Moving from mainstream secondary schools to SEN, anyone?

[SpicyEnchiladas]

Hello

I'm thinking of moving from teaching in mainstream secondary schools to primary SEN. If you have done the move before do you recommend it?

I understand that it's so different and there will be less progress in lessons, but can you please tell me what do you love/hate about being an SEN teacher? Do you regret the move or would you recommend it?

I left secondary teaching because of the amount of stress it brought to my personal life. I was on the brink of divorce and used to cry after every school day! It was a never ending battle and I made the decision to leave which turned out to be the best decision ever. Now I miss teaching but I want to try something else.

Thank you in advance

up

I wasn't a secondary teacher but mainstream primary. I now work in SEN but for the council - my team is connected to a mainstream primary.

I really enjoy it! I don't have the same stresses I used to, or unreasonable demands. I like not having the weight of the progress of 30 pupils hanging round my neck. My biggest class at a time now is 3 and I am enjoying the interventions I do one-to-one. My advice will always be to try a sideways move if you're feeling burnt out in mainstream, if you possibly can.

In our LA they prefer Primary SEN to be qualified primary teachers but not sure if this is the same everywhere. I'm primary trained so can't work in secondary.

Having worked in both mainstream and special schools I would say they are very different. Neither easier or harder. I absolutely loved special and I did enjoy mainstream.
There is a massive variety of special schools - schools which cater for children with autism or moderate learning difficulties - severe and profound disabilities etc
There are units within mainstream schools
I would suggest after lockdown - volunteer and then do supply in a special school and see what you think
Or do a year as a TA and see if you like it

Good luck - it has been a joy

Just to add you have to be very resilient in some ways to work in special schools.
In some schools, you may need to support families through bereavement.
In other schools some children can have very challenging behaviour every day -kicking, biting, spitting etc due to frustration at not being able to communicate, sensory overload or attachment issues
Other schools you have to do a lot of manual handling and support toilet ting, feeding etc

In the settings I have worked in people have either loved it or decided it really is not for them very quickly

I've only ever done two terms in mainstream and the rest of my career has been sen. I'm primary trained (those two terms were two of my placements the other was an SEN one just by chance ). I knew mainstream would never be for me and I adore sen.

It's very very VERY different though, they do like primary trained this said because in SEN you mostly will only teach the national curriculum level (I teach below that this said and many many people do)... But I also have secondary trained colleagues who have also made their career in SEN as well and would never look back.

I couldn't recommend it more highly but I always knew I absolutely hated mainstream and that it would never be anywhere I would like to work. Sen is a totally different skill set and it's a completely different job to mainstream - so I think you need to be aware of what it entails because in all the settings I've worked I've always seen a high number of staff, both teachers and LSAs who swiftly realise it isn't for them and leave.

This said I love it, I love every day i go to work, I love the children I work with, I love what I teach, I love how we work and I wouldn't change it for the world. If you give it a go and you find out it is for you I promise it is an unbelievably tough but unbelievably rewarding type of teaching.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

@Happyhome21

Just to add you have to be very resilient in some ways to work in special schools. In some schools, you may need to support families through bereavement. In other schools some children can have very challenging behaviour every day -kicking, biting, spitting etc due to frustration at not being able to communicate, sensory overload or attachment issues Other schools you have to do a lot of manual handling and support toilet ting, feeding etc

In the settings I have worked in people have either loved it or decided it really is not for them very quickly

I second this - I've never taught a class where there hasn't been a high level of violent behaviour (although I do specialise in SEMH - but it does happen in most classes). You do have to be prepared for that, and you have to be able to be in the mindset that it isn't personal, it is not "at you" ... It's your student's way of expressing themselves, their feelings and emotions. I do go home bruised, bitten, bleeding and sometimes it has been pretty bad. Over the years though with experience you do get more adept at preventing it because you get used to it, but it is something you need to be aware of - though I'm sure you are if you're considering it. There is personal care, and if you work with children with PMLD or medical issues there can be medical procedures to carry out (although this isn't in all sen settings and you would be aware of this beforehand as it would be part of that specific job description).

There's a lot more work with parents as well, you have fewer children in your class and you work much more closely with the families as a whole than you do in mainstream, and there's a lot of work with outside agencies as well - speech and language, physios', OTs, ed.psychs etc - but I love this - it's really collaborative working. (not so much at the moment with covid restrictions this said - I've not had slt input for a year!!!) ...

I really like the collaborative style of working with colleagues as well as I alwsys find no matter how long I do the job there's always new ideas to share and ways to try things, and that sort of thing to me is really great - I always find in SEN (someone may find it different though) that it doesn't matter if you've been doing it for 15+ years like me, or you just walked in, there's always time for new ideas and giving new things a go.

:)