PGCE - Want to leave teaching...advice please

Hi All, just to update.

I have received responses from all 3 parties (bizarrely I've had 2 responses from the DfE offices!!?).

My MP replied less than 24 hours from my email which was impressive. He's a conservative so as expected he towed the party line but he CC'd me in on a message he sent to Nicky Morgan forwarding my message basically saying he is supportive of my cause and could she look into it and reply to me and him directly.

The shadow education secretary sent me a mail personally which really impressed me. She is concerned that my message is not the only one she has received, in actuality she gets one every day virtually, and it's upsetting as she is from a teaching family and has children. She CC'd me in on a message to Mr Corbyn!! I was most star-struck lol. Now I know he may not be everyone's cup of tea but he is the leader of the opposition and Labour are traditionally a lot more 'for' educational reforms. So this has cheered me.

Lastly I got a response from DfE - basically spouting a placatory spell about how rigourous testing was at the forefront of keeping standards high. I was very careful in my letter not to blame the whole thing on testing/exams etc etc and while I am very much against MORE testing, I didn't want this to be the crux of my issue because it is not. I also did not blame my worries about my children's education on too many tests either but they saw the need to allay my fears. They did not read it properly/could not answer my fears properly so rolled out the party line. However, it was very nicely written and it did contain a couple of bits of info that I have passed on to my husband that will help him to be involved in the latest consultation so that may help a little.

Strangely, on Monday is received a second response from the DfE (not CC'd in to anyone and has a completely different reference number). This was not so nicely written and used 10 year old statistics to try to prove to dull-minded me that there is no crisis in teaching. I was told that while my concerns are valid they are unfounded and that while they are aware that some teachers may be unhappy in their jobs 'there's only so much the government can do' and that it's down to individual heads to deal with the mental health of their staff. I agree to a certain extent but the whole message took the tone of me being a bit silly to think this and the woman who wrote it was setting out to assure me that I'm wrong, not in a placatory way, but in a dismissive and condescending way.

I am unsure what my next move will be now?! I have shown the emails to my husband and he has passed the responses on to him team leader. He was disgusted by a lot of the last response and to be honest it's riled me.

Firstly, well done for getting any response at all. You've done a terrific job there. I'm afraid it goes without saying that the incumbent government (of whatever shade - they are all the same once in office) is not going to admit that the whole edifice of their construction is rotten to the core and that you are right, because that would be to admit blame. You have done the very best you can on the public side, and you now have to consider your personal life, and that is something only you and your husband can decide on. I can only say that misery is not going to help you, your family or the children your husband teaches. If he takes some time out and gets a different job for a while, he can go back into teaching again later if he thinks things have changed enough to make it tolerable. I appreciate it is very easy to say this from my standpoint, but your family comes first. I wish you all the very best with whatever decision you make between you.

Thanks for the response. Since this all started my husband has been told that he won't have a job there in September as they don't have the money/space for him (too many teachers with his specialism) - he was only on a 1 year contract so we hadn't really thought about the future as we knew it was uncertain. He is happy to stay on until July though so at least that's something - since having this 'lightning bolt moment' so to speak he's found that virtually all of the staff that started/trained with him are feeling the same way and 1 has even been given anti-depressants! As for after that, we're unsure. It would appear that he needed to vent a little steam and now he has, he feels a lot better but is still very disappointed that the system is so scandalously run and in himself for not seeing it, but at least he no longer wants to leave today which makes me happier in some ways. He is 'ok' which is a lot better and from July he'll be able to look for work in a different sector whilst taking his QTS and his reference with him.

As for the situation, I'm still determined to make a difference in some way. I have encouraged my husband to get the school involved in the consultation being done by the government this spring. I feel that in order for your problems to be solved you should air them, so a government consultation may be able to shed some light on the state of affairs, at least in part.

Thanks again.

Hi all,

Pull up a chair, this is going to be a good one.

I am now halfway through (as near as damn it) my PGCE, and in all honesty I should have left at christmas. I was full of enthusiasm going into september, being able to talk about my subject (Maths) on a daily basis, interacting with the kids, teaching things how I wanted to teach things and really enjoying helping the kids to learn.

We are now in February, and after spending all of January on the uni parts of the course, bored out of my mind, I am now going into placement 2 with no desire to teach at all. All this course has done is put me off teaching. All the hassle involved with the job makes me want to leave. Pressure, Ofsted, Government moving the goalposts all the time, Behaviour, Workload of marking, planning etc. It just is not my cup of tea. It is not what I want it to be, and not what I thought it would be.

It is just a nightmare. I have little freedom in my teaching. You must have a starter, you must have a plenary (I hate the things), you must use millions of different stupid activities (chalk and talk or using textbooks are a no-no according to these ofsted driven robots). You must do everything possible to engage these youngsters in something they have no desire to do at all. Any talk of SEN demoralizes me. I wanted to teach Maths! I am not Merlin the Magician!

I have no desire at all to be an NQT, and as such have not applied for any jobs. Others on my course seem to be embracing the challenge, but I just don't want the hassle anymore. Ever been to an NQT meeting? There's an experience. The session leader with comments like "that would not be outstanding." and "that would be inadequate". Education is ruled by this desire for 'ofsted outstanding'. The privatisation (academisation) of schools is a worry, as are a number of other things such as changes to pay.

I am really disillusioned with teaching as a whole. Has anyone got any useful advice to give me? I am still young and just want to leave the course and do something completely different. I don't see the point of staying on for another 5 months, I don't want to teach anymore.

If only one is on antidepressants, that's a very healthy school you have there. Staff room camaraderie is utterly vital.

I commend your determination. I no longer have the fight in me, but I applaud those who do. I wish you well in your campaign for the sake of your children and my successors in the classroom, if there are any.

That's just in the 6 NQT's the school took on, not the whole staff population. Not so healthy after all really.

Thanks :-)

Hi John,This was a long time ago and I’m just wondering what you ended up deciding to do?I felt the same way as you and quit the course; it put me off teaching and even put me off working with children altogether.

I'm currently undergoing my PGDE in Scotland just now. I am on placement 3 of 4.

The last few days have seen me (a big burly bearded bloke) crying in the shower. I am not a naturally organised person. Every job that I've ever done has been on a "deal with it as it comes" basis. Teaching, as MANY of you will fully know, falls far from this way of working.

I have a really good rapport with the kids I teach and manage to keep my lessons nice and conversational while keeping the lesson on track but no matter how well I think a lesson may have went, I'm almost certainly going to be told that I should have differentiated more, encouraged more active learning or a multitude of different elements that I didnt incorporate into the lesson. I understand that these parameters were set up in order to ensure that all teachers are teaching to the same high standard, which I applaud, but it is suffocating me.

I came home the other day and sat across from my parents and legitimately couldn't hide how exhausted, stressed, sad and frustrated I was. I couldn't even fake a smile to make my parents happy.

However, this was a blessing in disguise. Being the thoughtful and empathetic individuals that they are, my parents sat and discussed my options with me. I wanted out really badly, and still often do, but they pointed out that I had already put so much effort into this course that leaving now would almost certainly be a regrettable choice. I want something to show for this. I intend to try my hardest to make it to the end of this course.

I don't know if I will ever find myself in the teaching profession for any period of time, but I sure as hell want to try my best to stay in this course and see it out to the end.

Now, if you'll all excuse me, I have lessons to plan regarding Herd Immunity, Cells and Microbes and Energy as well as a mountain of marking. I want my bed but this laptop screen is my life just now.