I know it's been done to death but I don't think people realise how hard it is to work in a school!

[user4692821]

I work in a small village primary school in the north. I'm so used to hearing people saying "oh I'd love to work in a school so I could have the holidays off" or something along the lines of "well you can't complain as you get so much holidays with the kids" etc.

My week normally consists of:

Being called a bch 3/4 times a day
Told to shut the fk up at least once a day
Being punched
Spat at

And that's just some of the 'bad' incidents. It's not mentioning the other more 'minor' incidents that happen constantly through the day.

I work with 6/7 year olds. In a mainstream school. It's not uncommon, most TA's have similar in their classes. When we meet people from other schools they say the same.

Yet we are constantly told to be grateful we have a job that gives us time off for our kids. I 100% get that it's lucky we can have the holidays off so we don't have to pay for childcare. However what I ask myself everyday is: is this worth my mental health? Because honestly (apart from NHS jobs or similar) where would you go in to work and expected to be treated like this and paid minimum wage?

@user4692821 what about moving to a private school? You’d certainly be sworn at less

I agree after my redundancy I got a job working as an exams assistant in a high school doing GCSEs and a levels - I quit because the hour expectation, the job itself and the pay was just not worth it so I went freelance on my old job and I am much happier

@Havett to be honest I don't know if it makes much difference anymore as I've got friends who work in private who have the same issues. I hate to say it but a lot of it is down to parents having no boundaries at all and that happens at any school!

I’ve worked in retail and experienced all of the above and that was 25 years ago
it’s far worse now

This is awful to read. I'm so sorry for you and everyone who has to deal with this. It's thoroughly depressing how low behavioural standards and plain manners have fallen.

My parents would have been utterly horrified if I'd done even one of these things.

I absolutely know how hard it is to work in a school. That's why I don't do it. It sounds like a fucking nightmare.

YANBU. I have never seen anything like the current exodus of school and hospital staff. Something is going catastrophically wrong.

@rwalker sorry I missed that job out but yes I agree it must be awful.

@hurlyburlygirly I say the same thing daily, I would be absolutely mortified if my children had ever behaved in this way

Sounds tough OP, I saw a thread here from someone complaining that a teacher had muttered f* off to a pupil at school, given your day to day abuse, that thread sounds farcical really.

I don’t work in a school but I don’t know how you do it.

parents are a nightmare, children are exhausting and you need the patience of a saint as you have little recourse for stopping poor behaviour, internal politics are stressful.

bad times. Hats off to you.

YANBU.

@SquirrelSoShiny something is definitely going wrong, and I fear that in 10 years time when these children start entering the work force is it going to become even more apparent! There is a constant ethos at the moment that children with behaviour issues have SEN issues etc. It's a common occurrence that I speak to parents about behaviour and they will say 'well it's not their fault, they have ADHd' or similar (when there is no diagnosis, I am not talking about children with diagnosis's) . The children then repeat this constantly in school. We are teaching the next generation that they can act however they please and there are no consequences

That is appalling. It seems my son was lucky where he went to school (state primary in Tunbridge Wells, then a grammar) as behaviour was generally good. I work in a private secondary and behaviour and manners are very good for the huge majority of students.

That's a huge bug bear of mine - I have ADHD, several DC have it in my family and friends group and yet strangely enough all are polite, kind, functional members of society.

I left education as a TA for a new job a month ago. The weight that has lifted off my shoulders. I feel bad for my youngest as I had so little left for her at the end of the day and now I have the time and energy for play and stories after work! I don't feel like I need to sit in a quiet dark room for an hour every day to recover! I may only have 20 days time off, but I am also making twice as much. AND no one has bitten or scratched me this week.

I feel your pain! I’m a KS2 teacher and Subject Leader in a small primary and this week I’ve sent emails before 7am and after 7pm, I’ve dealt with one (ridiculous) parent complaint about another member of staff, I’ve been called a C**t and a bitch and I’ve eaten lunch at my desk every day with multiple issues to deal with throughout. I am drained mentally and physically and that’s before dealing with my parent suffering from Dementia and being totally reliant on me and my children, one of which had additional needs. My colleagues and I have vomited and gone back to teach a class multiple times this year.
Every year I say I’m getting out (I’m 20 years in), the last year I’ve started seriously looking at other jobs.

I luckily don't have to work directly with students very often (high school support staff). I feel terribly for our teachers and TA'S who get abuse on a daily basis. They have recently cracked down on behaviour and we just get lots of complaints from parents complaining that the teachers are to strict. You just can't win.

Yep.. I had a bottle of wine thrown at my head be arsed the people I was serving were taking too long!

Because!

I can’t believe such young kids are doing this. There was no swearing at my kids’ primary school but they left primary 8/9 years ago. How depressing.

i have worked in the nhs for 30 years and people’s behaviour has got worse. I have a thick skin though so it doesn’t bother me for some reason.

I think the comments you refer to are mostly in relation to not having to sort childcare for school holidays. It is one bit of shitty admin less to worry about - nothing more. If someone says you can't complain I would reply yes actually I can.

@Confrontayshunme this 100%! I get home and my DH gets annoyed because I can't chat, I just need to sit by myself in a quiet room for an hour or so before I can even begin to unwind. Luckily my DC are a bit older now but it definitely takes a toll on who I am as a mother and wife!

Don't go to a private school! The expectation on you for similar wages is immense. The SLT see you as cannon fodder.

The parents expect miracles and are incredibly entitled due to the fact they are paying.

I've worked in public, private and state. All have their challenges but you are more protected in a state school as your union should protect you whereas in a private school they have the idea that you've sold out so are much less help. Obviously this is only my opinion due to experiences my colleagues have had.

Really? I have worked in several retail positions and whilst I was certainly sworn at I was never hit or spat at and being sworn at was fairly unusual. The customer would then leave the shop and that would be that, it didn't go on all day. What sort of retail position were you in?

I work in a High School, worst job I've ever had!

This week I've been told to F off, shouted at by a Year 7 and generally disrespected daily.

I've been doing it two years and I'm genuinely appalled at how some students speak to staff. Some parents won't or can't parent so there is just no hope.

I'm support staff to and they are even worse to teaching staff.

I'm job hunting as I'm just miserable, yes the holidays are great but it's so stressful I'd rather give them up.