How are teachers actually feeling at the moment?

[ermmm2021]

Just in general really? How are you all feeling knowing you have to go back or not go back to school tomorrow? About the amount of news you've got?

It's hard enough being a parent right now so I'm trying to imagine the position you're all in to remember you have little control of it all and you all have feelings too.

I'm angry our school have not given any information or responded to any concerns but I'm guessing you may not be in a position to.

I’m worried about nursery staff myself.
They seem to have it worse to me. Far more close contact than teachers, surely?

At staff briefing on the last day before we finished for Christmas, we 'joked' the Government would make an announcement at 5pm on the Sunday before we went back

The council for my neighbouring borough yesterday advised schools should close for the majority of pupils and deliver online learning until Jan 18th.

It's frustrating not knowing.

I lie to my self about the risks. Only way I can cope.

Rates aren't as bad as they were here; we had around 1000 in October.

So I actually feel ok, except I've spotted the sharp rise in numbers.

We won't be closing at all as it's sen.

I'm very apprehensive. We had to close some classes due to lack of staff last term. Other Sen schools had to fully close. It was chaos.

@lovelemoncurd yes I understand how he feels. Similar setting. I'm in my 40s, many Sen staff are older I find. Both TAs and teachers. You need to be v experienced to work in sen or be surrounded by v experienced staff.

I find online teaching really stressful. We are,apparently, going to have the KW&V kids in class with us so I’m trying to teach 2 lots of people in 2 different formats simultaneously and that will just be crap.

I’m tired and on edge with the sheer uncertainly of it. I’m a secondary teacher and I’m stressed about my exam classes. I have 3 children (preschool, ks1 and KS2) and I’m stressed about them going to school. Last time wrap around care closed completely. I will have to be physically in school to teach exam years. I don’t know how that will work (DH also a teacher so same problems apply).

I don’t know what I’m doing and I find that the most unsettling of all.

Not overly worried. Fed up with the chaos. Looking forward to going back.

Anxious. Not sleeping. I would rather be in school as I hated working from home last time and by July my mental health was not good. Today I will be adapting work for online , for numerous reasons most of my pupils didn't engage with the work last time around which was soul destroying. I wish the government had listened to teachers in the summer but here we are with this shit show. I've had reaffirmed that the government doesn't really give a shit about education , show contempt for teachers as do a lot of parents.

As a teacher I am more concerned about the impact of the spread of coronavirus on the students and their families and the staff and their families.

My 'bubble' and then the whole school had to shut because of positive cases.

Luckily nobody was so seriously ill that they had to be hospitalised but you can not predict this for the future

I work in a special school and home /online learning is exceptionally difficult- hours trying to think of things that will engage the students and are possible with limited resources. However any form of social distancing in school (within our bubble) is impossible too.

There is no easy answer

Annoyed that the government didn't put plans in place for home learning now before we broke up for Christmas. Anyone with half a brain could see it coming.
Furious that they will not admit that schools are not COVID secure.
Sad that my profession is getting so much anger and negativity directed at it - for trying to do the right thing.
Anxious about what will happen.
Tired and worried about not knowing what to plan for.
Scared for my own health and that of my family.

@Wherediditgo

I’m worried about nursery staff myself. They seem to have it worse to me. Far more close contact than teachers, surely?

I think nursery staff, eyfs teachers and special school staff have the closest contact.

The 3 places that definitely won't be closing ever according to government guidance.

I can see why but the risks to them have definitely been forgotten or overlooked.

I think exhausted sums it up. Worked full days since Thursday (in addition to work I've done already) trying to prepare and will be working today. All staff will be in on Monday (as no-one has contacted he head about it) so we can actually work out what is going on.

We have vulnerable and keyworker students in tomorrow and have mostly sorted staffing for them as we also need staff available for whatever might happen (genuinely don't know about the whole testing thing yet).

I'm an experienced Primary teacher
I feel sad that education is so poorly regarded by the government that they have allowed mess this to happen.
I feel sad that so many parents are so nasty about teachers.
I feel anxious that I don't know whether I'm working in school or from home this week.
I feel anxious that the lessons I've spent time over the holidays planning won't be any use and I'm going to have to redo them, but still don't know.
I am tired because the worry is stopping me sleeping.
I feel worried about my family becoming ill and the families of children I teach becoming ill.
I feel worried for my 2 dc- year 11 and year 13 -and all the other children in their cohort, who are expected to sit GCSEs and A levels this year after so much disruption.
Most of all I'm angry at the arrogance of the government for ignoring schools for so long and letting this happen.

I’m worried about dying or getting long covid. I am worried about the accuracy of the lateral flow tests and lack of isolation. My school is only open to kw children but all staff still have to go in-I won’t be sitting at home having extra time with my own kids. They’ll be ignored.

