To think droves of teachers will make the decision by husband made today- to leave

[Peakyshelby]

Well after 6 years of teaching my husband has broken down, gone to the doctors, been signed off and says he is done.

he has done 3 years in 2 schools and then done supply for 3 years. There is too much to list but the highlights have been

been told to go and fuck himself and other insults thrown at him by kids with hardly any consequences from parents and schools

having stuff chucked at him

having to appear as a witness in court when a parent beat up his own child at home time in the playground

having parents create a smear group on WhatsApp against him and 2 other newly qualified teachers because the parents said there little darlings behaviour must be down to inexperienced teachers not being able to handle them.

having parents laugh and him and tell him he is picking on their little darlings by trying to sanction them.

have children laughing at him and saying my mum and dad don’t care what I do

hardly any support from above.

There is too much more to write but today he had a 10 year old child walk up to him and pour a water bottle over his head.

he is done. He qualified with a group of 10 others and 8 of them have since quit. 2 did not get through there NQT year.

He says the system is broken

I'm so sorry that is awful.

(Though supply is brutal and to be avoided)

supply made me! Yes, it's brutal but my goodness, you either sink or swim. I learnt so much on supply - and have always said that a term on day to day supply should be a compulsory element of the first 5 years of teaching. You don't have to worry about marking or progress or anything else. Just keeping bums on seats and some semblance of work in books (and not always that). You get to go in loads of schools and you get to talk to staff. You see which Heads are well thought of, you see it yourself, with your own eyes you learn which SLT are shite and where support is given and where it isn't. You know which schools don't work for you - not necessarily because of poor behaviour or anything else, but the ones where the current staff team is not one you gel with - and which schools do work for you and it's never what you expect it to be. I left supply after 2 years, taking a long term supply job at an independent that I then never left - they had had a small string of supply before me that hadn't made the grade. I also know which schools I would look to move back to in the state sector if it came to it and if necessary, I would go back on supply in a heartbeat.

It's an opportunity if you approach it right.

Tories have tried ( and failed) at that twice over. In a year there were 22 ex military personnel who started the programme….even with a £40,000 bursary.

https://schoolsweek.co.uk/rebooted-troops-to-teachers-fails-to-take-off/

Idiotic comment.

I hope he is OK.

Supply teachers were treated badly when I was at school and so are the ones who teach my DD’s year, some of the kids behaviour is awful. I’d never encourage any of my kids go into teaching and I always say it’s minimum wage or less if you factor in the unpaid hours. We get a lot of ex teachers when I’m sifting applications for my team in the civil service. Get him to consider this as a career, way better than teaching and if he comes in at entry level he can work his way up.

@Skybluepinky You are definitely 'that parent'.

You have literally no idea what goes on in your children's school.

It's 'you' not 'u' and you have no idea what you are talking about,

Well when I was little the ‘rough’ parents used to smack and shout at their children. It wasn’t good - but it was discipline of a form. Now the same type of people ‘back their kids all the way’ - frankly making an already poor gene pool worse by enabling them and letting them get hooked on screens, junk food, vapes and whatever else. They’ve created monsters.

Interested to know if better in private schools?

Also interested to know what teachers feel will happen when swathes of privately educated children move to the state system in September? My local primary is currently 34 children per class and will need
to increase.

There was a thread recently about the things we will look back on when we are old and think were bizarre.

Mine is schools. That in the past educators thought (or allowed to happen) the creation of huge, one size fits all, comprehensives for 1500 children. Together with the race for paper qualifications that do everything except educate or or provide practical skills.

And we wonder why there's a rash of mental I'll health amongst teenagers.

No standards, no boundaries, no consequences, and senior educators have allowed that to happen.

I work across schools. Across the end of this term and the Autumn, out of 15 schools there are 4 headteacher resignations and 3 deputy headteacher resignations.

None of these professionals have jobs to go to yet. None are staying in education. All are mid/late 30’s, early 40’s.

