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[Tiggy]

I saw a teacher friend at the weekend she looked terrible, hadn't been to bed or eaten for 2 days. She gets stressed very easily & hates this time of year with reports but now has ofstead as well. She teaches 6 year olds & loves her job but is truggling to cope. Ive never seen her this bad before, is taking the whole thing very personally.

 

she says that if she were left to get on with teaching she would be fine

 

I cant help getting a little irritated with her occassionally & then I feel guilty, but we all work under pressure (anyone that works in health care or deals with the public knows all about that). She agrees she is better paid than many people & has lots of holiday, loves her job, has no problems with the kids & parents. I know it must be horrible being srcutinised at work but we all have it from time to time, but is ofstead really that bad? Or is my friend ill, Im begining to wonder?

Edited August 2, 2010 by Guest

[kinsk]

I'm not sure about her being ill but (and this might sound quite harsh) it doesn't really sound like she's cut out for the job. I know from teaching friends the whole ofstead things can be a pain but to not sleep or eat for 2 days because of it sounds very extreme

 

Put it this way how many parents would want someone like that being responisble, looking after and educating their children, I would not want someone that strung out that hadn't eaten or slept for 2 days anywhere near a group of kids.

 

Teaching isn't easy, I know it really isn't, but neither are a lot of jobs and everyone has to be judged on performance at some point, people who have to take work home like they do, have to work extended hours but don't get long summer breaks, two weeks at christmas, easter etc.

[Tiggy]

Teaching isn't easy, I know it really isn't, but neither are a lot of jobs and everyone has to be judged on performance at some point, people who have to take work home like they do, have to work extended hours but don't get long summer breaks, two weeks at christmas, easter etc.

 

I know thats why I feel guilty when she says how stressed she is, Ive worked in the nhs for 30 years, I know how it feels to be under pressure & have everyone judging you, its part of the course, I've worked full time all of those years & done university courses whilst working. I have nursing friends who come home from wards absolutley physically exhausted. She is a lovely lady & Ive seen her with kids she's great, but I can honestly say I've not known her this bad before, she is always a bit like this ( so is her daughter who is also an infant school teacher)

[Chucky Mama]

I have a friend who is a supply teacher and has had to go in to supply over Ofted inspections more times than I've had hot dinners as staff go off sick with stress

[Jennifer Jane]

I just had to comment about this, having done some supply work. I have also worked in the private sector at a very pressured job where my work and procedures were subject to quality inspections annually and I had to deal with dissatisfied customers more often than I would have liked! I now work in the NHS where I am involved in important inspections for accreditation and if we fail we would be no longer able to offer our service.

 

Despite this, everything else I've done is a walk in the park compared to teaching. I spoke to a counsellor who says he sees more teachers suffering with stress than any other profession. I do get quite annoyed when people talk about short hours/long holidays. I got in early for playground duty and stayed late for preparation. On my days off, I did marking, both homework and exams, and reports, and the holidays were foreshortened by more preparation. My lunch break was constantly interrupted and in one week I lost half a stone, mainly through missed meals, which was when I decided to call it a day. I know it does get easier with experience, but it is never an easy job.

 

Despite this, it does sound as though your friend enjoys the main part of her job, which is the teaching. I believe that we are lucky if we enjoy most of what we do - there are nearly always parts of our job description that we're not so keen on. I know I get stressed at inspections, but they are soon over and rarely as bad as we fear. If you can be supportive of her during the Ofsted inspection, then see how she is when she emerges from the other end - hopefully back to her normal self.

[Snoxy]

My ex MIL was a teacher of infant school children for 34 years and is now retired but does supply teaching...I can honestly say I never saw her stressed, moan about her job and she taught in a school in a deprived area with often challenging childen and parents! She used to leave the house before 8am and come home after 6pm virtually every day...to a big family waiting to be fed. Her husband wasn't supportive of her chosen vocation either I thought it was 'funny' that she only took on a cleaner to do cleaning and ironing when her children left home!