I'm really tired from having had covid. I'm more worried now about going into school than before. Hopefully I have immunity but if not I wouldn't want to catch it again knowing what it's like. That said, I want my children to be able to go to school. It's an impossible situation.

@GingerandTilly

My school is closed but we are all in full time as we have a high percentage of vulnerable and keyworkers children. My own children will be at home. I could send them in as I am a keyworker. I would love them in school but keeping them safe at home. Think that's gives you my feelings.

I have two teacher friends not returning because they are still suffering the effects of the Covid they caught from their schools before Christmas. Both of their classes don’t have a teacher at all now. There are no teachers to replace them and unsurprisingly supply teachers aren’t keen.

I'm a TA in a primary school. I'm over 50, I have asthma and my frail, shielding dad relies on me to sort his shopping for him.

I work across my year group, so in contact with 60 kids daily plus numerous adults all trying to use the one photocopier and kettle in the school 🙄

We have hand sanitizer and high up windows open. That's it!!! No social distancing, no masks etc.

We heard yesterday that we're 'closing' this coming week (apart from key worker children/vulnerable) but all support staff to be in school. I also work at the breakfast club and have 'bubbles' (basically just spaced out tables) with all infant and junior bubbles in a hall together.
I can do all of this with no PPE or any hint of whether school staff/children will get the vaccine and yet I can't go to see my family.

I'm bloody anxious!!!

I also have a yr 11 dc who is also studying from home this week and another who's going back to his university flat next week.

I live in a tier 4 area.
I'm struggling. I really am.

Tired after recovering from covid caught in school.

Tired of having to constantly self isolate and the impact this has had on my own family.

Tired of not sleeping and worrying about it all.

Tired of worrying about my own dc in crucial exam years yet again and what will happen to them.

Tired of having to deal with last minute plans.

Tired of the contempt shown by so many to our profession.

And beyond tired of how little our government think of education.

But I will be back in class next week and the children won’t know any of this.

Also, I am not in as I am ill due to my chronic illness and currently pretty poorly. I have no idea who is teaching my class as we also have other staff members off with illness/stress/pregnancy/Covid/self isolation.

I’m a working parent (part time and from home so easier than most to adapt but this is through my own assessment of my usual workplaces being unsafe for me) but have worked in education. I support anyone following section 44. I’d support anyone recovering from Covid or CEV or CV having more time off. Teachers don’t take these decisions lightly but it’s time to make them.
My kids can be taught online or from worksheets etc for a month or two in order to save lives. Which is what it comes down to. If more people get sick, more are in hospital and more die, whether it’s due to overwhelming the NHS or just by the numbers.

Very depressed and tearful. I don't think that's because I'm a teacher though. It's just because everything is so shit everywhere for everyone. I'm so lonely and purposeless most of the time.

I do have almost nothing to do this week. We've moved our term dates forward for all except exam students (just Year 8s for us) so, apart from some virtual inset and one or two online lessons, I am stuck with another week of miserable holiday. Then two weeks of miserable online learning.

I was so looking forward to the holidays being over and going back to school. Just to be able to see people! I don't have any faith that we'll go back on the 25th either.

I don't get to teach the key worker and vulnerable children apart from in a few 1:1 sessions. They will also be online learning, in supervised computer room bubbles. Miserable for everyone.

And I don't know what the alternative is.

Covid doesn't worry me. The endless monotony of tier 4 terrifies me.

I’m so sorry for you all being stuck in the middle of this. I don’t see how schools are staying open and surely the late decisions make things so much worse.

I'm a secondary LSA and work across all year groups with SEN students. It's not a job that can be done 'distanced'.

I'm happy to carry on though, and I'm not overly anxious about the risk to me personally. I love my job and wish things could carry on as normal. Since September I've been adamant schools should stay open.

That said, I'm now very concerned about the situation in hospitals, combined with continually rising cases. The idea of there not being treatment available for not only seriously ill Covid patients but everyone else too, is terrifying. For that reason, I now think that schools should close for a few weeks now.

I'm feeling pretty fucking sick of months and months of teacher bashing, having had to work in dangerous, crowded conditions.

I've utterly lost my enthusiasm for my job. The bashers will tell me my mental health is clearly not what it should be (they're right and it's down to them) and that I should leave (I'd love to but I can't afford to).

The upshot is that you've got a miserable teacher, and I'm not alone, who doesn't want to teach but whose pupils will be stuck with them for the 20-odd years until I can retire. I never used to feel like this but I won't forget how we've been vilified either.

I've stopped caring that people are angry with us. It's just boring background noise now.