Schools facing ‘disaster’ as one in 10 teachers set to quit

No surprises. The working conditions and workload aren’t good enough for the level of recompense. Most teachers I’ve worked with want what’s best for the kids they’re teaching, but that altruism and good intent is massively stretched. The trouble is, schools need more power to deal behaviour, but that won’t be given because the government naturally don’t want kids out of school. They won’t fund the alternative provisions for the kids that need them. It’s just a cycle of decline. As an adult and professional, you get the choice to walk away from it; it’s not an easy one, but if every other aspect of your life suffers for an idealistic view of making the world better, eventually it becomes unsustainable at a personal level.

As others have said, it is the poor pay, heavy workload, many hours of planning and marking and also the less than ideal working conditions. This is what was confirmed to me by a relative who teaches primary school. She used to work in Asia, teaching English at an international school. The pay was the same but the hours were far less, the money went further, it was easier to go on holiday to exotic countries and most of all, the students respected the teachers. In primary and secondary schools across the UK, students don’t respect teachers and it makes work a nightmare.

Hey! Ex teacher here. I earnt 19k a year through teach first in 2020. Really felt valued.

Then I got a payrise! To 25k in 2022, which is now minimum wage.

I worked in the worst schools. Was spat at. Worked 60 hours a week and then had awful management that constantly wanted more

I had to pay for things for class, like plants and pots for biology. I spent money on glue for class to stick things in as there was no more glue sticks and of course I got blamed if the 9 year olds didn’t have neat books.

I then left and went into finance, cause I’m a graduate from a top university. I now earn 80k a year, more than my head teacher and I’m only 25.

Fuck teaching. If you’re a teacher leave. Not tomorrow, not next year. Now.

There are no happy endings in teaching.

I mean, the profession is looked upon like a stain on the shoe… the pay is crap… the kids are not being brought up properly… the government are clueless how to make things better. I’d leave too.

A survey run by a highly partisan union has said one in ten “could” quit.

Sounds like utter bullshit to me.

I left education last summer. I was head of year in a secondary school. Here are the reasons why:

* No progression unless you become a middle/senior leader.

* Kids think verbally abusing staff is fine.

* Kids think bullying staff is fine.

* **SOME** staff think bullying kids is fine. It’s rare, but it happens.

* Parents refuse to take accountability in any capacity.

* Parents resort to verbal abuse and threats when they don’t get their way.

* Parents don’t parent their kids, then when they get excluded, complain about having to take time off work.

* General expectation of working until the work is done, no work/home balance.

* Staff not dealing with behaviour in the classroom, expecting me to pick it up.

* Extra-curricular opportunities like football clubs or music groups dropped or difficult to manage due to split lunchtimes.

* Ridiculously underpaid.

* Local authority refuse to PX students who assault teachers.

* Untouchable and useless senior leaders consistently hired because they know or have worked with head teachers previously.

* Teachers in **EVERY** school who abuse maternity/sick leave for consecutive years and totally fuck up the education of their students.

* Year 10/11 lads been given passes for misogyny. This happens far more than anyone would like to admit.

* Beacons of community representative of soulless corporate shells under academy trust leadership.

I worked in education for 10 years across 4 different schools on permanent contracts and all of these problems existed and got gradually worse until I couldn’t gaslight myself to stay any longer.

Moved to work in finance, zero regrets.

Obviously anecdotal but I knew 3 teachers who have quit because the ability to discipline children has become increasingly more difficult. No I’m not talking about the cane, but detentions etc. are so much more difficult to give that children are facing much less consequence for their actions within schools.

This alongside parents blaming teachers/schools rather than taking accountability of their children’s actions led them to want to leave education to go work in an office rather than stick it out

There was a similar piece about doctors the other day.
Pay is too low for a decent life in this country. People are fed up. If things don’t improve they will vote with their feet.

Labour shortages don’t improve pay and conditions. We have badly needed teachers, even when I was in school, an essential role and we basically neglect it and make it hell for anyone who tries to do it.

To become a teacher nowadays you have to be mad.

Youre working a combo job of:
– social care worker
– surrogate parent
– educational staff
– special needs educator

Parents see you as a comtractor responsible to transform their neglected kids into harward graduates

With all that vat on private schools there should be cash for schools by now? 

It’s not teaching. It’s crowd control of some ferral monsters.