 

I was always amazed that come every September she would still face the new school year with such enthusiasm

 

I have such respect for her...amazing lady

 

Hope your friend is ok

[Tiggy]

we will support her as much as we can, she is such a delicate gentle person who loves being with the children but is always stressed out by the job shes been doing for the last 30 years. Has it really changed so much? stupid question maybe?

[Snoxy]

I was going to add...support from friends like you will be just what she needs

[SarahJo]

Offsted is "stressy" - but teaching 6yr olds in a school and the whole school ethos should not be to an individual teacher IMO. If the parents and children are not an issue - is she being targeted for her performance from within - that would add pressure as offsted will ask the children for feedback ( in simple chats )- but the whole school performance should be of paramount - not what a single yr2 , teacher produces alone.

 

The job has changed and the new government "issues" may be playing on the school as a whole in terms of jobs. There are sooooo many restrictions and new implementations since we were at school - some good some bad, but children are certainly not as carefree as they used to be .....

 

Is everything else in her life ok - - could she be taking on other "stress" that maybe is not confided.

 

Be a good friend and hopefully she will get through ....

[nicki9]

Depending on the school OFSTED can be that bad! You get judged as a professional on a 20 minute snapshot of your teaching and student learning. The feedback is to the Head not to you as an individual, and is so not relevant to your own personal development. Teachers at one of my previous schools who during inspection got "Satisfactory" were made to feel really bad, as if they had failed the school.

The amount of planning, admin and preparation for 2 days is ludicrous. We had the school open all weekend 7.30-10pm, with staff "invited" to come in and sort classrooms etc...

Teachers face regular observation anyway, as part of their professional development, our results are scrutinized, with no account being paid to individual students circumstances or work ethic, just a judgement on whether this makes us "good" or "bad".

However, the teaching, the students and the sheer delight of watching someone who has learnt something new outweighs all the negatives, I am sure when this week is over your friend will be able to relax and enjoy the last few weeks of term.

[ubereglu]

Aww, that doesn't sound good...get her to talk to other staff members, as in a crisis they will be the ones who can be most supportive at this time. My sister is a primary teacher too and has had her fair share of woes these past two years since she qualified, but she's ok at the minute.

[AJuff]

She sounds quite normal in the circumstances. Teaching is stressfull. Pressure from performance, results, targets, Ofsted, monitoring, marking, planning, parents, parents evenings, reports, Christmas performances, class assemblies, Curriculum coordinator role, APP, assessment, school trips . . the list is endless. I get really annoyed by people who think it's a 9-3pm job with loads of holidays! It's very difficult to switch off from teaching.

 

Support your friend with tea and chocolate. Tell her she's not on her own at all. It's quite normal and roll on the weekend!!!

[sadietoo]

IMO any professional is going to be subjected to stress, and although I can see that teaching must be a nightmare, I have seen friends who are solicitors and accountants completely stressed by working many many long hours, and who take work home to do over the weekends and evenings, are regularly (constantly) subjected to performance checks, not only by the firms they work for but also by their respective institutes, by the demands of clients etc. They don't tend to have houses in France however, as they only get four weeks holiday a year on average, and they don't get a week off to recover every six weeks or so...

 

That said, I am really sorry for your friend, mental health issues be they caused by stress or genetics should not be ignored...I think encouraging her to seek some help is the way forward. It sounds like a career change is in order.

[Janty]

I have also worked in industry as well as teaching. The teaching itself is not a stressful job...it's the rubbish that is piled on top that causes problems. I am a year head and I am also in charge of a subject. Our local County Council have decided to get rid of middle schools in our area so staff are leaving. That has meant that I have been given an extra subject to plan for. Besides my usual duties, I also have to plan and set work for supply teachers each day. I also have to sort out extra behaviour issues that arise when some of the supply staff don't follow the school's behaviour policy. Besides writing my own reports this year, I have also had to write six extra sets for staff who have left at Christmas who we have been unable to replace. I run two after school clubs which finish at 5pm. However, one parent uses it as a creche and does not collect his son until 5.30, meaning that my special needs child is often dropped off from school before I get home. I also run a lunchtime club for children who find social interaction difficult.

