Good advice waliboy

I’m a teacher (Primary), as is the OH (Secondary). I got through my NQT year last year. My training year was horrendous, unlike others (it seems) my training year prepared me very well for my first year of teaching. Last year I had a lot of work, but not as much work as my training year. This year I’m beginning to manage a lot better – I don’t have to get my head around as much, I mark a lot quicker and can recycle some lessons planned from last year (last year everything was new).

Not all my lessons are great, some are, others I stand there knowing the lesson is terrible as I’m delivering it. But they are very rarely the ones that are top of my priorities.

I was about to reply to this until I read Waliboy’s post, particularly:

1. Recognise that your own well-being and your relationships with loved ones, family and friends are far more important than your job so make time for yourself and those that you care for.

Have been teaching for 5 years (secondary science/chemistry) and really enjoy it. Took a while to find the balance but once I realised that I do my job better if I’m happy and rested then life got better.

Waliboy +1
I’d love to add more – but we’ve got OFSTED in tomorrow 😕

15 years here, Science, mostly Physics teaching. Today I cycled 18 miles each way to school (I try to do this once a week) by the long, countryside route. Last night I built a new fatbike wheel (I’ll occasionally ride that to work too, but only if it’s attached to the bike). Will aim to get out for a solo night ride once per week. These allow me to totally switch off from school. My wife also knows how stressful it can be and makes allowances too.

I work in a school where SMT let us do our jobs and support us, and our exam results are pretty damn good year after year. I’ve also worked in one where the Head constantly interfered and created masses of unnecessary work which meant everyone was stressed. Even in good schools some of us are stressed, some less so. I have done other jobs in various industries but this is the only one where I really have to think.

Prioritise. Look for short cuts. Borrow other peoples resources. Look at how the ‘old lags’ do things to make life easier (e.g. me, solo, marking coursework in my van for 3 days in the Lakes in my hols, interspersed with short walks and a 2 day overnight bikepacking trip as reward at the end). Get lots of sleep – I will not work after 9:00pm as it affects my sleep. Eat well. Exercise. Have fun stuff to aim for in the holidays ( I go cycle touring somewhere new each summer – Spain last year from Santiago to Biarritz which took my mind off work both in the planning and the travel). Don’t let other people drag you down with their petty grievances (which is the case in any job), just accept that some people are like Dementors and determined to suck the fun out of everything.

Plan your career in 5 year blocks and have an exit plan (I’ve been asked to go back into outdoor retail and also asked by a shop to build wheels recently, declined politely, but kept those options open). My route out will probably be as a Science Technician as we don’t need vast sums in order to have fun. Don’t be afraid to turn down responsibilities as they can add massive amounts of stress.

Good luck, it does get easier

Thanks for the comments, especially waliboy. Today wasn’t so bad, not back too late and she only has a little bit of work to do tonight.

FunkyDunc – Member
Teachers don’t get the respect, wages or work/life balance.
No different to doctors then, who on the whole are in a worse off position on all of the above

Is that a joke? Doctors are paid a hell of a lot better than teachers, unless I’ve entered one of those parallel universes

14 years as a teacher, 13 in current role as Primary School Science teacher. First 2-3 years are the pits. But now I find the actual prep/delivery quite straight forward. Its the admin that slows me down (341 report cards to write for next week!!). I love the interaction and that I have license to go “off track” if kids/media lead us there. It can feel that management overlooks and adds extra crap but i have the feeling that’s most jobs.

My best decision was to have my “if it can’t fit in the bag its not going home” rule. especially as we now have our 2yr old and the demands that brings.

Look for those shortcuts…
http://www.schoolreportwriter.com if the school doesn’t use a template system.
sserc for cheap but amazing science cpd
http://www.pstt.org.uk – free science cpd (for primary teachers) and ideas
a subscription to twinkl is great for displays/planning/ideas

Make use of onenote etc to create workbooks that can be used year on year. Office lens can scan docs and make editable word documents from them – handy if you’ve only got photocopies left.

4 years into teaching having been an engineer before. It does get easier, but it takes a bit of a mind shift to realise you can’t do everything, my housemate is also a teacher and for the first year we really struggled till we made up a new rule:

Latest allowable leaving time is 6:30 pm
No more than 6 hours work allowed at the weekend
6 “cheat” cards allowed every half term – which allowed you to extend your working shift by 2 hrs.

