Help with options - possibly leaving teaching.

[conflicted14]

I posted a few weeks ago about not knowing whether I should leave my KS2 teaching job at Easter (school is in Special Measures, things are getting worse and I just dread going in every day.) I am a good teacher and I know I could get a job somewhere else...I just feel that after 4 years, I'm fed up with working so hard every day and getting no recognition. In fact, I feel that nothing is ever good enough.

I thought that maybe, if I got a job in a good school, my feelings might change. I've recently looked round about 3 schools (all either Good or RI heading to Good) but it just leaves me cold. I no longer get excited about starting at a new school (I have worked at 3 different schools and I used to feel quite enthusiastic but not any more.) The thought of having to jump through hoops in interviews and teaching yet another observed lesson makes me feel a bit sick. I don't actually want to do it. I was going to apply for a temporary job but I feel reluctant even filling in the application.

I have full support from family to leave teaching and I have build up some savings to support myself. It's scary to leave something I've been doing for years. I've spent this week thinking of options and come to these choices:

1. Leave at Easter - this is looking certain as I can't stand things the way they are now.
   
   
2. Possibly get a job in a tuition centre that is advertising near me. I have no idea what working here would be like though, in terms of pay/hours but it must be more enjoyable than what I currently have.
   
   
3. Perhaps use some of my savings to go travelling while I still can.
   
   
4. Start a completely new career. Degree was in English Literature and Creative Writing and I speak another language, so possibly some proofreading, freelance writing or translation work. I would like to be self-employed at some point in the future. I could even set up a business tutoring, as there is high demand for it in my area.
   
   I guess I just needed to get all this out and I would really appreciate any thoughts, comments or experiences. It's really daunting to make changes but I think it needs to be done for my own sanity.

[Pud2]

Good luck to you. Having taken the plunge it is an odd feeling. I'm also not good at change and I am feeling unsettled by it and nervous about the future. However, the overriding feeling is one of relief as I know I have done the right thing. I'm also not looking forward to Monday but there's a lovely feeling of nothing really matters as I've only got to do it for five more weeks. Let us know how you get on.

[conflicted14]

Thanks for all your replies, I appreciate it.

I will resign on Monday...I'm just so unbelievably scared. I'm not a person that copes well with change and I'm petrified about leaving something I've been doing for years and starting again.

Childcare won't be a problem so I could easily tutor after school. I just need to think about how to set it all up and get business. I might contact some tuition centres as that would be a start.

Monday is approaching and this awful feeling of dread is coming because I have to go back to school. If anything, that tells me I'm making the right decision.

[jegular]

That is one word for it/soul destroying so sad as I love being with the kids!

[TheReluctantCountess]

I'd love to leave teaching because it is soul destroying. We are reliant on my wage so it's not an option - I don't know what else I could do that would pay a similar amount.

[jegular]

Hi guys new to mumsnet.i am feeling exactly like you too.you can only give as much as you can and I think I have changed as a person since teaching 3 years ago.i have worked myself in to a SLT position at an outstanding school but I never stop.half term is not a holiday and when at school I can never rest.i am now pregnant so I will be leaving at the end of t July.my plan is to tutor and offer breakfast clubs and afte school care in my current school but who knows if that will be enough.i could not stomach going back to the stress,non stop work,planning and delivering lessons of high quality (supposed to be anyway but we all know that at the end of term corners are cut!)

So so sad that people don't understand how difficult teaching is- i used to be so free spirited before teaching! think you have to make the change as I can't see teaching in this country improving.

Keep calm,do what you want,remember you can always go back to teaching.

Xx xx

[pudding25]

If it's any consolation, I work in a very good primary school, one of the best for results in the country. Leafy suburb of London, fabulous staff- however, I feel exactly the same way as you. Never doing enough, nothing is ever good enough, constantly having to change what I do and work constantly. I hate it. Good luck. Get out and have a think about what you want to do.
Unfortunately, I need to regular salary and don't know how to leave...

[partialderivative]

Have you considered teaching overseas?

You need to do a bit of research about prospective schools (first rule: Only apply to not-for-profit schools)But you could end up in an exciting country with lovely kids and a fraction of the paperwork.

I have spent most of my career abroad in 7 different countries, I still love teaching.

[honeysucklejasmine]

I left teaching last Easter. I didn't work again until Sept, when i started tutoring part time. Honestly i wish i'd done it years ago! People I've just seen since leaving comment how relaxed and happy i look since leaving. I left teaching for health reasons (not stress) but i guess i didn't realise at the time how much i hated it!

[Nonie241419]

I'm hoping to move into a school office job in a couple of years when my youngest DC starts school. I have an accounting qualification and worked as an auditor and in accounts before I trained as a teacher, so I'm hoping that will qualify me for the role. It would also give me school holidays off with my DC, which would be ideal. I honestly don't have any other ideas though.

[Bin85]

Are you able to do after school tuition or do you have children to look after then?

[toomuchicecream]

I think your first task is to hand your notice in - if you haven't already. You'll have so much peace of mind from knowing that you're committed to leave and that the decision is made.

Then I think you should plan to do what Pud2 is doing and take next term off. It's a great time of year to not be working!! You might find that after a couple of weeks you're climbing the walls, or you might find you enjoy being off so much that you never want to go back! Think of it as un-schooling, like the people who home ed often do.

Don't try and make decisions about the future until Easter. Once you're clear of your current place you'll be able to think more clearly about what you want to do. In your situation I reckon some supply for the summer term, a few days here and there, might be what you need to get your mojo back. Going into some other schools will help you to work out if it's teaching you don't want to do, or just teaching in your current school.

You certainly aren't alone in feeling fed up with things the way they are in teaching at the moment. I wonder if there is anyone on here who would say they love their current job? I certainly love being in the classroom with the children and I enjoy thinking of new ways to engage them and stimulate them to learn without even realising they are. In my current school I am very, very fond of the children and their parents and I recognise there are lots of fantastic things about working there. BUT - I've found myself as the SLT member being pressured into doing weekly learning walks and book scrutinies, being expected to take to task colleagues who aren't following policy to the letter whilst being exemplary in all areas of my own practice. There just aren't enough hours in the day and I (and my family) are fed up with how little time I spend away from my books/laptop. So after Easter I will be starting a new job in a lovely school I worked in previously. It's my last role of the dice - will I discover that teaching/leadership is possible to combine with some sort of family life, or will I discover that the only way to have even a small semblance of life outside school is to work part time?

[Pud2]

Good luck to you. I have taken the plunge and resigned just before half term with no job to go to. I have mixed feelings now ranging from panic about what I've done to sadness as I've been at the school for 16 years. However, I know it's the right decision. I plan to take the summer term off and start agin in September hopefully.

[fridascruffs]

My friend works for an organisation called catch up, www.catch up.org. believe they use freelance people to deliver their one to one programme.

[maskingtherealme]

Nothing much to offer but I have every sympathy for you.

I am feeling very much the same. I do not feel valued by SLT never mind OFSTED or the government and am giving serious consideration to leaving the profession after 15 years.

I am looking into childminding.