 

I'm sorry but if I received news that an ofsted was coming on top of that lot, it would finish me off too.

 

I defy anybody to say that this means that I should not be left in charge of children.

[foreveryoung]

I'm a childminder and have had only one inspection to date. I am due for another one soon, I found the whole ofsted thing quiet stressful, I had to check everything to ensure that all was up to date, check the house and garden (these are checked regularly anyway), the paperwork etc. a friend of mine is an adult education worker who recently had their inspection and she was working day and night to ensure that everything goes well. she got stressed. I guess it what type of person you are and how you cope with stress in general.....

[Chickybocker Glory]

Hi,

 

As others have said - simply treat your friend to tea, biscuits, chat - invite round for a special meal, pampering session - anything that rocks her boat. It's most often the conscientious teachers that DO spend all their time making their classrooms and teaching the best thing since sliced bread that are the ones who collapse in a heap when Ofsted is mentioned. They have already stretched themselves to the limit.

 

Please don't be nasty about teachers and talk about long holidays and how stressful others professions are - they already know all that. Instead, support, encourage and praise a profession that gives your children an education that (if they choose to fully take advantage of it...) is among the best in the world.

[Tiggy]

Hi,

 

As others have said - simply treat your friend to tea, biscuits, chat - invite round for a special meal, pampering session - anything that rocks her boat. It's most often the conscientious teachers that DO spend all their time making their classrooms and teaching the best thing since sliced bread that are the ones who collapse in a heap when Ofsted is mentioned. They have already stretched themselves to the limit.

 

Please don't be nasty about teachers and talk about long holidays and how stressful others professions are - they already know all that. Instead, support, encourage and praise a profession that gives your children an education that (if they choose to fully take advantage of it...) is among the best in the world.

 

Im not being nasty, just trying to understand why teachers seem to get more stressed than others who also work under pressure in very responsible jobs, medicine nurses coach drivers,police, fire and ambulance crews all of which if they make a mistake could result in someones death. Im am seriously trying to understand, on the face of it teachers are reasonably well paid, do have long holidays, that said i do accept some of that time does have to be taken up with marking lesson planning etc. Dedicated teachers will work out of school hours to do their work well & this will encroach upon their leisure time, but they are not alone in that. i also accept that being put under pressure during inspection is difficult. What concerns me is that my friend seems to be poorly & Im worried, and it would appear that she is not alone.

 

If the system in schools is causing brilliant caring teachers to be so stressed it affects their lives then surely something must change. i totally agree that teaching is one of the most fullfilling proffessions, helping young peoples minds develop & grow, opening up the world to them, giving them opportunities that some would never get without a good education. I am sorry if my posts give the impression that Im knocking teachers because Im not.

 

For those of you in the proffession perhaps it is time to take stock, its your proffession & if as some of these posts suggest, it is not the teaching but the system that is at fault maybe now is the time to approach the government/department of education with some practical suggestions of how to improve matters, Stressed poorly teachers are not the way forward

[Becka]

Teaching is a tricky job to walk away from. The demands on curriculum time and professional development are vast and greatly overlooked by management. The curriculum on its own is loosing sight of realistic timescales and levels of ability with the children involved and add to that the increasing levels of unruly children and quite frankly it can be a wholly thankless job. I loved my job but to be honest it was so time consuming and emotionally draining that I left to focus on my own children as they were very much living with a mother who had a closer relationship with thirty three other children than with her own! Management won't change the demands made on teachers because they don't think their demands are excessive but there is a distinct lack of understanding because very few managers have actually worked the job! I really worry about my children going through our education system as it is at the moment and sadly think it requires a major overhaul to get back to teaching the necessary basics to a high standard and then bringing in more diversity once the basics are in place. It's a classic case of trying to do too much when maybe it would be better being fantastic at less!