It sounds a bit lame – but it really worked, there was a punishment for going over to keep it relevant. We learnt a lot about prioritising work and having to leave stuff if needs be. I’m aware it may sound lazy but on reflection I’m a far better teacher for doing less work outside class but having the energy to teach properly day in day out.

Spin – Member
. On track with learning,a data inputting service that makes you input a lesson plan for every child you teach.
This isn’t a national thing in Scotland and I’ve never heard of it. Where are you teaching?

Be very afraid…History and Modern Studies for me.
http://www.thecourier.co.uk/news/local/angus-the-mearns/pupil-progress-still-monitored-in-angus-despite-teachers-reluctance-to-use-web-based-tracking-system-1.692886

The courier HATES teachers,so the comment at the bottom says more. I moved last year to a school that doesn’t do it just now BUT our primary clusters are doing it this year. It is also based on SEEMIS class lists being completely accurate,and I’m sure you will be aware of the chances of that.

Get into teaching, then get out of it into the admin side if you can, or go international to make some money, teach in nicer schools, and live in exotic lands.

While the idea of teaching in rural Scotland is all well and good, teaching in Antigua, where an ex colleague has just moved to, or admin role in Monaco where another is, or Shanghai, Bangkok, Syndey, Atlanta are all certainly more fun, pay generally better, and allow for less stressful holidays and that feeling of dread when returning to work.

Is that a joke?

Nope starting salary is similar, for similar/less hours. Heads will earn more than many Consultants.

Actually scratch all I have said, have just been shafted on my performance management despite passing it all.

All which means no pay rise for me and now am looking to leave teaching/school.

Bunch of ******!

Be very afraid…History and Modern Studies for me.

Sounds like it was just an Angus thing? What kind of data were you required to enter? TBH it sounds like the classic local authority thing of some people sitting in a room and coming up with an idea that looked great on paper and was sh!te in practice.

My top tip is to ensure any marking you do asks questions of the kids and gives them work to do which they then do for h/w. Two birds one stone.
Also use mail merge to give feedback which sets tasks which they do as h/w

Is that a joke? Doctors are paid a hell of a lot better than teachers, unless I’ve entered one of those parallel universes

They’re both underpaid, stressful and highly important jobs. Divided we fall…

All which means no pay rise for me and now am looking to leave teaching/school.

If you’re a good teacher just leave the school, not the profession. Please.

Chris do you want a chemistry or psychology job?

Teachers, Doctors, Nurses, all state employed, prior to that went to uni, prior to that school. All of them to a man whine incessantly about how difficult and over worked they are. Bollocks frankly. Yes they work hard. Harder than the private sector in general? Nope. They tend to get poorer salaries but get vastly better benefits. I wish they’d stop whining and just get on with it or they can go down the mines and really have something to complain about.

Also who said teachers have no work life balance? Are you kidding? They get 14 **** weeks off to have a life, get a grip.

It’s not like they have to worry about getting the sack either.

not even sure where to begin deev – do you know anything about teacher’s contracts of employment (particularly at Academies and Free Schools), job security and what they do with their ’14 **** weeks off’?

Dont feed the troll. Simple fact is if teaching was easy and a cushy number people wouldnt be leaving in such massive numbers.

……but they get six weeks off in the summer! 😉

Seriously though, from my mate, it seems to be far too much work pacifying the likes of OFSTED and the fads of whoever the current government. It sounds like its changed a hell of a lot since i were a lad….not for the better though, but isn’t every sector of business overly and unnecessarily complicated today anyway?

One issue is everybody has spent 11 years with teachers and hence everyone believes they have a first hand valid opinion. Teaching recruitment is the worst I have seen in over 20 years. Male teachers are getting as rare as 26″.

Deev I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt and award you 1/10 for your very poor attempt at trolling. It wasn’t funny or clever, just clichéd and predictable. If you weren’t trolling then you’re just very stupid, crawl back under your rock please.

My mates a teacher, head of department, he hates the incessant whining that goes on, sees no reason why in service days are done during term time and not during the months of holidays.

There’s folk whining that they get up at 7 and get home at 6 and still have work to do. Sounds like theyre crap at managing their time to me. I start at 6 (up at 5) finish around 6 most days in retail (store manager, £10 million turnover) my wife starts at 7.30, finishes about 5.30 in banking and neither of us regularly gets a break.

So yeah teachers work hard, they also get massive amounts of holidays and ace pensions and if you think they have it harder than the private sector you’re having a laugh.

Plus there were only 17 teachers sacked for incompetence in the last decade. Stress? Get a grip.

