Teacher might quit

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I think about quitting every few weeks but I am a single parent so I can't. It's been wonderful to be in person this year but the behaviors are just so out there. It is draining. We found out today that we are getting a half day on December 23rd and I felt such relief that I almost cried. Lots of teachers are on the edge.

Would you mind elaborating? I hear this a lot - that students are not well behaved this year and the class is hard to control. But why do you think that is? I know it probably has something to do with the stress of covid (sick family members, job loss, routine changes etc) but what do you think in particular is causing this? Also why is it that teachers all want to quit? Asking not to criticize but to see what we should be advocating for (I know better salaries of course but trying to understand what else). What about student behavior? What do students need for things to get better?

It's far beyond "not well behaved" and "hard to control". Listen, in my school we have a kindergarten room that has regularly needed 3-4 additional adults in the room because so many kids are displaying behaviors similar to what you might see in a psychiatric facility for children. I don't know what the hell happened when kids were home, but it wasn't anything good. Teachers want to quit it is emotionally and physically exhausting. Honestly, what students and schools need? No one will ever be willing to pay for.

Well many of these kids had both parents working outside the home and were entrusted to a MS or HS kid who has their own DL to do. And were plopped in front of a screen 7 hours a day. It’s like teachers don’t get that FCPS is 1/3 FARMS. They seem to believe every parent has a SAHM who could sit their with their kid and do school all day.

What happened at home? Parents were doing their jobs, dealing with multiple kids, dealing with elderly parents, cobbling together sunstandard childcare on a day to days basis, losing jobs, getting sick, being evicted….

+100

So were teachers who are also parents. Did you forget that part?

Teachers at least were working from home. What about families where both parents were working outside of the home? Not all of us were able to work from home last year, PP. We were lucky enough to have a responsible family member who took the year off of college to nanny and support our kids while they were DL but not everyone was so fortunate or has the money to pay for full time childcare.

Many of us weren’t. I am a private high school teacher and I worked in-person all last year. Both of my children were virtual, however, and I often had to check in with them on my phone between classes. My spouse tried to work nights as much as possible to limit our children being alone. Yet, with all of last year’s stress, I am quite comfortable saying this year is worse. That, hopefully, is a statement that explains how hard this year is.

+1 Two teacher household and we went into our buildings to teach every day. We had the option and neither of us were going to stay home all day. We would have gone crazy not getting out and seeing other people.

1. That was a choice, not a requirement
2. If you made that choice and left kids home alone all day to DL when you didn’t have to, people would call you a crappy parent. And they would be right.

PP here.
1. I’m not complaining. We made the choice to go in because we wanted to. Sitting at home would have sucked for us.
2. We don’t have children at home.

[Anonymous]

Honest question: do frustrated teachers wish that schools had more punishment options for students?

It honestly feels like the carrot isn't appealing enough, and the stick isn't punitive enough under the current system

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honest question: do frustrated teachers wish that schools had more punishment options for students?

It honestly feels like the carrot isn't appealing enough, and the stick isn't punitive enough under the current system

I think teachers wish there were options, period.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honest question: do frustrated teachers wish that schools had more punishment options for students?

It honestly feels like the carrot isn't appealing enough, and the stick isn't punitive enough under the current system

I've worked in multiple schools in the US and UK. The only one that had any "options" to realistically punish/give consequences poor student behavior was an all-girls school in Boston. The thing that made this school different from all the others is that its admin structure was so bizarre. The headmaster and the principal were both lawyers who for some reason decided to just stop being lawyers and run a private school.

The admin at every other school where I've worked have been either clueless about the realities of student behavior and how to motivate students or scared of parents/eager to bolster their own status among parents by siding with parents over teachers at all costs.

The lawyer admin took no nonsense and supported teachers in consequences for student misbehavior. They also refused to budge when parents complained or argued. Neither of those lawyers is still working at the school, but it was a golden era while it lasted and the students benefited from a strong education and reinforcement of study skills/responsibility.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honest question: do frustrated teachers wish that schools had more punishment options for students?