[chickenanne]

People react to stress in such different ways though. I wonder if there is some psychological link between high on patience, and dealing less-well with stressfull situations? I do agree that there are lots of very stressful jobs/careers out there, and many involve long hours, high stress levels, and inaccurate public perception. The level of stress isn't as important as how people deal with it, IMO.

 

I think all you can do is help her through this time; if it gets very bad then try to get her to see her GP.

 

After the stressfull period has eased might be the time to try and get her to consider finding some kind of stress-management training, or at least a better coping strategy. She seems to have all the other skills that a great teacher needs, so it seems a shame not to work on one other - i.e. stress management - to make her teaching career a happier one. There must be some sort of training or the like out there that covers that kind of area and whilst it could be relatively expensive if it saves her sanity /teaching career / makes her a happier person then would be money well spent. Certainly cheaper than resigning and re-training as something else when fundamentally she likes teaching.

[sadietoo]

It is interesting because personal experience with my children and also word of mouth from a friend who was a teaching assistant in a secondary school for many years all seem to bear out that as with everything else, some teachers are just better than others, and primarily this seems to boil down to classroom management and particularly the management of difficult and unruly children. I'm not for a moment saying that I would know how to control a class of unwilling and unruly 14 year olds..simply that those that have the knack seem to suffer less and are able to get the message across. Sadly I do feel that a system that rewards children for bad behaviour isn't helping (eg credits or whatever for coming in to school not disrupting a lesson completing homework on time all of which should be done as a matter course and imo with no special comment) doesn't help. I do think we have an education system that is good..but maybe not among the best in the world, and that seems to me because it is tied up with too much bureaucracy and too little recognition of the real differences in ability in a classroom, and (although I am surprised to write this) too little classroom discipline in junior school so that children are not prepared properly for secondary school.

[Tiggy]

thankyou for all your comments, Im going to see my friend at the weekend & hopefully she is feeling better, her hubby has also been worried and since we (freinds) also feel something is amis he has felt more confident asking her to see her GP, he didnt want to upset her so kept quiet.

[Tiggy]

spoke to her yesterday and she sounds much better is going off on holiday in next 2 weeks, hopefully whatever it was she has it sorted now, this OFSTEAD thing does sound horrible

[greyhoundgirl]

Whilst I was having my children I worked as a supply teacher then when my ED was 5 and my YS 3 I went back full time for a years maternity cover. I love teaching but trying to run a family and a job which requires A LOT of work outside school it's impossible. I'd leave for work at 7.30 drop the children at the child minders and be at school for 8.00. Leave at 6.00, throw my children into bed and then continue working until 11 ish every night. It isn't the lack of time management on my part either; I'm a very organised person.

 

Teaching is a full time job which doesn't finish at 3.00! And ask any teacher about the so called holidays. I have never taken more than 2 weeks off in the summer and I'm not the only one. Ofsted is stress and is actually making a judgement on the school and teachers in a very, unrealisticly short time.

 

I gave up and now love teaching again with preschool children. The money is totally rubbish, but I'm actually working with children again and not pushing for unrealistic government targets. The children come first, just like when I qualified in the early 1990's.

[Janty]

Also, don't forget the other problems that teachers may have to face besides the long hours, paperwork, badly behaved children, planning differentiation for at least four different levels within the classroom for each lesson, etc.

 

Parents regularly swear and abuse teachers, many teachers are bullied by senior management and there is also the possibility in some schools of physical violence...I have been punched by a 13 year old.

[Charlottechicken]

That's good to know she's feeling human again Tiggy. I hope your friend is still OK in a few weeks time when her hols are nearly over If she is then you know it was OFSTED.