Burnt out teacher!

[Supermummy88]

Good evening everyone,

I just wanted to get some advice from fellow teachers and people from other professions. I think my schedule as head of department is insane and I feel I am on the verge of burning out. I am constantly ill and my migraines are horrendous. I am beginning to hate being in classroom as I am simply too exhausted to teach. Below is my weekly schedule:

Mondays: School have 6th period so don’t finish until 4pm

Tuesday: CPD until 4:30pm

Wednesday: Pastoral meeting 7:50am-8:15am

3:00-4:00pm department meeting

4:00-5:00pm year 11 intervention

Thursday: 7:45-8:15am year 11 intervention

Friday: 7:45-8:15am heads of department meetings with SLT

Do others have similar schedules? I am struggling to juggle everything as I have 2 small children.

Thank you xx

We have a 1hr meeting most weeks but that's all.

That's insane. I'm a single mother, HoD for a core subject and I have never worked past 10pm

They'd be less stressed and rushed?

You’re entitled to a 1265 calendar each year - ask for it. Even if you’re in leadership scale not Tlr then this is your starting point. Everything a main scale teacher is asked to do, ok. Then ask yourself how much leadership time you get. Make a list (spend half an hours on this) of tasks that need doing. Highlight needs, nice to haves, really nice to haves.
is there anything a second in dept or ups teacher could do? Are you delegating effectively to build leadership capacity elsewhere in the dept or trying to do it all yourself?
ring fence your LD time and dont do tasks outside it. If there are a lot of must haves then take the list to your line manager and tell them to prioritise it for you as there’s too much to do right now.

explore quality first teaching and ditch y11 intervention. Does your data show it actually helps?? I’d be amazed if it does. John to sett wrote a good blog on it but I agree it creates helplessness and they need to revise on their own and use lessons effectively neither of which happens if they have intervention get out clauses

And join the mtpt project for bolshy support staying in the profession with young kids!!!

Presumably the issue is that you're having to then come home and work till late and then up again the next morning?

It's difficult to compare to other professions - I work till late in the evenings and sometimes till the early hours - but then I'm paid a lot more so I don't think that's fair for me to say it's comparable in terms of expectations. As other people have said, if pay and conditions aren't great then it's hard.

I calculated my hours over the course of a year (with obviously zero hours for summer holidays etc) and worked out that I was earning LESS than minimum wage teaching (despite being at the top of my salary scale).

Left shortly afterwards. Never looked back!

It sounds normal meeting wise but what is your teaching load? Do you have a form?

It'll soon be Easter then just a couple of weeks until exams start and then y11 go. This is a pinch point.

Theyre a head if department. They still have the same workload to do, just paid less to do it.

As others have said, that must take you over your directed time. Union advice is no more than one after school meeting per week, which includes parents' evenings. You need to get your directed time calculator and then raise this with your union rep, either at school or district level.

Nope. That’s crazy.

I’m a secondary HoD too. We have a meeting each morning of some sort 8.45-8.55. Meetings after school on Mondays until 4.45 latest. Parents evenings are on Thursdays and we skip the Monday meeting that week. We only do after school support sessions with exam groups if we choose to.

So this week we’ve had twilight and all the other meetings and parents evening on Thursday. Absolute madness!

What time do you finish? Do you have to take work home with you? How many hours a week do you work vs how many hours are you contracted to?

@Supermummy88 Are you employed under STPCD?

Do you work in the UK? As others have said - directed time calendar is a starting point if you are employed under standard pay and conditions..I think this is appalling. Again - if in a UK state school and no directed time calendar then get your union rep on it for next year. My childcare only used to open at 8am and then it's a 25 mins drive at that time, so I would simply not have been able to do that. Our place - one morning briefing at 8.30. probably one hour per week after school for something (sometimes twice a week). HoDs choose to run after school or lunch time intervention. (Kind of expected though). Your schedule sounds insane to be perfectly honest.

What’s the mtpt project?

https://www.mtpt.org.uk/

Do you have anything useful to contribute?

Some people really are idiots aren't they?

I teach in the ME as a regular teacher, no extra responsibility. I work 7.30 - 3.30 but I get at least 9 sometimes 10 hours of 'PPA' a week due to specialist lessons. I never stay late and occasionally work for a couple of hours on the weekend. Leaving the UK was the best decision for a better work-life balance!

What does your Directed Time Calendar say? It should outline exactly what additional meeting time you have every week of the working year.

DH uses one I designed when I was a Deputy Head. It is week by week and colour coded so staff can see each type of meeting on the date it takes place with timings, INSET days, CPD and Parent Evenings all in there. It is produced and agreed between April-July ready to go to staff at the end of summer term for a September start.

You can not be required to attend additional meetings to those in the Directed Time Calendar if you are employed on STP&C

This. Just because other people will tell you that their week is similar (or worse) or work until 1am .....doesn't not make this ok. This schedule is excessive and not right. Stand up for yourself the school really needs your experience and expertise. Are you in a union ?

This is why I left teaching. I was working 80-90 hours as a member of SLT. No TLR

I think you need to check with your union how much time you should be expected to give to meetings before and after school as this seems a lot. We have one meeting after school a week. Also with the exam intervention groups - remember these are not compulsory- if they say they are- then quote the burgundy book. You need to not be afraid to ask HR for support otherwise you will burn out and mental health will suffer. Schools are legally obliged to make reasonable adjustments to support mental health issues- I have needed in the past and my school was very supportive- it doesn’t mean it has to be forever.