To retrain as a teacher at (just turned) 50?

[MyPearlCrow]

Just that really. I was a solicitor/partner in a law firm for my first career but burned out /got bored and cynical, so gave it up. luckily we can afford for me not to work which I realise is such a privilege.

I volunteer in a primary school now several days a week and essentially do an unpaid TA role. Here, TAs here are essentially teachers without all the planning/prep/responsibility, as in they actively teach the curriculum to small groups of children. They are highly skilled.

I have considered being a TA. I have been offered a paid role at my current school. But I’m still considering my options and it’s desperately badly paid. And all the TAs here are technically over qualified (all degree educated, or ex teachers, but don’t want the ridiculous workload of a teacher; entry requirement for TA role in England is just passes in gcse English maths and science) but they are paid peanuts. But it’s such a rewarding role and I love it. I think I could really add value.

Complete honesty here: I also realise that I’m used to running the show, in my old job. I suspect that in time I would want to make my own decisions on how to deal with my class, rather than carry out someone else’s instructions. I can already see ways I would want change up the teaching/approach for some children who are struggling. I am acutely aware that teachers just don’t have time to individualise the curriculum for 30 kids though, so I’m aware I might be looking at this from the 6-8 kids I currently take responsibility for in lessons and the ability to do this with a whole class might be much more limited.

i really love being with kids, I value education, I’m a good ‘teacher’ - as in I love to explain things simply and differently to children (or in my old role, to adults too).

Teachers - am I mad? I know too well how hard the job is these days. The primary curriculum here is crazy complicated. The breadth of ability and need is jaw dropping. But I truly believe in state education being a passport to a better life and would love to be part of that.

or do I just take the TA role, qualify up as much as I can in TA courses and accept I’ll be minimum wage forever but trying to make a difference?

important point: I have kids, so want to work part time. And train part time too. I know there are options for this but it will be competitive (I have top grades academically which I think might help). If I do a part time pgce, could I do my first year as a newly qualified teacher part time or is that not an option?

I don’t underestimate what a massive, difficult, demanding and at times (currently) desperately frustrating role teaching is. Am I too old for such a huge challenge? I’d love some wisdom from teachers and ex teachers please.

I used to know a Headteacher who was trying to recruit a Music teacher. She told my friend that she'd take anyone "who can hold a drumstick without poking herself in the eye."

No such person came forward. That Head had to offer music as part of the NC. I wonder which lucky Textiles teacher got those hours.

I think thats not necessarily normal. We have no streaming beyond Maths, plus one top set in English and Science at ks4. Granted we do have labs 😀 but not all science lessons can be timretabled in them. A FT teacher would simply not have 6 frees unless they were a HOD etc. You would be given something else to do! No payment for any activity in lunch, after school or weekends (apart from lunch duty). We do have lots of TLRs though.

OP, would you consider retraining into Speech and Language Therapy? Depending on your role, it shares many of the features you sound like you enjoy in terms of engaging with the children, adapting input to suit their needs. There’s no escaping needing a degree level qualification, but many unis offer part time courses, and depending on the qualifications you already have, you may be able to do a masters over a shorter time span.

Yep, we have 39 hours of Music to run each week at ks3 (with GCSE and A level on top). That's an awful lot to get covered as soon as you're down one music teacher (and they are not easy to recruit, we find Science and Maths much easier).

Again, it all comes back to budgets - less experienced teachers are cheaper.

12 years in. I wouldn't start in the current climate but at the same time we need people who can do the job and not flake under pressure.
Once you get the hang of it you don't need the big long hours to be put in. Good luck
Happy to chat. Primary school teacher 12 years taught 1 to 6.

Indeed. It’s cultural and educational vandalism the way experienced teachers are managed out. Should still be leadership spine for a deputy though - even if so low down it that it’s the same as M4…

I wasn’t keen on the leadership spine, because I was paid the same as UPS + TLR but immediately had a huge amount of responsibilities added to my daily workload. I know it’s a “promotion” to be a senior leader, but working from 7 am to 11 pm wasn’t worth the title of Assistant Headteacher. I certainly wouldn’t do the job for the equivalent of M4 pay, considering the hourly rate.