You know when inset days were originally introduced they reduced the length of the school holidays during a year by one week so no teaching time was lost?

So by all means have them in the holidays but give the week back first, eh 😉

Need to be at work 12 hours a day to be store manager? Sounds like you’re crap at managing your time to me.

My contract is for 10.5 hours a day, it can and often does run over a bit. Do you see me and others like me whining all over the internet and going on strike about it? No. So I have no sympathy for pampered public servants doing so.

(store manager, £10 million turnover)

Oohh hark at you clever clogs, what do you want, a Blue Peter badge?

Actually no. I apologise, I know peoples lives are probably at risk in your store & their future is in your hands, so you have a valid comment.

The Troll is trolling……

10.5 hours a day? You need decent union representation mate 🙂

Teachers don’t get the respect, wages or work/life balance.

No different to doctors then, who on the whole are in a worse off position on all of the above

Teacher here – went “part time” a few years ago to help look after children, so do about 35 hours a week leave at 7:00 and get back 6:30 3 days a week + 3 evenings working. Work load and expectations def. getting worse

Wife is a doctor “part time”. Starts surgery about 8:20 and often not back until 9:00+ at night…

Just saying 😐

Haven’t read the whole thread, got bored of the bleating. For perspective, lots of other professions have it as bad, or worse than teachers, you just don’t hear about them moan about it as much.

you just don’t hear about them moan about it as much.

Perspective, innit bro?

Oohh hark at you clever clogs, what do you want, a Blue Peter badge?

Actually no. I apologise, I know peoples lives are probably at risk in your store & their future is in your hands, so you have a valid comment.

The Troll is trolling……
Just giving context, we hear a lot about how teachers have to manage budgets as if its some kind of horrendous unexpected burden.

I train and develop my staff too, many of whom come to us unable to read or add up properly despite the “hard working” teachers best efforts…

I do have a valid comment, it’s my private sector taxes paying teachers wages so I can comment all I want.

deev – Member
I do have a valid comment, it’s my private sector taxes paying teachers wages so I can comment all I want.

Other than as a customer I have no experience of the retail industry and wouldn’t feel qualified to comment on your experience of, or the validity of your attitude towards, your job.

Even though it’s (conceptually at least) my taxpayer donated salary keeping you in work.

Just saying.

Haven’t read the whole thread, got bored of the bleating.

So you just gave free reign to your prejudices instead. If you’d read the thread you might have noticed that the OP and most of those saying teaching is tough are non teaching friends, relatives or partners of teachers. Most of the teachers are saying things like ‘it gets easier’ or ‘here’s some tips for managing your time’.

But why let that get in the way of an entrenched viewpoint?

Thing is deev, you talk about the private sector as if you and your wife’s jobs are typical of all private sector workers. They’re not!

Yes I am a teacher. Yes I get 13 weeks a year holiday. But I also worked in the private sector for 15 years in sales (1 sales person – me – annual turnover of a business employing 70 people = £5m). I left 2 years ago as I got bored of sales. I currently work around 700 hours a year more than in my previous job and feel I have more responsibility for those 28 children than I ever did for those in the company I worked for.

I’m not moaning it’s just the way it is, I work harder, get paid less but enjoy it a lot more.

What I think is the problem for most teachers is that we all want to do our best for the children, but it’s very difficult to do this when there is very little time to recharge the batteries!

For what it’s worth, my other half is mostly only complaining to me and its not so much whining, more gentle sobbing. For perspective she is in her 40’s and has plenty of experience of working in other sectors and this is by far the toughest in her experience. In my own work I find spending 6 hours teaching kids to ride bikes pretty tiring but at least I don’t have to do another couple of hours work when I get home.

Other than as a customer I have no experience of the retail industry and wouldn’t feel qualified to comment on your experience of, or the validity of your attitude towards, your job.

Even though it’s (conceptually at least) my taxpayer donated salary keeping you in work.

Just saying.
True, but you dont have to spend money with me, you can go elsewhere and I end up out of a job if I dont offer you a good enough service etc. You’re donating nothing to me, we make it your best option.

Lets face it, the public sector do far far more complaining than the private sector and like to make out that they’re all put upon martyrs being worked to the bone for a pittance.

As for working harder, my mate gets a morning break, a lunch hour, and has free periods every so often too. As for marking, you only need to know as much as a 6th year kid at the most so its not exactly difficult.

I don’t reckon you could cut it as a teacher deev.