Had enough of teaching

[mynumerouno]

I've not stopped all day. I'm exhausted. The kids behaviour has been appalling. And to top it off at the end of the day I got a horrible email from a parent who won't accept their kid is the problem. And I've got to do it all over again tomorrow. I've come home crying. I've had enough. I've stuck it out for over ten years (more than most). But I'm done.

Me too. 💐

So sorry you are both having such a rubbish time :( What do you think you'd like to do next?

@calorcalorcalor I'm hoping to do tutoring/exam marking for a while. I love education and teaching my subject. Or maybe I'll just do a minimum wage 9-5 job until I figure out what I want to do next.

Holding out until I can afford to retire. I've been at this for over 30 years and each year conditions get worse.

Yes it’s hard. I’ve returned to it part time and it is an impossible job. I need to think of an alternative myself.

I feel the same.
28 years in the job and I'm just fed up of the slog.

I'm 55 and retiring soon I hope. Then going to do a p/t admin job to top up my pension for a bit.

Currently selling the house and downsizing so I'm mortgage free.

You have done an amazing 10 years! You can only be proud. It's an impossible job

Hugs, OP. Definitely think you've done really well doing it for as long as you have. I left 3 years ago when I had my son and I really need to be earning a full- time wage but I keep hearing about how it is worse than even when I left. I have tutored for a year and love it. There are a lot of options in terms of online and face to face. If you need any advice getting started let me know🙂

Just thought I'd give an update. I did in fact end up going off with stress for a while because the workload was just unmanageable. Every PPA period taken up with extra meetings or extra cover or pointless admin, I basically had no time for my actual work and got burnt out. It's our last day tomorrow and already have about 10 things on my to do list for the summer :(

Anyway, I've made an exit plan so I can hopefully leave next year.

1. I'm reducing my hours from September.
2. I've started tutoring and I'm going to set up the business properly soon
3. I've started a volunteering job

Your exit plan sounds great. Have you seen these two tutors groups on Facebook - Twinkl private tutors and Grow your tutoring business into a full time job. They're both so supportive and helpful. Good luck.

Good luck!

I've dropped to 4 days, sold my house so I now have no mortgage.

I've stepped back and now from September will not be responsible for a class. I'm going to be covering PPA and some management time.

No parents evening, no report writing, IEP's, less involvement with parents.

I'm hoping that gives me the momentum to keep going for a couple of more years.

Wish you all the best!

I've just got home from school and decided that I'm done too. I'm going to make next year my last. I've been teaching for 8 years, and that's enough. The behaviour and lack of respect has just got to me. I'm not sure what I'm going to do yet.
I'll have a good think about it. Good luck to you all.

I actually love teaching. Behaviour generally really excellent. I know I am lucky.

Sometimes it's about moving schools. Schools vary. Some schools are better than others and supplying may help to identify these schools.
Teaching can be a wonderful job (not the paper work side). However, no one should be going home and crying. Good luck in the future.

I'm so pleased you've made a plan @mynumerouno and are taking positive steps towards leaving for good. I left two years ago, after a 23-year career and got a job at DfE before moving to a local council for a Learning and Development role. I now help other teachers to leave teaching and part of this involves looking at the wide variety of roles that are available to teachers, given the vast array of skills they have and use every day.

A few of you have expressed a wish to leave at some point. Please don't doubt yourselves and what you are capable of. Teachers really can do anything. Sadly, we often believe we 'only know how to teach' when the reality is, we have the skills and experience necessary for most jobs! (Unfortunately, many employers also think teachers can 'only teach', so we have to make sure our transferable skills and abilities are crystal clear in job applications).

If any of you are interested, I have produced a free guide on how to start your journey out of teaching. I hope this is ok to share here. It can be accessed via this link: https://freefromteaching.com/5-top-tips

I hope you find it useful. I have been told several times that 'teachers make the best employees' due to work ethic, independence and problem-solving. The grass really is greener on the other side😊

@OtherwiseKate thanks for sharing. A lot of what you wrote about in your blog really resonates with me. I could have written some of that word for word. It crazy how many teachers have a similar experience with anxiety and imposter syndrome and eventually having burn out.