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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]It's not an unpopular opinion, nobody wants their kid's teacher to quit mid year.  However, when I worked in education I knew two teachers personally who literally lost their minds and disappeared mid year because of it.  Not only were the parents not informed the reason why they were gone but their own teaching teams didn't get the details from admin.  They might have known if they knew her well enough personally but that's the only way.  It's confidential personnel information.

If they just quit for some random stupid reason you don't want that person teaching your kid anyway.

I also know of a guy who quit with zero notice because of the way he was being treated by admin and the school division, it was absolutely untenable and he was right to leave.

As others have said a teacher can really screw themselves professionally if they do that so if they do it anyway you should assume it was a pretty serious situation for them to take such a drastic step. [/quote]

Not the OP, but thank you for this rational response. Any time a parent on DCUM makes a complaint like this, they get bashed. However, it's a really big deal for kids when a teacher quits mid-year, and it shouldn't be something that happens often.

It happened to two of my kids, and both times, I knew the reason for the teacher leaving. They honestly had no other choice. However, the dynamic of education, where parents are supposed to be partners with the school and the teachers in educating their child, is undermined when teachers leave without explanation mid-year. Teaching really isn't like any other profession. Parents help teachers out in the classroom at school, send in supplies, have special appreciation events, but then are shut out completely from knowing anything about extended absences or abrupt departures. I understand these things are confidential, but it's a tough pill to swallow. In fact, it feels like a slap in the face. If confidentiality prohibits saying anything, then the departure could be for something trivial. There is no way of knowing. And kids, especially younger kids, which mine were when their teacher left during winter break, tend to feel abandoned and even responsible.

I continue to believe that the system needs much more built in backup for teachers. There are always going to be illnesses, personal or family needs, or other events that cause extended absence or even leaving mid-year. Maybe if there was more backup available, fewer teachers would have to leave abruptly.
[/quote]

I actually hesitated in responding because I think you are coming from a good place. I agree it is unfortunate when teachers leave in the middle of the year, but we can’t demand martyrdom. The job must come second; health and family must come first. If that makes me sound like a selfish teacher, ask yourself if we expect any other professional to martyr themselves the way we do our teachers. Teachers must put themselves first, and the best example I can give you is a young teacher who told me she prayed every morning to get into an accident on the way to school. She was that miserable. Should she have to stick it out for the rest of the year? Absolutely not. She was doing herself no favors, nor was she able to be the teacher she wanted to be in the classroom.

Teaching has always been a hard profession, but it has become too unreasonably demanding and (at times) hostile. We are facing a National teacher shortage because of these conditions. Be kind to teachers and respect that they are making the best decisions for them. Don’t feel like you have any right at all to know why they left, even if you did provide classroom supplies. If you truly want to help, become a substitute. We are desperate, and we are going to lose more teachers since so many of us complete  missing colleagues’ work on top of our own every day. [/quote]

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