have a bank of lessons plus experience to draw on. I now know I have a basic lesson for everything my subject could expect of me so am ready to go all of the time. My planning is down to tweaking for the class in front of me rather than starting everything from scratch.

Qualified in June - aged 40 - I trained in a large comprehensive with many behavioural problems and a large SEND department. It was stressful, demanding and challenging balancing the teaching and studying with a family (my kids are all school age now). However, I worked in a wonderful and supportive department with a great rapport, who made it easy to manage through every day.

The pp who talked about personality is absolutely right. Teaching plays to my strengths, but I do see it as a vocation, having taken a long time to get here for various personal reasons. I genuinely enjoy the company of young people and listening to their ideas; I have a robust sense of humour and know when to pick my battles; I have the confidence to think on my feet if something interrupts a lesson or it doesn't go according to plan; and I do admin daily so it doesn't pile up. That said, I am also unusual in that I get a lot of satisfaction over marking, discussing target grades and parents' evenings.

I also now work at a private day school which allows a huge amount of autonomy and the SLT who are proactive, supportive and care a lot about mental health/work-life balance. So many variables.

I'd prefer to be p/t though as it's exhausting!

@Suprima

I’m in my twenties- I love working with the children but it’s just utterly constant. Before 9am this morning I had to do a 40 minute SEND questionnaire, book a school trip and print and practice resources for an a detailed in class assembly that had been arranged by the powers above at the last minute. The above I didn’t have time do last night because I was in a child protection meeting. I have 5 other emails left to action in my inbox that I left tonight as it was parents evening so I’ll need to tackle it in the morning. I am middle management- took this role as it added mental stimulation and a bit more cash. If I wanted to get promoted from here I would have take a deputy role which would take me away from the kids, unless I am called down to give bollockings or gate duty. And that’s all equally constant too.

I’m aiming to leave in the next 3 years, because then I would have done my decade in the classroom.

I am looking forward to a job where I can do a day from home, and when I am in the office- I can make a coffee and switch on the computer without my heart leaping out of my chest about everything I need to do before the kids get in.

It’s honestly brilliant in its purest form- but the trips, the admin, the five forms you do for no reason, the manic school photo days, the preparing for shows, the parents wanting a meeting with you because another child called theirs a ‘silly banana’, flu nasal spray days, timetable chaos, unhelpful CPD, impromptu assemblies, the observations, changing displays, the mock ofsteds, filling in accident slips, the meetings planned and unplanned just make it so incredibly full on. These things need to be done, but I am just frazzled.

However- this is the nature of a school day and providing pastoral care and support for 30 children. It might have been doable when planning and education standards were on the floor- but now educational excellence and rigorous planning is demanded alongside all of the other duties. I want educational excellence, and I prioritise this- but I only have so much brainpower and a lot of it is spent finding lost jumpers and meeting with parents.

Hats off to everyone who can do it forever, I probably could if I burned myself out but I don’t really want to.

Couldn't have put it better myself! It's the best & worst job all wrapped up on a very complicated package!

I'm an long term, experienced HLTA in a lovely Primary with a very supportive SLT who are constantly trying to persuade me to qualify as a Teacher. I used to waver but these days I'm 100% sure it's not for me. My physical health, emotional wellbeing & time with my own children etc is just far too precious.

I would say it takes 5 years for you to have a bank of lessons plus experience to draw on. I now know I have a basic lesson for everything my subject could expect of me

This just wouldn’t happen in primary!

I am curious as to why there are not already lesson plans in place of some kind for each year? Not "Maths Year 4 week 2" or whatever, but doesn't the previous Year 4 teacher pass them on? Or are they not allowed??
Some of my friends are teachers and the high school ones seem to have more work/life balance.

IfNot
It depends on how much change there is year to year and also the cohort you're teaching.

I could fairly confidently teach the GCSE courses fully by adapting materials I already have, but KS3 would require more input.

At primary my friends in one form entry find they have to create more each year if they move around, whereas friends in three form entry tend to find they share planning across the year team.

There's different pressures and different workloads across the two phases.

Thanks Lola. I guess constant changes in directive will affect what you can use wrt lesson plans. It's hard to understand from the outside, as teachers are always talking about how long it takes to plan, and you think "but surely year 4 is always the same type of stuff?"
It's a shame how rigid and adminy they have made teaching, as it takes away from the main point of being there i.e teaching the children!

