Wondering why there's so much hate for teachers?

[Nannyogg134]

I've just been reading some responses to another thread concerning teachers and working over summer and there's a real mix of thoughts. I know that everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but I'm always very taken back by the amount of negative comments regarding teachers (especially regarding workload and school holidays.)

I've taught in a state secondary school for almost 13 years and I came to the job after working in a care home for a few years. There are pros and cons; the school holidays are great (and yes, they are unpaid- teachers are paid per day of their contract, this is term time only, the wage is delivered over 12 monthly payments for ease of life.) However, there is no flexibility, so I rarely see my own children in sport's day, nativities, or even on parent's evening (if it clashes with something at my school.) Overall, I feel very passionately about giving my best to my students and extra time I spend on them feels mostly worthwhile.

However, whenever there is chat about teaching, the general feeling seems to be very negative. I'm just wondering where this seems to come from? Is it the classic 'horrible teacher' stereotype we see on TV etc.? Or is it a leftover from some of our own school days?

I suppose it's not really AIBU, more of a wondering where this issue comes from and if public view can ever be shifted?

That's ok! I personally witnessed the majority of the staff in my school catch Covid within a month during September last year. It was shocking.

I think this is the same person I know of who is now dead. The setting she worked in has been identified as breaking health and safety laws in relation to covid.

@plantseverywhere not sure I ever saw anyone say we were most at risk. Just that we had the same risk as others who were in contact with people.
We just wanted some protection, like masks, open windows, some form of social distancing before the vaccine. I got none of those, and neither did my friend. Makes me v v angry as it was like everyone just didn't care about school staff at all. Only once kids started getting sick, a lot, did anyone listen to us that schools were breeding grounds for a virus - who knew , like it's never happened before (norovirus, chicken pox, flu) 🤬

@bigfootisreal bollocks. Total utter crap. Our school complied with every directive the government sent (all of which were crap). Was not the schools fault, they did as they were told. She died because the government kept telling everyone schools were safe as kids couldn't transit it.
Her 3 kids are amazing but trying to explain partygate to them was horrific.

It'll be a different 42 year old then as their setting told them kids could not spread it so they were doing nothing and would not do anything to prevent it. She caught it and died and her setting was reported to the H&SE which found they broke the law. I assumed it was the same person as they were told the same thing and had the same age.

@bigfootisreal afraid there are a lot of dead people from covid. Sorry I was a bit aggressive - it's a touchy subject.
Our school made every recommended change but they were as good as useless against an airborne virus. Not sure washing hands helped much when in packed, unventilated rooms with 30 people.

I really remember lots of people saying things like “show me another profession without ANY protection from covid”.

The idea that people working in factories etc were given covid protection was just silly and unfortunately I do think that it turned people against teaching as a whole.

I know the DfE dissuaded teachers from wearing masks but I think it was a school-by-school basis. Many heads will have said no masks I guess - in my school we were allowed to wear them in class and had to wear them outside the classroom. Meetings outside or in large halls, windows had to be open in classrooms, bubbles etc. I think the issue was less that we weren’t given any protection and more that the DfE was predictably shit and left a lot of it up to individual heads.

There was a huge amount of talking about how teachers were the most vulnerable to covid and how there wasn’t any other job that required you to be at as much risk etc.

I’m really sorry to hear about your friend.

This is based on a few experiences I had when school discussions came up with friends/acquaintances and what I’ve seen online. (I’ve worked in schools but wasn’t qualified teaching staff.) These people saw Public Sector as a badly run, expensive mess. Teachers, in particular, had an easy ride and were only working a short day. Their pensions and pay were too high and needed to be reduced. They need to bring back Baker Days to “make sure they were being trained properly”. Lessons need to be “entertaining” and “fun”.

The negativity (imo) came from a mix of their own poor experiences of schooling in the 1970’s-80’s, difficulties getting wraparound childcare, their own child not accessing the curriculum, ignorance, arrogance, pressure from their own workplace re time off for childcare, Covid19 teaching practises, lack of education knowhow and a need to bash Public Sector workers.

Once vaccines came in for adults, school staff were probably some of the people at the highest risk of catching COVID as they would be in a small badly unventilated room with approximately 30 unvaccinated people, whereas at least in other environments you would hope with the reasonably high take up of vaccines there would be more chance of vaccination protection.