It honestly feels like the carrot isn't appealing enough, and the stick isn't punitive enough under the current system

Two thoughts on that:

1) A lot of the behavior last I’m seeing this year isn’t because kids won’t do what they’re told; they can’t. Their learning differences (diagnosed and not) and their psychological conditions (under treatment and not) prevent them from being available to learn. I’ve never seen so many primary school kids with undiagnosed ASD and untreated ADHD, and I had no idea that so many children met the clinical criteria for anxiety. And ALL children are behind socially. We’re trying to teach third-grade material to kids who have the self control and executive functioning of second graders.

2) I’m not into punishing kids, nor is my school. What we DO allow is for children to experience natural consequences for their actions. In the long-term bringing kids into the conversation and connecting consequences to their actions teaches self regulation and pro-social behavior much better than giving everyone detentions and suspensions all the time. But with the number of behaviors popping up this year, it’s hard to think of a consequence, communicate it, follow through on it, and get in touch with the parents. I have multiple students each day who need behavioral support.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honest question: do frustrated teachers wish that schools had more punishment options for students?

It honestly feels like the carrot isn't appealing enough, and the stick isn't punitive enough under the current system

I think teachers wish there were options, period.

I wish we had more options and more "bodies in the room" help with kids who need more support. And, when a kid is a danger to themselves or others, or completely disrupt the educational process for others, if that support doesn't help enough, I don't want it to take months or years before that child is placed in a special education setting. Punishment doesn't work very well. But yeah, when kids bring in weapons, I want them out. Period. When kids assault teachers, I want them out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honest question: do frustrated teachers wish that schools had more punishment options for students?

It honestly feels like the carrot isn't appealing enough, and the stick isn't punitive enough under the current system

I think teachers wish there were options, period.

I wish we had more options and more "bodies in the room" help with kids who need more support. And, when a kid is a danger to themselves or others, or completely disrupt the educational process for others, if that support doesn't help enough, I don't want it to take months or years before that child is placed in a special education setting. Punishment doesn't work very well. But yeah, when kids bring in weapons, I want them out. Period. When kids assault teachers, I want them out.

That shouldn't even have to be said!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honest question: do frustrated teachers wish that schools had more punishment options for students?

It honestly feels like the carrot isn't appealing enough, and the stick isn't punitive enough under the current system

I think teachers wish there were options, period.

I wish we had more options and more "bodies in the room" help with kids who need more support. And, when a kid is a danger to themselves or others, or completely disrupt the educational process for others, if that support doesn't help enough, I don't want it to take months or years before that child is placed in a special education setting. Punishment doesn't work very well. But yeah, when kids bring in weapons, I want them out. Period. When kids assault teachers, I want them out.

Hello fellow teacher. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When my teen was in 4th grade, the teacher could not control the class. It was hell for the entire year, they learned practically nothing, and she left teaching at the end of the year.

Strength to the teacher and all the children in her class, OP.

Must be something with 4th grade.One of my kids had a teacher in 4th who cried and guilt tripped the class a lot. She also was friends with many of them on instagram and posted about her mental health issues-I guess to be a role model. She then took a mental leave eventually which was a good idea.

[Anonymous]

DH is a middle school teacher in his 30th year. He had planned to teach a few more years but has decided to retire at the end of the year. He is a great teacher—still has visits, emails, letters, etc. from kids he has taught over his entire career. His school went back to in person in early November, 2020 and he began teaching simultaneously in person then. This year his classes are entirely in person. Why is he retiring sooner than planned?

- Terrible admin in his school. There are a LOT of behavior issues in his relatively wealthy school district. His school—and really the whole district—is afraid to suspend students or take other appropriate action. They are trying restorative justice but don’t have a clue of what it actually is. I have seen it used effectively at my kids’ school, but it takes a lot of time and training.
- District level/community idiocy around mask requirements, CRT terror, etc. He does not want to be teaching in a small classroom with unmasked children in a high COVID area. CRT and related concerns mean that if a parent complains about a classroom book, it is supposed to be just removed—for everyone—no questions asked. CRT isn’t being taught or incorporated into the curriculum in his district. He is tired of dealing with the impact of small groups of very vocal , very stupid parents. The previous superintendent of his district, as well as the curriculum coordinator for his subject, resigned over the summer due to death threats and other extreme unpleasantness from the anti- CRT crowd. This all made national news.
- Over the past two weeks, two long term subs literally walked out of the building due to poor student behavior. This week’s departure was a middle-aged man who didn’t even stop by the office to let them know he was done.
- DH has great classroom management skills and has not been as affected by poor behavior, but he has definitely seen an uptick in work refusal and more worrisome, more kids who do not have good support systems at home or who are in the worst cases, suicidal.

