. The site’s interlocutors told, among other things, about the reasons for resigning from the profession they had been practicing for years. One of them is Lorna Saunders. The former teacher recalled the first feeling after leaving the walls of the building. “It took the weight off me, but there was also sadness,” she told the portal. The woman has a series of very negative experiences behind her, which ultimately contributed to the overall decision that completely changed her life.
– Teaching used to be all I wanted to do. But that was taken away from me by the circumstances in which I was expected to work. I just couldn’t take it any longer,” she told The Sun. The 44-year-old resigned after 18 years of teaching in July 2019. It was right after her deepening mental crisis had her crying every day at the thought of the next day in class.
She left school after 18 years of teaching. “It wasn’t unusual for me to work until 10pm”
“Since I was a child, I wanted to be a teacher, and after four years of studying at university – to obtain a teaching degree and qualifying in 2001 – I couldn’t wait to get started,” she recalled. It was only during the process that she noticed how much the picture of teaching in theory differs from that in practice. Chronic staff shortages in schools, budget cuts in services including speech therapy for children, social support and support for people with special educational needs make the system completely overburdened. And it is up to teachers to “deal” with children’s poverty, mental problems, problems at home, etc.
“The older I got, the more responsibility fell on me”
The result is a huge level of stress on a daily basis and progressive professional burnout. The Sun cites last year’s Teacher Wellbeing Index, commissioned by the charity Education Support, which found that 72 percent of of British teachers struggle with chronic stress and overwork. In turn, according to data from the British Department for Education (DfE), around 6,000 teachers aged 30 to 39 leave their jobs every year. This includes e.g. average time to get pregnant in the UK. Moreover, national statistics show that this profession is still largely dominated by women. “As the years went by as an elementary school teacher, the demands became more and more insurmountable,” Lorna continued her memoirs.
In addition to teaching, which I loved, and the grading and planning involved, the older I got, the more responsibility fell on me. Often without extra time in the work day to complete tasks or any additional compensation
she added. She was expected to take on extracurricular duties, host school events, and handle the formalities of collecting data on class progress, inspections, raising concerns about individual students, etc.
It wasn’t unusual for me to work until 10pm or on weekends, and when I went part-time after having kids, things only got worse when it came to unpaid hours
– she described.
The child kicked her so hard that her calves began to bleed
Working in schools in one of the poorest regions of England, she notoriously met with difficult children who were often hungry, unfamiliar with the principles of personal hygiene, unwashed. At the beginning, it used external support, but these funds decreased due to budget cuts and the ever-longer queue of people in need. She added that as teachers, they often faced complicated and complex problems for which they did not have the proper training.
I brought snacks to distribute as well as toothbrushes and hairbrushes. And I know other teachers did it too. (…) It is difficult to get a child who is hungry or ashamed of his dirty uniform to concentrate and learn
– quotes her words “The Sun”. “I knew children were returning home to struggling families, and I found it exhausting to carry the emotional baggage of worrying about them.” On one occasion, one of the children kicked Lorna so hard that her calves bled. This event, as well as a series of escalating psychological effects related to other problems – as well as the support of her husband and her daughters – made the woman finally decide to change her job.
“Children came pale, their stomachs hurt”
Similar stories were told to the tabloid by Jennie, 38, from Manchester. In 2018, she took up the position of a primary school teacher, previously working as a teacher’s assistant and teaching English abroad. In 2022, she left the profession for good – due to stress and increasing depression. She admits that she loved to teach, but circumstances made it increasingly difficult. “Like most teachers, I worked outside of school hours,” she said.
I have worked in poor regions. The children came pale, had stomach aches, and then it turned out that they hadn’t eaten since the day before. Or they didn’t have warm clothes for the winter
she exchanged.
“I bought my children gloves and socks”
At one point I earned less than £1,000 a month and still bought gloves and socks to give to children in need
– added the interlocutor “The Sun”.
“I’ve tutored children with anxiety, depression, and anger management issues who were on long waiting lists for therapy,” she described. Some of her students came from homes where there was domestic violence and were under the guardianship of social services. “They themselves were on the edge of endurance,” she said. Accumulating negative experiences made Jennie quit teaching as well. He currently runs the company Community Interest Company (CIC)dedicated to providing educational services for children, families and schools.
Source: The Sun
Source: Gazeta
Bruce is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment . He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