I am curious as to why there are not already lesson plans in place of some kind for each year?
Interesting thing to be curious about.

Because demands / focus are constantly changing.
Because tweaks are constantly being made to SoL so lessons need changing.
Because exam boards like to change what they include and how they examine, which means all KS3 also needs changing in order to build the necessary knowledge base and skills needed for the GCSE.
Because no two classes are the same.
Because you might not even be able to teach the same lesson to the same year group in the same way at different times of the day.
Because weaknesses become apparent after marking and lessons need adapting to deal with errors and misconceptions.

@IfNot

I am curious as to why there are not already lesson plans in place of some kind for each year? Not "Maths Year 4 week 2" or whatever, but doesn't the previous Year 4 teacher pass them on? Or are they not allowed?? Some of my friends are teachers and the high school ones seem to have more work/life balance.

Certainly do share. Well, for those of us that put our planning on the system anyway. Every cohort and every class is different. I have taught primary for a number of years from reception to year 4. Some classes have been mostly very high ability and some extremely low ability. Plans should be adapted all the time to suit the needs of the class. Of course, no two SEND children will have the same academic needs either. I believe it must be easier in schools with multiple classes per year group but I've only ever worked in a one form entry. Every time I've moved year groups it seems I've had to start from scratch!

I teach same lessons each year, and tweak them slightly, all our classes are mixed ability so have resources to differentiate up and down. So I don’t actually spend much time planning, unless the curriculum changes majorly like a few years ago

I’ve taught nearly all year groups over the last 20 years and by the time I have moved back into a previous one, the government had changed all expectations and syllabus, so any plans you had were totally obsolete.

Textbooks would be useful though in primary. Oh, and for the government to stop changing syllabus content on a whim.

I am curious as to why there are not already lesson plans in place of some kind for each year? Not "Maths Year 4 week 2" or whatever, but doesn't the previous Year 4 teacher pass them on? Or are they not allowed??

I've been a teacher for over 25 years and the only times I have ever taught to someone else's lesson plan is when I've been covering their lesson in their absence. I've used shared resources, but the way you plan and deliver your lessons is quite individual. I'm a secondary teacher, and although I will reuse some resources, each class needs a different approach and therefore a different lesson plan.

@lazylinguist

I’ve not changed a lesson in 4 years! No need to, mixed ability classes; resources for all levels, all I need to do is print resources.

[quote OnceuponaRainbow18]@lazylinguist

I’ve not changed a lesson in 4 years! No need to, mixed ability classes; resources for all levels, all I need to do is print resources.[/quote]
That's insane! What do you teach? I honestly dont know any teachers who could use the same planning for 4 years without changing anything at all, no matter how well differentiated. I'd say you were an anomaly.

Yep, I agree with the PPs saying that how much you enjoy it really comes down to which school you're at - choose carefully! I relocated across the country for my amazing school and have been very happy there.

Having said that, the first 5 years are brutal regardless of where you are. Expect to work most evenings and every weekend and holiday. You need a hell of a lot of energy and passion for it. BUT once you have that experience under your belt it becomes a lot easier - now after 10 years I never work weekends or holidays.

@PinkWaferBiscuit

I teach A’ level ethics, a level philosophy and GCSE RE. Sometimes I change my moral ethical
Dilemmas to make them more current!

Awful! 27 years and then I got targeted and had to leave, it broke me. Cost them dearly with a NDA

If you're in the right school, it's the absolute best place to work in the world.

If not, it's honestly hell on earth.

I've worked at schools where I never slept (honestly probably about an hour a night tops) and hated my life. I've also worked at schools where I loved almost every minute.

The worst school I worked at was outstanding on paper- the atrocities I experienced were all down to SLT, so be careful.

Honestly, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone except those who live for their job and don't plan on having children and family of their own.
I'm sticking it out until I go on maternity leave with my third child and then will be focusing on retraining or just utilising my skills to go into a different job.

Unless you need the money and it's significantly more than what you are doing I would advise against it.

There's a reason there's a mass exodus from teaching, staff leaving and sidestepping into support roles, tutoring, counseling and university teaching.

It might be better in secondary, but all my pgce pals have or are working on one of the above.
It'll be 15 years soon and only two left in full time teaching. Both with escape plans. And they're men, so the sexism perks of teaching are not enough for them(though it helps you climb the ladder quicker)

If you are female op then you will just be hopping on the revolving door until you get too expensive.