@plantseverywhere thank you. She was amazing.
I'm not sure I ever saw a teacher or a union ever say teachers had it worst. I saw a lot of words twisted to imply this, but never saw anyone say that schools were the only places with no protection. But every time someone mentioned schools people would pile in and say, well what about supermarkets and buses. As if by mentioning that schools had no protection we were claiming everywhere else did. It was bizarre, as if people had lost rational thought at times.
My school have tried. But my windows open 2cm as I'm upstairs. My room is like a hot, sweaty, smelly box at the best of times. Masks were impossible to keep long term due to losing my voice from having to shout.
All I'd have liked was a little empathy, some effort at ventilation (& a vaccine earlier for everyone who was in contact with people). What we got was constant moaning in the press about lazy, workshy teachers. I was in school every day either with key worker and safeguarding kids or in normal lessons when my friends in office jobs were in their gardens on laptops. I'm not sure I'll ever forgive the way we were treated in 2019/20. And I'm not saying we were treated worse than other sectors (although this will be implied I'm sure and someone will have a pop telling me others had it worst. They did. Doesn't make it right)

I'm not sure I'll ever forgive the way we were treated

This is how I feel, too.

@toomuchlaundry

It wouldn't have been on mumsnet, so no.

@mumsneedwine

Are you honestly suggesting covid is entirely driven by schools? That's hilarious.

As is

No teacher, ever, said school should be closed.

Too funny

I can see this is a 'wind em up and watch them go' thread but I'll put in my two pennies worth anyway.

I'm not a teacher. And I have the utmost respect for teachers. The only negative conversations I've had about teachers have been your bog-standard 'Bobby doesn't seem to get on with Miss Smith' type ones. Nothing else too bad.

On the contrary - when talking to teachers it's like none of them like the job, like the kids much, and they ALL claim they might only work 9-3 term time but the reality is they're putting in an additional 40 hours a week even through the holidays and weekends. Might be an exaggeration in there but that's what it tends to be.

The reason schools closed for the second time was because they were seen as vectors of the virus

@Sherrystrull

Missed the at massively increased risk.

Teachers weren't at any more risk than any other member of the public.

Teaching doesn't even come into the top 10 'at risk' occupations.

Even at full capacity.

I give up. Utterly ridiculous people constantly reading what they want, not what is actually written.
Looking forward to September and the next round of covid cases in classrooms. Let's hope none of yours get ill. I get a booster soon so I'll be fine.

What? You didn't say that.

@mumsneedwine

What an odd comment.

@OhTheLeetleHandsAndFeetle

By being expected to do your job in difficult circumstances like lots of people?

Tbh I don't think lots of parents will forgive how their kids were treated either

@mumsneedwine that was always the case on threads about schools. Teachers saying we need mitigation measure to help reduce impact of COVID on schools, some posters read that as "teachers want schools to close and teachers hate children"

Surely, there are no posters on here who have school aged children who can say COVID didn't have an impact on schools once schools were open, even if their particular school wasn't particularly hard hit.

In our area, schools reasonably breezed through the first wave of COVID, but my god they were horrendously impacted in the last year. My DC had 2 lots of 2 weeks of remote learning due to lack of staff. Other schools, staff were on their knees trying to cover lessons, central team staff were deployed just to be a person in the classroom, many pupils missing proper lessons either because they were ill or no staff available.

you are rewriting history.

Then you go on to twist what I wrote, very you.

And it proves nothing other than you twist what it written to suit your own ends.

As you have pointed out you weren't on MN during covid so should really stop posting like you were.

And unions wanted to schools to stay open as the system that was in place was rubbish, but again rewriting history.

@FrippEnos

I didnt mention mn.

Other Internet forums are available...

yes there are. Well done for knowing that.

But you must also know that without stating that is were your information is from means that it is pretty much worthless.

And as you will have missed the many data threads started by various posters on here.
You will also not know how in depth the analysis was or what faults and errors were pointed out about the data because you were not her.

Its an opinion forum everyone is allowed one but don't state your opinion as a fact as you will be pulled up on it.

@FrippEnos

You seem pretty obsessed by mumsnet. Again, I never mentioned mumsnet so I'm not sure why you keep bringing it up as though mumsnet is an authority

Teachers post on other forums. The ones shouting for schools to be closed and remain closed (on other forums) did not appear to be able to understand the data available. That may or may not have also been true of teachers on mumsnet

Given the posts on this thread it wouldn't surprise me

If you Google schools not safe say teachers unions you'll get loads of hits

I'm surprised (not really) there's now so much denial about it.

Topgub

You seem petty obsessed by bringing other forums in to the discussions with no frame of reference as if this proves you right.

You call it denial, I call it twisting the facts to suit your narrative.

Having been through this before you bring nothing new to the discussion nor do you bring any actual evidence to support your opinions.

So your opinion is no more valid than anyone else's.