To hate teaching

[Fireflyfly]

Any fellow teachers on here just feeling absolutely burnt out and wondering why you chose this career ??

Im on a long term supply ( meaning I don’t plan but have all other responsibilities) . The school itself is lovely …. But , I am just worn out .

I spend the day feeling like I’m just shouting all the time . Behaviour is not challenging in terms of major issues , but it’s CONSTANT talking - that is too much for a learning environment , I’m constantly shouting ! All the time . I never wanted to be this type of teacher . I work through lunch , marking , and still don’t leave until around 1645 . The to do list never ends. Everything is on a strict timetable so I’m rushing to get lessons completed , when the class are virtually incapable of doing anything independently. I have an amazing TA who is just as worn out as me and the other 2 teachers of the other classes in the year group are the same ( if not more as they are planning and resourcing ! ) - so I know it’s not me and I’ve been told this year group as a whole are very challenging .

Im mentally and physically drained. I look worse than ever as I have no time or desire to do anything for myself , I’m in pain as I’m on my feet all day and leaning over tiny desks , I don’t have a car right now so I then have a commute . I get home and I have to vacuum ( have a dog so has to be done daily ) , then I’m sorting things for the next day , doing dinners . It’s 715pm and I’ve just stopped and about to make my own dinner . I have never known a job like this . My mind is racing , I feel like the whole day is full speed , my throat is horse from shouting ( that’s mainly just to be heard ! ) , I’m snappy with my children , snappy with my husband .

I didn’t think it would be like this , it’s the hardest job I’ve ever done. I’m still an ECT - my first permanent job was harder and I left as I almost had a breakdown . I went into day to day supply then took a long term for financial security . I’ve been offered a job with this school for September but I can’t face it , I don’t want to go back to day to day ( I have to work part time in the holidays if I do ) but I don’t think I can live like this long term .

I’ve applied for roles out of teaching and I’m awaiting outcomes but I’m worrying about not having the holidays with my own children .

I feel trapped and wish I had never gone into teaching . I trained for 5 years and i hate it and don’t want to be a failure but I don’t know how I could do this forever .

You have my sympathy. I left teaching 4 years ago after 15 years. Have a look at the Facebook group, ‘Life After Teaching - Exit the Classroom and Thrive’ and you will not only see that you are not alone, but will find some really good advice about other jobs you could do.

It sounds like teaching might not be for you.

The school obviously think you're ok at it or they wouldn't have offered you the post.

Have you tried "silent time" with your class - explain that you will put a timer up for 5/10 minutes and during that time no one is allowed to talk including you. The only shush them, don't talk. Use that time for marking. It will increase their independence and give you some.much needed time. Tell them if they're stuck to move on.

Oh, and then increase the time over a term

I mean , a thought I’ve just had , how ridiculous is this ?

I have always had a nice figure until starting teaching . I’ve put on about a stone since I started that I yo yo with ….. because , I’m so exhausted that I’m having toast and crisps for my dinner , because I’m just so tired that I just want to have something quick ! I’ve always had healthy lunches at work ( salads mainly ) but in teaching I find myself making sandwiches or takin crisps - so that it’s something I can eat whilst marking , so I only have to use one hand!

The school obviously think you're ok at it or they wouldn't have offered you the post.

I'm not saying the OP is a bad teacher, i'm sure she's amazing. But being offered a job doesn't always mean you're a great, or even ok teacher. Sometimes it means you're the cheapest or only person who has agreed to do the job.

YANBU. It's obviously not for you, OP. No need to feel guilty about it. You've given it another try, it's not working out. Time to move on and try something different.

You say the school is all about teacher well being but from what you are describing I'm not so sure.. u just can't be using ur lunchbreak to mark. Something has to give. Can you speak to slt and see if there is any support or suggestions. It's an exhausting job but you must have boundaries. Do you have a time budget ? Are you in union ?

I do feel like it isn’t .

The school are lovely , always complementing me , but lately I’ve found they’re brushing off any concerns i have over behaviour. I also found out that the teacher they started the year with , an older man who had been teaching for 30 years , left because he said that he couldn’t handle a whole year with the class .

I have tried quiet time , sound bubbles , timers , quiet critters , high rewards for quiet and it just doesn’t work 😞

… or that I am there on supply , no contract , with an awful class and haven’t left ! That thought has crossed my mind !

You need to sort out what is important. Not all the things asked of you are essential. Is it so important that you mark everything in a lesson? Do the children really benefit from your marking? if not, just pay it lip service. I only mark the essential bits and it's fine. The wheels don't fall off.

As for the behaviour, you have realised yourself that shouting doesn't work.
Go back to basics, when you want them to listen, tell them to put pens down and look at you and don't talk until all eyes are on you. If someone talks, stop, say their name and say 'warning' . Do it every time. If that person talks again. They lose 5 minutes of lunch.

If they are doing work, set the timer for silence for 5 minutes, reset the timer to 5 every time someone talks. You might only need to do this a few times.

Ask colleagues for what works for them

I am/was a supply teacher who decided to have a break after working long term in an academy. I currently work in a nursery. The pay is shit, the hours are long, and it's very physically and emotionally challenging but is a completely different atmosphere from that in a school. Another teacher I know decided to become a childminder instead.