He won’t quit before the end of the year because he has a contract and he cares about his students and colleagues. But I have never seen him so tired; he is a night owl but now is lucky to stay awake past 8:30 on a school night. I cannot believe the impact of district and school level mismanagement is having. I am 100% in favor of his retirement and am actively urging him to use any remaining personal days and to minimize all extracurricular work he does. I do feel bad for the students, but the district does not deserve a single extra second of his time. I am thankful that our own children did not go to school in this district.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The teachers who are quitting are the ones you do not want to lose. They are the ones who care the most, who try the most, who do the most for your kids.

My school has had four of those kinds of teachers quit already this year, and our students are worse off for it.

+1, the lessor teachers always stay, forever.

Yes, because they’re unbothered. They aren’t stressed by the lack of resources or the crushing bureaucracy because they literally do not care. Those people last. Teachers who care can’t take it forever. You could literally work unlimited hours and still have more you COULD do, and you feel guilty not drawing boundaries. I knew it was time to quit when I stopped taking work home.

This is so sad but so true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DH is a middle school teacher in his 30th year. He had planned to teach a few more years but has decided to retire at the end of the year. He is a great teacher—still has visits, emails, letters, etc. from kids he has taught over his entire career. His school went back to in person in early November, 2020 and he began teaching simultaneously in person then. This year his classes are entirely in person. Why is he retiring sooner than planned?

- Terrible admin in his school. There are a LOT of behavior issues in his relatively wealthy school district. His school—and really the whole district—is afraid to suspend students or take other appropriate action. They are trying restorative justice but don’t have a clue of what it actually is. I have seen it used effectively at my kids’ school, but it takes a lot of time and training.
- District level/community idiocy around mask requirements, CRT terror, etc. He does not want to be teaching in a small classroom with unmasked children in a high COVID area. CRT and related concerns mean that if a parent complains about a classroom book, it is supposed to be just removed—for everyone—no questions asked. CRT isn’t being taught or incorporated into the curriculum in his district. He is tired of dealing with the impact of small groups of very vocal , very stupid parents. The previous superintendent of his district, as well as the curriculum coordinator for his subject, resigned over the summer due to death threats and other extreme unpleasantness from the anti- CRT crowd. This all made national news.
- Over the past two weeks, two long term subs literally walked out of the building due to poor student behavior. This week’s departure was a middle-aged man who didn’t even stop by the office to let them know he was done.
- DH has great classroom management skills and has not been as affected by poor behavior, but he has definitely seen an uptick in work refusal and more worrisome, more kids who do not have good support systems at home or who are in the worst cases, suicidal.

He won’t quit before the end of the year because he has a contract and he cares about his students and colleagues. But I have never seen him so tired; he is a night owl but now is lucky to stay awake past 8:30 on a school night. I cannot believe the impact of district and school level mismanagement is having. I am 100% in favor of his retirement and am actively urging him to use any remaining personal days and to minimize all extracurricular work he does. I do feel bad for the students, but the district does not deserve a single extra second of his time. I am thankful that our own children did not go to school in this district.

This is so sad, but so common. I am a HS teacher and I feel similar to him. I'm still fresh and doing ok, but the work refusal from several kids is really unsettling. Their inability to focus and stick with difficult (even slightly) tasks is shocking some days. The system is broken. ;-(

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I think about quitting every single day and don’t know if I’m returning next year. I keep going back because of the students. They are the easy part. The administration constantly undermines us and is making my job difficult to impossible. They are the reason it’s difficult for me to walk in the building every single day. I feel support from parents so I’m lucky there.

I am leaving after this year. I don’t go back every day because of the kids (or at least not all of them), I just can’t leave my team like that. We had other teacher leave mid-year and with no replacement the other teacher absorbed the class or they got a long-term sub - meaning more work for the other teachers.

This is the only reason I am trying to hold out until the end of thee year. My team is also down 2 members (HR teacher and Co Teacher) so everyone is struggling.

It isn’t your problem, though. If the administration doesn’t cover the class, parents should complain. They can easily reassign a coach or specials teacher. Covering classrooms should be the priority. It is NOT the responsibility of the teachers to manage and delegate work. If it is, then why do administrators exist and how do we justify taxpayers funding their high salaries?