I think many of the parents would be surprised at what we have to put up with, even the ones who are part of the problem.
I have been punched, verbally abused and spat at by children, and it is horrible.
However, what is pushing me to breaking point is the entitlement of parents who cannot understand why we don't pander to their children like they do.
In the past two weeks I have had parents

• demand I redo the Euro 24 class sweepstake as their child is traumatised by the team they picked out.
• a long email chain with a parent who is taking their child on a non-authorised holiday in term-time and wants all the lessons they will be missing, I have politely refused so they keep taking it higher- I believe in the last email they are now taking it to Ofsted!
• a parent distraught that their child is being bullied and excluded by the other children. Their evidence - the child wasn't invited to a party which only 6 children in the class attended. Nothing has happened in school.
• the old favourite- I shouted at their child. They had climbed up a tree and were refusing to come down. I wouldn't have called it a shout, more a stern voice.
• only today a parent told me at drop off their child might be tired as they stayed up late watching the football. Said child hit someone and had some time out - the parent had the cheek to say the punishment wasn't fair as I hadn't taken their tiredness into account!

These are all parents that would regard themselves as intelligent fair minded individuals. This is on top of the genuine enquiries/questions that parent's have that I have no issue with. I'm experienced, I've been doing this for 30 years and take no nonsense from the parents, but god it's time consuming. It is really tough for those starting out, and a big part of the reason some get put.

Assaulting a teacher should be as bad as assaulting a police officer or ambulance worker in my book. You better have a very good story or you’re instantly expelled. Set up special sink schools/borstals for the feral kids who will never amount to anything.

Perhaps the govt are to blame around under funding, however you see all too often in the press parents kicking off at new HT coming in and enforcing rules! I find the rulesin school far too lax in this country.

No standards, no boundaries, no consequences, and senior educators have allowed that to happen.

You could also replace senior educators with 'parents'!

So sorry I wasted my life in the teaching profession. Marking and preparing 6 nights a week. No time for hobbies, and little time for my own kids. I know exactly how your husband feels. It’s so demeaning having to take that cheek from kids as there are no longer any sanctions that work. Most teachers don’t even have a phone in their classroom so they can call for help when there’s a problem.

I also remember my db's PGCS/NQT time. A friend of his was working teaching something in a local school - normal area, ordinary people. She was on antidepressants within 6 weeks. This was in 2005 I think.

Best friend has been a Reception teacher for 27 years….she says this year’s class is the worst in terms of behaviour she has ever experienced. And parents just don’t want to address it when they are approached. It’s really concerning.

Gentle parenting is to blame for this.

We’ve begged our friend to leave teaching after 20 years as he was literally on the verge of a nervous breakdown. He too has been called horrific names and assaulted. He is actually a really well liked teacher but a minority every year, have made his life hell. He’s also surrounded by very young, inexperienced teachers because all the older ones have left.

He handed in his notice in December and is counting down the days until end of term. He‘s already so much less stressed and happy.

I don’t think it’s underfunding, I think it’s a symptom of ‘underparenting’!

My 15 year old told me she thinks our generation have failed them badly. When I look at what goes on around us and read threads like these, I can’t disagree with her at all 🤷🏽‍♀️.

How terrible.

What on earth is going on in British society?

Its shocking.

It’s down to the families. I’ve taught in private and state for over 20 years and even in private schools, if the behaviour is bad, parents never blame their child or question how they are raising them. It’s always someone else’s fault.
Generally, the behaviour is better in independent schools, but the pressure on teachers is ridiculous as it’s essentially a business, so image is everything.
Respond to parents emails instantly, take endless photos of children so the parents can see what they’re up to, hear them read everyday, write to parents daily to let them know what’s going on, have meetings with them whenever they want-and if time, teach in order get the highest grades and top inspection ratings. Oh & get paid £14,000 less than a state school. It’s worth it to not be sworn at and have chairs thrown at you though.
Who’d be a teacher!