Couldn’t agree more! The wife of DH’s friend is in a similar position of accelerating to leadership and she’s been teaching only a couple of years. Speaking to her, she’s completely oblivious to her lack of experience and just waffles on about how much her school is desperate to keep her and make her leadership (she’s secondary school music so make of that what you will). I can’t comment on her teaching skills (I haven’t seen them) but her arrogance around it makes me feel she’d be dreadful in leadership for those who “report” to her.

Well, no - but my point was without putting this Deputy in the LS they can’t require the extra hours/availability. It doesn’t really work.
The whole of teachers pay needs a revamp and the conditions need to be properly adhered to.

Snotty comment about music teaching is uncalled for. My friend is a HOD/music teacher, studied at RCM and I'd say that her school and wider community know that they are lucky to have her there.

I'm in a leadership position, not in a school setting. Leadership is a very different skillset to teaching in a classroom. Do you not think that a skilled leader without teaching responsibilities could be a successful school head? Teacher doesn't necessarily = leader.

Not being snarky, it is a genuine question.

There was a fashion for recruiting superheads from outside education some years ago.

Generally unsuccessful.

Was the first bit aimed at me? I wasn’t making a snotty comment about music teachers by any stretch. My comment was more that (as evidenced by this thread) schools desperately struggle to appoint music teachers so will no doubt be desperate for her not to leave.

Why was it unsuccessful?

Yes it was.

You'd be welcomed with open arms.

I don't think you're mad to do it but you'd know within the first few weeks of a pgce and first few years if you were.

A lot comes down to the individual school, management team and area.

You will have skills that will be applicable, potentially at management level so could certainly carve a pathways there.

Personally I'd go in to SEND.

(But I'm in SEND and biased.)

It's not at all "easier" (it's physically utterly exhausting sometimes) but the frustrations can be less as we all work hard to need needs. I like the teamwork element and the fact that children do thrive.

Because people who haven't been classroom teachers (or heads of dept/faculty) have zero idea how to lead and support teachers.

In answer to your question - no. I think in teaching you have to understand properly what it is to be 8n the classroom and manage the role of a teacher before you can manage the school. You wouldn’t command the respect of the staff otherwise, and certainly couldn’t play a role in performance management or school improvement which is about educational input and output. I think there’s a case for a professional admin/finance person to work alongside, but no, not a non-teacher as head. It’s bad enough that SLT seem to forget what it’s like in the classroom without having ones who never knew.

Been working as a primary teacher for 18 years and I still love it. No 2 days are the same - in fact, no 2 lessons are the same. You will laugh, cry and scream (frequently within the space of an hour) and you will learn a hell of a lot about people. Plus you often get to play to your strengths, eg, taking responsibility for art / music / sport / foreign language, or whatever other interests you have. I would say - wholeheartedly - do it. I wish you all the very best ❤️

With respect, who do you think is going to stop schools ‘getting away with it?’

If schools can’t or won’t appoint or keep specialists (too expensive, or want part-time hours) then they have to have somebody teaching the classes. I knew of a student teacher who had a PE degree and got a job as a physics teacher teaching up to A-level. Didn’t even have GCSE physics and had to be coached through the content of the interview lesson by a mentor in the training school.

You completely misunderstood that pp's post in that case. She was highlighting the almost impossibility sometimes of recruiting subject specific teachers. There was no snottiness.

I agree! I quit before 50 and I know very few in their 50s who are still teaching. It’s more of a young person’s job these days.

I'm in a leadership position, not in a school setting. Leadership is a very different skillset to teaching in a classroom. Do you not think that a skilled leader without teaching responsibilities could be a successful school head? Teacher doesn't necessarily = leader.

No, teacher doesn't necessarily mean leader, but not all teachers become leaders, and the few who do become headteachers work their way up, gain management experience, often do courses and learn en route. Leadership person outside of education = person who knows nothing about how schools run and probably had no particular interest in schools previously.

They couldn't inspire confidence in their teaching staff because they hadn't done the job previously.

No problem with business leaders coming in to balance the books etc but there are such controls around what schools must do and can't do, most business experience isn't especially relevant.