To teach or not to teach?

[Littleme2023]

I currently work in a school in a support role.

I only have GCSE’s as formal qualifications, all good grades A-C. I’m in my late 30’s with 4 children all in primary school.

I really want to teach, it was always my dream but life got in the way and I never did it. I’ve been working in the school for a year now and really think teaching is something I want to do. I have seen the positives and negatives too it but I feel it will be a good choice for me and I can’t see another job that would work better for me and my family.

I’m just not sure how to get into it, the school I work in offers training and another TA is about to start in September but I can’t wrap my head around how I get started. All my research shows I need a bachelors degree and QTS but I can’t work out how I will juggle my kids, home life, my sanity, sleeping, studying and a bit of a social life 😂 Am I being completely deluded?

I’d love to hear from teachers and get some advice/pointers.

I don’t want to speak to my colleagues until I’ve got a clearer idea of the route I want to take and whether I’m 100% on my decision.

Primary or secondary?
You can do an Open university course but yes it will be hard. But as primary teachers work an average of 60 hours a week term time it will stand you in good stead. You may need to get a level 3 qualification first.

I work in primary at the moment but would be open to secondary and primary in the future.

Ideally I’d like to stay and train with the school I currently work in as 3 of my children go there so logistically and practically it makes the most sense. Also this way I could be paid while I train and I wouldn’t have to pay for my qualification (at least this is what I’m assuming/sure I heard someone say this at work) but I don’t think if this will tie me to the school/MAT for a set period of time.

I just love being in the classroom, I’m IT savvy, super organised and just feel this is what I should’ve done 15 years ago.

I think if I don’t do it now, I never will if you know what I mean. It would also nearly double my current wage which would be a huge bonus and great for my family.

Have you considered going for the HLTA role first? It would be an increase in pay and involve some teaching whilst being supported.

You can be paid to train as a teacher but you cannot train to be a teacher without a degree, and that is going to be very expensive.

Yeah I’ve looked into this as well. I think maybe it might be a bit more realistic for me, less hours but still get to “teach” and increase my earning.

You will need a degree first, and as you don’t have ALevels you may need to do an access course first. You could do the studying part time / distance learning if there isn’t a uni near you that offers a course you like? Can be a degree in education but it doesn't have to be. If you have a subject you might like to teach at secondary you could do that.

Once you have the degree, you can get QTS through on the job training I think. But start with the access course and degree.

Would be a good idea to talk to a careers advisor as they will know the most up to date routes.

Hmmm I’m not sure you would get accepted into teacher training without A levels but I might be wrong. As you say, the norm is for minimum of a degree in terms of formal qualifications. I think you would have to ask the school. In terms of juggling things …. It will absolutely be hard, but that’s why you would get more money. I guess you have to weigh that up against quality of life etc. but definitely doable if you are prepared to put the hours in including at weekends and evenings. I hope I’m wrong and that you would be able to be trained up. You sound enthusiastic and there is a massive shortage of good teachers so fingers crossed for you.

The degree wouldn’t be that expensive - you could take out student finance like every other student does. You pay it back directly out of your wages once you are earning. It’s basically a graduate tax.

I do think it would be worth doing a degree other than education though, so you have broad options in case you do decide in the end that teaching isn’t for you.
Psychology is a very transferrable degree for example, that is also a good foundation for teaching.

Thank you.

I was looking at getting A levels, and maybe concentrating on subjects I both enjoy and where I know they need teachers such as maths and science.

I think I will need to speak to my employers but I don’t want to unless I’m sure I can realistically do it and commit to it. I cannot afford to stop working and go off to uni, I need to be earning as well as training.

@Littleme2023

We have just appointed HLTAs to cover PPA. This means they use the teachers plans but teach and mark the work. A lot of schools are going down this route. If you have good GCSEs in English and Maths you should be fine. A lot of places do a skills test which is usually recent SATs papers for reading and maths reasoning. I actually had to do them as part of an interview for a senior teaching position which was interesting but once I got my head around it I weirdly enjoyed it.

If you look at some of those online it will give you practice. Also you could be asked to cover from Reception to Year 6 so it is not easy.

That’s brilliant advice thank you. I wouldn’t do an education based degree if that is the route I go down, I know two people who have trained as a teacher and given it up after their first year of teaching. This is a boggling fear, that I’ll start down the path and regret it or fail. So I think you’re absolutely right, that I should cover myself and get a degree that is transferable, if that is the route I go with.

