r/TeachingUK

I’m a secondary RE teacher in a good school, good leadership and behaviour issues are next to none. If I had to critique anything I’d say because of working in an “outstanding” school, there’s a constant strive for perfection. Learning walks always pick out something, another SLT member justifying their position with a new initiative, but generally I keep my head down and just get on with it.

But I am so tired. I am exhausted. After 2 years, I don’t know how much longer I’ll do this for. Which is heartbreaking because I love to teach. I read posts like this when I was training and thought “that won’t be me” but the rose tinted glasses are wearing off.

More specifically, I’m tired of being tired all the time - coming home and having no capacity to make decisions, little patience for my partner or family, no energy to make plans (I also feel like I’ve developed memory loss? Since starting this job?)

I guess my question is, does it get better or is this just it? Is there anything I could be doing to better my experience? I don’t work at home or stay late working so I’m struggling to pin point what this is :(

I'd like to have an honest discussion about supply teacher pay. I'm going to try and negotiate a higher rate with my agency but need to know what others are earning and I can't bring myself to ask others day rates in real life.

I'm currently on £150 a day in the North West. I usually manage to bump this up to £160. I do day to day work.

Let me know your daily rates please.

Edexcel maths this year and I have enjoyed doing it previously, but I dread to work out my hourly rate because it's so time consuming.

Afternoon, looking for some advice.

I'm a secondary teacher in a mainstream school without any additional ASN qualifications.

I teach a deaf pupil who uses hearing aids. I do have strategies from teaching a deaf pupil previously, but no specific ASN qualifications. I do feel confident and able to teach her effectively most of the time. However, right now my classroom is situated next to a major redevelopment next to the school. This can involve a lot of drilling and hammering.

I recently discovered after a short conversation with the pupil that she cannot hear me *at all* during instructional time when the construction is ongoing (she is not adept at lip reading) because of the fact that her hearing aids obviously cannot focus on one direction of sound at a time. This is also the case when I am sitting right next to her giving bespoke feedback.

In the current weather, I am sometimes unable to close all windows, meaning that we can either have a little less noise (which is still very loud) and be turning worksheets into fans for the heat, or vice versa: more noise but a slightly less uncomfortable temperature.

Printed instructions are an option I employ for her in these circumstances, but this can be difficult if she has a specific question and I need to provide bespoke feedback, or if the lesson goes in a different direction. Especially since she can't hear when I'm right next to her, and during class discussion tasks especially, we can essentially communicate only through typing/ writing to one another when the construction is loud.

Does anyone have similar experiences/ strategies or advice for this situation?

I have a very emotionally volatile GCSE art class with a high proportion of SEND and disadvantaged students. A high proportion of my class currently have predicted grades that are lower than their target grades because of gaps/quality in coursework needing development. However, their mock pieces were generally really high quality with most getting their target grades or above - it's clear they are capable of hitting their targets if they put in the work.

I have been holding interventions twice a week after school, calling home, doing personalised to do lists etc to catch students up. I'm in the process of setting up meetings with some parents as well. There has been a lot of complacency from the students...

In the next lesson (they get feedback for mock and predicted/target grades)I know I am going to have a few students who are going to be very upset to see their predicted grades aren't where they want to be. In the past I've had students walk out in tears about their working grades. As an anxious person myself I really struggle with knowing how to manage this. My instinct is to go into rescue mode but I know I need the students to be taking more initiative.

Does anyone have any advice on this? I find myself worrying so much about the emotions of the class even when I'm not teaching them!

*Edit - forgot to say I am ECT 1, so this is my first GCSE class which probably adds to the worry!

I submitted my NPQ assignment in April… does anyone know when I should expect my result please? I have emailed but they’ve not responded to me! Thanks 🙏

Throwaway account for obvious reasons…
I recently joined a new school, was there 2 weeks, accidentally harmed a child through means which definitely could have been avoided but I didn’t assess the risk properly and the poor kid was hurt because of a direct result of my actions… I rlly did f up. Investigations, police interviews and disciplinary hearing have all led to being dismissed from a teaching role. My written outcome letter, says it will be on my file till I retire and it will be referred to DBS and the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) (as I hold QTS but was doing TA role… didn’t even get to start my ECT yet 🥺)
At the moment I feel like I’m in limbo and unsure what my actual future options are.
What I’m trying to understand is what tf do I expect next and any insight or advice.
I am not apart of a union, I don’t have any help, I don’t even think I’ve properly processed this.