They are already using resource teachers, ESOL teachers, coaches, reading specialists, etc to cover classes. It still isn't enough. I'm an ESOL teacher and I rarely teach my students more than twice a week. Ditto with the reading specialist. So parents complain that their below-grade-level students aren't getting pulled out. Great! By all means, complain about it but it won't help. There are not enough warm bodies to go around. They've already taken our student teachers away from us early this year. If they are graduating in December, they let them go in mid-November to get FT teaching jobs.

Get admin from Gatehouse off their butts and into classrooms for sub duty

1000% agree with this. There are so many "educational experts" at Gatehouse. Let's have them show us how to cope and teach well. I'd be all in for observing them demonstrate their expertise. I'm fully serious.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:How could anyone have predicted that closing schools for 12-18 months would have negative consequences? Oh wait...

Seriously. I don't understand why the schools and teachers thought the kids were going to be ok. News Flash: They're not ok.

Why is it the responsibility of the school to “help and/or fix” them, that is the parents primary responsibility.

Hmmm, because they broke them by remaining closed well after most workplaces opened back up? Kids were left alone and still expected to complete academic work. Because the pandemic showed the true dysfunction of the public school system and the safety backstops which had been reliant on open school buildings were suddenly gone from so many who depended on them?

Because parents love and want the best for their kids but if your life is built around the legally obligated reality that your child has to be in a school building for 6+ hours a day, then, well it takes a lot to transition to another plan when suddenly that building closes. Fair enough. When it’s clear that you are caught in the middle of a battle between the BOEs and teachers unions, you lose the ability to cope through that transition. Only to be forced to transition again even though most businesses, bars, restaurants and federal IC buildings are open for business as usual?

Schools play a vital role in our community. More than education. Or they did until they made it clear they only want to provide education whether or not anyone learns and aren’t responsible for any of the other roles they’ve played in the past.

This must be the parent of the kid who asked me to go the safe space this week because someone said something really mean to her (dixit).

Lmfao

I am entertained when rich parents refuse to pay for child care or find a way to support their kids during the day. These same parents are still working at home.

+1. Got to love the melodrama. Millions of us parented through the pandemic and didn’t “lose the ability to cope through that transition,” and yes, many of us are two parent working families. We did hard things and made sacrifices and Special, Special PP can too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think about quitting every few weeks but I am a single parent so I can't. It's been wonderful to be in person this year but the behaviors are just so out there. It is draining. We found out today that we are getting a half day on December 23rd and I felt such relief that I almost cried. Lots of teachers are on the edge.

Would you mind elaborating? I hear this a lot - that students are not well behaved this year and the class is hard to control. But why do you think that is? I know it probably has something to do with the stress of covid (sick family members, job loss, routine changes etc) but what do you think in particular is causing this? Also why is it that teachers all want to quit? Asking not to criticize but to see what we should be advocating for (I know better salaries of course but trying to understand what else). What about student behavior? What do students need for things to get better?

It's far beyond "not well behaved" and "hard to control". Listen, in my school we have a kindergarten room that has regularly needed 3-4 additional adults in the room because so many kids are displaying behaviors similar to what you might see in a psychiatric facility for children. I don't know what the hell happened when kids were home, but it wasn't anything good. Teachers want to quit it is emotionally and physically exhausting. Honestly, what students and schools need? No one will ever be willing to pay for.

Well many of these kids had both parents working outside the home and were entrusted to a MS or HS kid who has their own DL to do. And were plopped in front of a screen 7 hours a day. It’s like teachers don’t get that FCPS is 1/3 FARMS. They seem to believe every parent has a SAHM who could sit their with their kid and do school all day.

What happened at home? Parents were doing their jobs, dealing with multiple kids, dealing with elderly parents, cobbling together sunstandard childcare on a day to days basis, losing jobs, getting sick, being evicted….

Sorry, but no. The biggest whiners about DL and it’s aftereffects are not parents of FARMS kids. They are entitled rich people who are shocked, just shocked, that no amount of tantrum throwing got them their way. DCUM was crawling with them. “Ugh, I’m so OVER Fake Computer School. I told sweet little Braxlynn she didn’t have to do it and could just go out and play.”

“WAAAAHHH, why is my child behind?”