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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

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Original poster

Teachers! I think I've decided to quit; would you give HOD a heads-up now?

28 replies

IHeartKingThistle · 22/02/2012 20:55

Or will everyone just be horrible to me until July? Is it bad form to hand notice in at the end of May deadline if I could have given them more warning?

Background: I'm pt, been teaching 11 years, been there 2 years, want to take a couple of years out while DC are still little, don't love the school, Dept. not particularly understanding of work/life balance, been agonising over the decision to quit for ages but pretty much there now... (whole other thread!)

I just wondered what you'd do?

OP posts:

dukeofpork · 22/02/2012 21:01

I'd give them enough notice to enable them to employ someone else before Easter. So about 3 weeks/ a month before this easter hols.
As long as you give them enough time to find a decent teacher and a good reason to leave (eg I want to spend more time with the dcs, not I don't like this school much and your work/life balance is all fucked up) they will hopefully be supportive of your decision. Good luck. How empowering for you

DialMforMummy · 22/02/2012 21:01

I would tell them asap. Not because of form, but just because it might make the recruitment of a replacement easier. In some places, it is quite hard to recruit good people so the earlier they know, the more chances they have to find someone suitable.
At the end of day, it would be the children would suffer from it more than the school IYSWIM. What would be the point of leaving it last minute? No one I know would be horrible to you in these circumstances, they are more likely to be grateful for long notice.

breatheslowly · 22/02/2012 21:10

In my experience they are grateful to be told earlier. And their expectations of you for your remaining time may become more reasonable. Do you intend to teach right up to the end of the summer term?

Original poster

IHeartKingThistle · 22/02/2012 21:11

That's good advice, I really appreciate it.

Dukeofpork I've really not thought about it as empowering so far but I'm now going to so thankyou! So far I've mainly been thinking of myself as a complete failure as a working mother .

DialM really good point about recruitment. They do struggle to find good teachers, mainly because they refuse to advertise in the TES . I'm not too worried about the kids because I don't have any Year 10s going into Year 11 and my Year 11s will be gone by the time I leave. I'd never leave mid-year and abandon a GCSE class.

Sadly I suspect they will be 'funny' with me after I tell them. They're like that.

OP posts:

tethersend · 22/02/2012 21:24

If you think they will be off with you, then wait until the May deadline.

If you want to make their life easier, then tell them at Easter.

It really depends on your relationship with the school.

If they don't want to advertise in the TES, more fool them. There is a real shortage of positions at the moment.

Whatever you decide, I would make sure you tell the children at the half term, as it will be difficult to work with them for a whole term when they know you are leaving.

Oh, and congratulations- I bet you can't wait

breatheslowly · 22/02/2012 21:30

I agree that it is empowering - to realise you have a choice to leave a siuation that isn't working for you, make a strong decision and see it through. I think a lot of people's misery is the result of not having that choice or not realising that they have the choice, as feeling stuck is horrible.

Original poster

IHeartKingThistle · 22/02/2012 21:43

I do realise how incredibly lucky I am to have the choice. On one hand I can't wait and on the other I can't imagine not being a teacher. It does feel right to stop though.

I really wasn't expecting the positivity I've had on this thread, and I so appreciate it. Maybe I'd got used to thinking of it as a negative decision - giving up on something - when actually it's making a positive choice, isn't it?

I suddenly feel a lot happier

Sound advice tethers, duly noted.

OP posts:

scaryteacher · 22/02/2012 21:44

I told them about now/March and they still waited til the last possible minute to fill my post!

Original poster

IHeartKingThistle · 22/02/2012 22:07

And were they not weird with you for that whole term?

When I left my last post I was relocating so no awkwardness.

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dandelionss · 24/02/2012 16:40

I wouldn't tell them til the dedline and then you are leving it open for yourself to change your mind

BackforGood · 24/02/2012 16:48

I'm not surprised they don't want to advertise in the TES. My friend ( a chair of gvnrs at a secondary school) has recently told me they were charged £6000 - yes, I said six thousand pounds to advertise for a new HT there

Original poster

IHeartKingThistle · 24/02/2012 18:17

Bloody hell BackforGood!

