Is teaching that bad?

[typicalityhm]

I’m in my first year at university so have a little bit of time to decide but once I’ve finished my degree (French and History) I would really love to go into teaching, ideally secondary.

I think I want to do this for a few reasons, I really love helping people and when I do something meaningful, seeing that it’s helped someone makes it all worthwhile. I also loved Secondary school, I got on really well with my teachers and had a lot of friends, I loved the environment and it felt like we were all in it together.

My aunty is on MN and she recommended I ask here for advice so I’m actually using her account but with the username changed

Does anyone have any advice as I’ve spoken to my old HoY and she thinks whilst I would be good at it and fit in most schools, she also thinks teaching isn’t looking to get any better with either a Boris or Corbyn government and it’s a burning building I shouldn’t get into.

Whilst the hours can be long I don’t think 7am-10pm six days a week is the norm at all. I’m in school any time between 7:15 and 8 in the mornings and leave between 5:30 and 6 most days. I take some work home at the minute (new to an SLT role) but over the years have not taken much home at all (I’ve been a classroom teacher and a HOD) and certainly not several hours worth of work each evening. I spent 1/2 hour marking in a cafe after school kicking out time yesterday (6pm) and then maybe another 1/2 hour at home. Most evenings I do nothing at home although I do tend to do an hour or two at the weekend most weeks now.

Marking load is very much dependent on subject and on whole school/department policy. I used to teach English and the marking load can be horrendous. Spending 4 minutes to mark a piece of work was about as quick as I could get it - you're having to read a significant amount of writing, highlight SPAG errors as you go (in a specific highlighter colour, you can't just circle in pen) and writing annotations in the margin, then writing a What Went Well comment and an specific, easily actioned Even Better If target that they can then do on their own when you give it back (otherwise you haven't shown impact of marking, if you make it too difficult/nebulous, ie. Improve structure of the argument by planning the order of your points carefully before you write, they can't do it in the five minutes improvement & reflection time and then you're screwed) and possibly recording a numerical mark in your mark book and on the department's spreadsheet/ whatever they use to hold data. Multiply by 32 = roughly 2hrs10 to mark one piece of work for one class. Teaching English I'd usually have 7 or 8 classes, some of which would be GCSE and Alevel which require more in depth marking. It can be relentless.

I am an English teacher and we don't have to do any of that!!

One thing I learn from MN is that every school is very very different...

It's an employee's market in teaching, at the moment. In core and shortage subjects anyway. You just head elsewhere at the first sniff of a ridiculous marking policy.

Yes. I retrained into teaching 10 years ago. It's now 3am and I am sitting here wondering if I made a mistake. I cannot face going into work in the morning, the students (secondary) are lovely but the cuts, the paperwork, the bureaucracy are not.

I love teaching! Teaching is one of the best things in my life. But I'll miss it when I leave in December as after 16 years of being under appreciated and putting up with so much shit from senior management and over entitled children.

It really is a hard job, don't let anyone tell you otherwise!

I feel I've stayed longer than I would have because the mat pay is reasonable, I have school holidays with my kids and as a part timer the pay is good! Better than most pt jobs.

Please get as much experience and visits as you can before making your decision! It definitely can be a rewarding experience but can also be completely soul destroying!

Oh but I teach some wonderful children, definitely gonna lose it when I tell them I'm leaving!!

They'll forget me in a week though

I teach English too (going on 20 years!!) and I’m with Piggy. Very much depends on the school policies! I take very little home and have decreased my marking significantly over the years (bluntly: I barely mark KS3).

I work 7.30-4 ish (mock season aside). It is exhausting, especially this term. Today behaviour was very poor from Year 8, but essentially I’ve come home knowing that this is due to THEM and not ME. Sometimes it’s the other way round 🤣

Two of my dds are studying MFL subjects at university and are interested in teaching afterwards. Is this wise? I feel I should ask them to read this thread before making a decision.

Alternatively, should they contact the MFL teacher at their old schools for their views?

I would love more MFL graduates to choose teaching. Tell them to visit schools.

I have middle schools near me and know some MFL teachers who love teaching languages to years 5 to 8.