What would happen if you let them talk, btw? Let them talk but be on any silly or disrespectful chatter but only when they're working?

I left a couple of years ago.

If you want to stay and survive you need to prioritise two things and two things only:

What SLT will check are done (so marking books etc)
What will actually impact the kids and help them make progress.

Many teachers with teens get their teens to do the marking as the load required is ridiculous and most teens can apply the marking policy easily. I used to pay mine a fiver an hour.

I was a teacher for 19 years. I knew I couldn't do another 19 years to retirement without something giving; my health, my sanity or my marriage.

18 months ago I saw an advert for an education role in a charity, and applied on a whim. Got the job. It's still perplexing me how different the two jobs are (and how much lower stress the new one is, by comparison).

Yes I get paid a pretty paltry salary after being on UPS3 + TLR. I've gone from part to full time and I am still less stressed and have more time.

Laptop closes and I shut off from work every night. Weekends are my own.

Having recently done some work in a secondary school again as part of my new role, it has confirmed to me I will never, ever go back.

Absolutely no work gets done . They don’t just chatter and work ( some do, but the majority don’t ) they begin shouting and laughing … I have tried to say that they can have whisper voices , table voices etc and it just doesn’t work . The only way they get their work done is me continually reminding them and that involves shouting as they get so loud. Some lessons, it just works … they are all on task and quiet and I think I’ve cracked it and then it just goes back to the noise . I always wonder what I did to make it work and it’s just sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t

I’m happy you have found that!

I have seen some roles within charities but I don’t feel qualified .., I don’t know if I should just get working on a CV that shows my teaching skills but not specific to teaching

PS I'm not saying that my discipline is perfect. Difficult classes are utterly exhausting and I'm sure I'm not always consistent. However, in your shoes I'd put all my energy into solving the talking not the marking

I’m leaving too at the end of term. 24 years and have just lost the love for the job. Do what you feel is right for you.

You absolutely would be qualified! Go for it. I thought they wouldn't look twice as I have no experience in a charity or that particular sector but there's jobs out there.

But I stuck my neck out and thought what's the worst that can happen? I don't get an interview. Nothing lost!

As a say, salary is a poor but my children and husband notice the difference, we eat as a family most evenings now I can WFH regularly (charity don't have enough office space for all staff so we agile work) and I feel actually valued for the work I do.

I think you are being a bit unrealistic here @Littlemisscapable
I've always worked through the children's lunch hour, as have virtually all staff in all the schools I have worked in.

A key difference from when I started in the 80s, and now, is that, when I started, all the effort, energy, and hours, went in to preparing great lessons for the children. Now, that is sadly bottom of the list. The whole "preparing for OFSTED" permanently, the tracking, the 'deep dives', the marking policies, the 'practice inspections', etc, etc, etc, do not benefit the children, and just drain the staff.

i hate it and don’t want to be a failure
Believe me, it isn't you that is failing, or has failed, it is the system. The way schools are run now, is just broken.

You will develop more tricks to keep them on task rather than raising your voice. This takes time and as an ECT you have got that in your toolbox yet.

I’m 6 years in and loving it, secondary and current have gained time which helps, but mainly as I don’t have all the little tasks any more. I don’t have to think about every aspect as I am just more competent. But it does take time.

Would a different year group suit you better? Maybe on of the older years where they can self settle a bit more.

Also, tip for vacuuming everyday - get yourself a robot vacuum cleaner,it can do the floors when you’re out.

Sounds like the Year 3 class I'm TA for. They're exhausting. Constant talking, shouting out, silly noises, walking round the room, no independence... Very experienced teachers are struggling. I just wanted to sympathise as i have a idea how drained you must be feeling 💐

Respectfully though this has become the norm while teaching in England ....it doesn't have to be this way and is definetly not like this in other parts of the UK or other countries. Unless teachers start standing up for their rights, use their unions and fight back... education will continue to haemorrhage teachers and then where will we be ?

Sounds like the yr 3 class in my school. Anecdotally, I have heard that other local schools are also struggling with year 3. Our year 3s are just so young for their age. They are more like year 1/2. They struggle to focus and cannot work independently. Their social skills are also way below what we would expect. They tell tales on each other constantly and the parents don’t help as they molly coddle them too much and are constantly complaining about perceived issues. It’s draining. They seem to be the cohort most affected by covid. They had lockdowns when they were in nursery and reception and in year 1 they were still being taught as a bubble. Year 2 was their first proper school year really with no disruption. Their skills are effectively 2 years behind where they should be.

They sound similar to my Year 2 class, all the tips I've seen recommended to keep them on task and minimise low level disruptions work for 2 days max then they just don't care about either rewards or sanctions. I have a core group of 6 children who will not complete work in lessons, sometimes they're messing about being silly, other times they just sit and do nothing, even with me making sure they know what to do, talking through it and giving them timers to get it down on paper. They literally don't care if they get loads of rewards, don't care if they miss all their playtime, all their lunch play time, any "golden time" because they have work to catch up on. They take the hit every single time rather than actually just complete work in the lesson. It's exhausting!