It would never occur to me to look for vacancies apart from in the TES though - you just assume they're all in there. Daylight robbery.

OP posts:

thanksalot · 24/02/2012 19:18

You may feel better yourself once you've told them. No going back then and you can really look forward to leaving.

Original poster

IHeartKingThistle · 24/02/2012 19:55

Got called stupid today by a 16-year-old. I'm starting to look forward to it already!

OP posts:

usingapseudonym · 24/02/2012 21:24

Where do they advertise if not just the tes? (Its the only place I've been looking recently - where else should I look?!)

I'm curious - are you going to do something else instead or stay home? I've been out of teaching for a few years and thinking of going back p/t but it isn't overly family friendly is it and I'm already a bit emotional about the thought of not being able to go in for nativity/ assemblies/ etc.

DialMforMummy · 24/02/2012 21:35

Some schools advertise in the local rag. But it could be as well as the TES.
Never seen a senior management job in the local though.

Imogenh · 24/02/2012 21:46

Lots of schools use their Local Authority website and don't advertise as it is so expensive. As a Governor, this is what our school does for non leadership posts. A family member (NQT) was been job hunting (successfully!) last year and got all her potential jobs through that source or through the Diocese/Archdiocese websites as she was interested in a religious school.

Original poster

IHeartKingThistle · 24/02/2012 22:28

I think they stick to the school website and the local paper. I got my job initially when I sent CVs to all the schools near our new house.

pseudonym I think I'm going to stop for a year or two. The plan is to try to get some tutoring work and do some marking (bleurg) for the exam board so I'm not doing nothing.

If I don't resign I'm basically taking a punt on what my timetable will be next year - resignation deadline is in May but the timetables won't come out until July, by which time I'd be stuffed if it was awful. I'd have to arrange pickups at pre-school time and school time. At the moment I'm paid for 3 days but I teach 4 short days, which means I can do some of the school runs and don't have so many split classes - on the other hand I pay out more on childcare, the childcare arrangements are stupidly complicated and I'm constantly rushing somewhere. And oh, the marking...

I worked out that (presuming I get some tutoring work) I'd have to do 5 hours a week at times when DH is home to equal what I bring home now after childcare .

But teaching p/t is doable, it really is - it's just a massive juggling act and I am clearly crap at juggling. If I loved the school it probably wouldn't have occurred to me to leave, and combined with DS's age it feels like an opportunity I should take. You might find a fabulous, understanding school!

How did you feel when you stopped? Are you glad you did? I'm curious too!

OP posts:

BackforGood · 24/02/2012 22:55

In my authority, jobs are advertised on the LA website - they have a 'Vacancy bulletin' which you can sign up to have e-mailed to you.

cardibach · 25/02/2012 13:29

Look on eteach usingapseudonym
OP - I'd say leave it until a few weeks before the May deadline incase you have a change of heart/circumstances. They probably wouldn't advertise 'til then anyway.

breatheslowly · 25/02/2012 14:10

If you might be interested in staying depending on your timetable then it could be worth having a discussion with the head about whether they could accommodate you. Obviously if they are keen to keep you the they might make it work (get anything that matters to you in writing). I once went to the head to say the I was considering a job I had seen advertised but wanted to know what was on the cards for me the next year. He said "what would you like to have" and I got exactly what I wanted. I didn't do it in a blackmaily type of way, I just wanted to find out what my options were.

Colleger · 25/02/2012 14:36

Do teachers actually care about kids? Seriously OP, if you give a damn about any of the kids you teach then you'll give good enough notice so that the school can get a good teacher in and cause the least amount of description to the kids in your care.

clam · 25/02/2012 14:54

Yeah, right colleger.

Original poster

IHeartKingThistle · 25/02/2012 17:46

Colleger, WTF? If I didn't care I'd be out of there by Easter but as I already stated I'd never abandon a GCSE class. All the students I currently teach would be changing teachers in September anyway so won't be facing any 'description'. I might do many things badly, but caring isn't one of them.

OP posts:

Original poster

IHeartKingThistle · 25/02/2012 17:46

Thanks clam .

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