I effed up massively and need insight

Edit:
I see context is important so here goes, I’m going to say it for fact rather than gloss over anything

I was walking past a reception student whose chair was sticking out and the children behind him were lining up for lunch, I bumped into his chair, I said to him oh let’s tuck our chair in, he tried, couldn’t, the teacher who was sat with him (as he was in reflection for whatever reason) said that’s the second person to tell u that. Now he’s already “in trouble”, teachers are now telling him to do something he physically can’t, I thought let me help… I thought it I tried to push the chair in it’ll lift and he will fall toward the table, so in a split misjudged wrong decision, I held the chair by the back (for support and firmness) and used my feet to nudge the chair by making contact with my foot and the foot of the chair, to nudge it forward bit by bit so when he’s close ish he won’t be sticking out. Well the chair he was sat on was your standard school chair and the table was a low, wooden one. This caused the legs of the child to become struck/stuck/caught by the bottom edge of the table, leading to bruising (red marks at the time).

The allegation is “… you repeatedly kicked the back of a chair in which a pupil was seated and caused the child to be pushed into the table and to sustain harm”

My context: I’m 27, I started working in education as a nursery apprentice at 17, did breakfast and afterschool stuff too, went to uni at 20, graduated 25 (4 year course + one year of leave), then worked in nursery, supply and as a PT TA along supply, this school I was a HLTA and I was only there 2 weeks… the incident happened on the second Friday of me being there…

Afterwards:
School- did an investigation, didn’t respond to my query about asking if he’s ok- so I didn’t push more- saying I lack insight, responsibility or care for the child, rather I discussed what had happened (I was honest from the get go, i understand all things considered and I think I’ll forever feel awful about that poor baby)
Police- thought the school was hiding the fact that they didn’t give me positive handling training (as they never disclosed it) and instead of arrest I had to write a letter of apology to the mum as a form of restorative justice
Disciplinary decision- the letter just says “The Trust has a duty to report instances where a teacher ceases to be employed for reasons of misconduct or incompetence to the Teachers Regulation Agency and/or DBS.”

To be transparent I was open, honest, reflective, professional throughout the process and if I could go back in time I really would, I had to fight so many odds just to get into university and then so many just to get the actual degree let alone build a reputation I ruined in a matter of less than 5 minutes. I know where I went wrong, i understand the concern, I don’t know what to do now.

How common is it for colleagues to do external examining in PPA/gained time?

I've just finished GCSE examining for the first time. I did it all in my own time, not during school hours. When I mentioned this to a colleague (and fellow examiner) they looked at me as though I am a mug. Apparently, "everybody" examines in their frees.

Was I being overly "by the book"?

I’m a Maths teacher so heavy on whiteboard use. I’ve done pretty well this year and most of my equipment is in tact but there are still pupils who do things like break pens, leave lids off whitepens and on the floor, snap the corners from whiteboards, rip whiteboard rubbers into pieces etc. I had folders on desks with equipment in that have been doodled all over and so on.

It’s partially been my own silly fault for leaving the equipment out on desks when other staff/cover and classes are using my room so I will be making sure to pack those away every time next academic year. However, it’s definitely been happening during my classes too as it only takes one kid who doesn’t have any respect for you or your things to destroy a whole pack worth of equipment.

How do you guys manage equipment like this especially with challenging classes? I want to take more pride in my classroom next year and hold students responsible for doing the same.

I've recently started working in a school which honestly is a total mess in terms of behaviour. I joined just after Easter, and this term has felt like an uphill battle just getting kids to sit down, stop talking, and get on with some work.

A major issue seems to be a lack of consistency, and SLT honestly just don't do anything. Whenever I do an SLT on call request (e.g. for kids literally rioting and throwing practical equipment around in a science lab) it takes 20+ minutes for anyone to turn up, if at all. When I issue lunchtime detentions, kids shrug and say they're looking forward to the free pizza. SLT never call home, have proper conversations with students about their behaviour, or give real consequences. It's ridiculous.

I'm looking for tips on how to start things strong in September, bearing in mind that there isn't much support from SLT. I'm thinking more in terms of what routines to establish, what I can do in-class to manage behaviour, how to be firm and issue meaningful consequences but without feeling like I'm having to be that horrible teacher always shouting all the time, etc.

EDIT: While I do really appreciate the sympathy and you all backing me up that SLT do need to be more present, what I'd really love are practical tips and strategies of what I *can* do by myself in terms of establishing routines and expectations in September. Things like a clear list of what to teach as an entry routine to the classroom, or what in-class strategies or sanctions I can use to tackle low-level behaviour before it escalates in the first place. Thank you so much in advance for your insights <3

I know there's bigger issues out there... but we had particularly rubbish ones bought for us this year and im at the stage where I dont really buy supplies but I am.willing to splash on something that makes my day to day life easier/more pleasant.