Oh good I’d best brush up on my maths then because I sat in on a few year 6 maths lessons and it took me ages to work a few of the questions out 😂🙈 I’m rusty lol.

I have been quite lucky and worked in all year groups other than year 5 and year 1 (my children were in those years) I love EYFS, so rewarding and fun, plus I’ve worked as a carer so I was one of the few staff members who was fine with snotty noses, toileting accidents and projectile vomit across the carpet 😂 Weirdly my second favourite was year 6, so cheeky and bright.

I’ve just had a look and a part time bachelors degree will take me 6 years 😞 then I’d need to do QTS on top of that. That’s much more than I expected. I wouldn’t be teaching until I was 43 🙀

Yeah - sorry littleme… as I feared. My OH thought about becoming a teacher but he only did 2 years of his degree before he pulled out so couldn’t do it 😢

Oh good I’d best brush up on my maths then because I sat in on a few year 6 maths lessons and it took me ages to work a few of the questions out 😂🙈 I’m rusty lol

How can you expect to be a teacher if you can't do year 6 maths?
What's your general knowledge of English, Science, History, Geography like?

I think you may be able to do an OU degree without a levels or do a foundation year instead of. OU would be a great fit for you as you could continue to work and offers lots of broad subjects like English, Psychology etc. you then may be eligible for the assessment only qualification into teaching rather than the whole hassle of a pgce. Best of luck!

It’s true, but as they saying goes : the time will pass, anyway.

You can be a teacher at 43, or never be a teacher. Which sounds best?

I guess it depends how much you like studying. If you enjoy it, the 6,7,8 years won’t matter.

If you hate studying though, more reason for caution! Why bot do the access course (replacement for A Levels) first and see how you get on? At each stage of the process you may find that doors open and you’re drawn to a different path, but you won’t know till you start!

We have an aht who isn’t a teacher so it is possible to go into well paid ´ teaching’ roles without a degree or qts. However, these roles are much more likely in secondary. I’d look for a hosta role in a secondary school. I think the expense of a degree may not be worth it.

You don't necessarily need A levels to do a degree. You can apply for a foundation degree (4 year course). Depending on your financial circumstances you may qualify for up to 9.3k in student loans plus your degree loan. It will depend on what your dh/dp earns.

I am just about to start my 4th year (final degree year) and have found it quite manageable in humanities as the contact hours are much less than a stem subject and blended learning as a result of covid is very good.

*hosta=hlta

Chill out! 😂😂 I said I was a bit rusty and took me a while to work a few things out not that I couldn’t do it. I don’t work out the area of triangles on a daily basis so it took me a while to remember.

My general knowledge is good, thank you.

I’m back to researching the HTLA courses this evening. I think it’s a good balance and will give me the greater job satisfaction I am seeking and higher earning potential.

Thank you ❤️

I was a TA at Secondary, started my OU science degree, was offered an instructors position (unqualified teacher) and then would have gone through the assessment only route to qualify once I finished my degree.

However, I already had a level 5 qualification in a non-curriculum subject and was experienced at the school and within the subject. I would highly recommend not taking this approach, studying, teaching, running a home and being a single parent all at the same time was an awful experience and ultimately I decided not to go into teaching and had a career change instead. Other options to try teaching include Cover Supervisor roles ie internal supply.

My OU degree took 6 years and I had student loans to cover the tuition fees. 6 years will pass regardless so why not complete a degree anyway. Teaching and particularly ECT isn't particularly family friendly and it would be better for you if your children were older. If you've only been at your school a year there is still a lot to learn about how schools work and lots of training you could do on Send and a good understanding of that will help massively with any future teaching career.

Yes, Open University is open access - no A levels required. You may find it helps to do one of their access courses first if you're unsure about getting back into studying, but the level 1 modules assume very little and lead you in fairly gently. 60 credits a year is half-time, about 16-18 hours a week, although it varies a lot from person to person. Some subjects have 30 credit modules, opening up the option of going faster or slower.
43 is only half-way through your "working life", so you've got plenty of time - you can get 25 years of teaching in before state pension age.
The tuition fees are paid for by the student "loan"; you pay back a percentage on your earnings above £25k/£27k (depending on when you start - it's changing), and if you haven't paid it off after a certain number of years, the debt is written off.

What a much more glass half full way of looking at it than my own initial reaction ❤️ Thank you for the perspective, you’re absolutely right.

Plus my children will all be that bit older and my eldest will nearly be leaving school so childcare wise that will help greatly.

I do love to learn and I’ll look into whether or not I’m eligible for help towards to cost of this.