So what are we liking? And any board cleaners that actually work?

If you don't know, Jen Foster has quite a sizeable following and is a teacher Instagram influencer/"behavioural specialist"? I bought a book she wrote back in 2023 when I was a fairly new teacher but the more I've stayed in the profession, the more I've realised a lot of what she's saying is the usual drivel that puts the onus on teachers to be psychotherapists and figure out what awful, disruptive behaviour is 'communicating' rather than firm, logical consequences. I'm not entirely against regulation, re-connection, rehabilitation etc. as behaviour philosophies and management techniques but her specific approach takes on that tiresome extreme whereby you assume children are not sentient beings with free will who sometimes behave like that just because. It's never the child's fault that they threw a chair or trashed a class, it's the adult's for not picking up on warning signs quick enough. It's not the child's fault that they're shouting out, chatting constantly, lying, picking fights with other children, bullying. No, it's actually communicating that the adult has created a culture that allows the classroom to harbour that. No accountability for children, no concept of free will, parental influences, the cultural attitude of anti-intellecutalism in the U.K.

I also wonder if this Jen Foster lady has ever really worked with truly difficult children. Has she worked in areas of high deprivation where it isn't just one disruptive child in a class but 3 or 4 on average? Has she ever had to deliver a curriculum with no TA while a child continuously screams in the background? It's usually these people whose idea of "difficult children" is the odd outburst here and there from typically leafy-green, middle-class demographics who seem to think they have it all figured out and insist that there's something inherently wrong with teaching practices instead of there being a wider societal issue of entitled parents and screen-obsessed children.

I am looking for some examples of successful behaviour policies or strategies that have worked well in other schools.

We are having numerous issues at the minute including;
- kids who just don’t care about consequences
- kids who have ‘fiery’ parents, so SLT pander to them and they don’t get any consequences for unacceptable behaviour
- kids who have experienced trauma who are being violent towards staff and pupils who are being given no consequences due to their trauma
- kids being told they have ‘one more chance’ but then being given another and another etc..
- kids who are usually well behaved cottoning on to the fact other kids are getting away with misbehaving so then begin copying the behaviour as they know they will get away with it too
- staff feeling unsafe, unsupported and getting injured regularly

I am the NEU rep for my school and I will be taking the issues up with our head, however it would be great if I could share some examples of things that do work elsewhere.
I am in primary school, but secondary school strategies would also be good to hear!

Whose responsibility is it to provide lesson plans to non specialists teaching in a subject? Is it the teacher sharing the classes with them or HOD/2iC? For context the department does not have shared resources and individual teacher’s resources aren’t always in a powerpoint/would be suitable for non specialists. It would be so helpful to know whose responsibility it is to provide the resources for non specialists teachers sharing classes. Thanks.

have any of you worked in a school you were a student at, specifically secondary? this would be around 6 years after leaving with many of the same teachers still there, if so how did you find it?

Tumbleweeds at mine. I’m under no illusions, there’s no way they will give us a late start, but SLT are currently pretending that the World Cup doesn’t exist 😂

Hi all!

I'm a teaching assistant working in a school through an agency, and the school wants me back for the next academic year.

I'd like to ask the agency for a pay increase, but I'm worried they'll tell the school. If they do, could it affect my placement? I really don't want to lose my spot at the school just for asking.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? Does the agency usually discuss pay requests with the school, or do they handle it internally?

How are you doing? How's your week been? Need to randomly vent about your SLT/workload/cat/people who put jam under the cream? Share a success? Tell us what you're having for tea? Here's the place to do it.

(This is a weekly scheduled post)

I’m a bloke and I’m clueless about gift buying. As I reach the end of my first year as a curriculum leader, I want to buy something for each person in my team. Men and women.

Any ideas? Please and thanks.

More of a rant than anything else, independent school so no union to be spoken of.

I work in a school that is all the way through from reception to Y11, but I work solely in the secondary. As our Y11s finished a few weeks ago, I was looking forward to my gained time to get caught up with everything, only to find I haven’t had one Y11 lesson free because I’ve been covering in primary! It’s been a nightmare with behaviour too because I barely know the kids so they don’t listen to me.

Has anyone else dealt with similar? No idea if this is just what happens and you always get pulled or if it’s specifically my school. Thanks!