Returning to teaching.

Another retired [early] teacher here. No regrets about spending so much time and energy in such a worthwhile job- but could not turn the clock back and return to it.

Thanks for posting the Fascinating Aida link. I don't think I've seen them before. Very funny (though now I've spent even more time than I meant to on Gransnet).

There can hardly have been a more disastrous initiative than the setting of targets, which only arrived a few years ago. They skew everything in the public sector, including the NHS. For example, as a patient who has repeat appointments for a chronic eye condition, I am constantly being cancelled so that they can meet the targets for seeing new patients. As an old one, I don't hit any targets so they couldn't care less about me.

Teaching is the best job in the world.
It's being a teacher that sucks.
Ofsted kicks Heads, heads kick deputies, deputies kick faculty heads who in turn kick the poor teachers.
Constant chasing after 'targets' in sure and certain knowledge that if you manage to meet the targets then the goal posts will be moved for next year and it all begins over again.

My daughter has now left teaching, although she's working on zero hours one day a week for a college. She loved teaching but was burned out after 15 years. If all she had to do was teach children she'd do it forever . It's such a waste.

Oh dear another education initiative from a totally out of touch bunch.
Or maybe it's just a way of reducing the numbers of elderly people. Young NQTs only last a few years before they abandon the profession, so maybe older people just wouldn't survive. Thus reducing the demand on the NHS. I think before they are allowed to make any comments about teaching and schools politicians should have to spend half a term in an inner-city school dealing with the very worst pupils. Bet they wouldn't survive!

I've often thought about re-training as a teacher but always think just in time that I'm really too old for this. It's a job that even the young find stressful and demanding. I expect he thinks he'd get us on the cheap ...

Elegran I have not heard them for years they are brilliant. Very clever very funny and they perform well. They are so funny that the "bad language" is acceptable.

Ok, I've now watched the Ofsted song for teachers, loved it

Wonderful - laughed out loud as they say!

This page is full of their videos - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTslqDb57Yc

Try "Dogging" (the video, not the activity - whatever floats your boat, of course)

Thanks for the Ofsted link, I hadn't seen that. the Ryanair song is fabulous

Last night I went to see Fascinating Aida at the Festival. Absolutely marvellous and if you can get to see it, do. They are feminist, rude and very funny.

I had a look online for the video of "Cheap Flights" which they sang last night, and found a lot more of their videos, including this one, OFFSTED song for teachers which the teachers and ex-teachers on the forum may find echoes some of their thoughts.

Here is a link to their classic Ryanair song too - Cheap flights This link has been posted before, but some people may have missed it.

Wear the old ones out first.

That's a lovely idea , as one becomes old he also has alot of free time and is sitting idle most of the time , and as they are old they have experienced life to the fullest and can share these lovely experiences with the children and they can teach alot of other stuff also .

My DiL has been an assistant head in a large comp for the last year where Gove's name has been mud ever since he took up his reformist reins. She loves her job and nobody could be more committed to the well-being of her students - she still hears from those she worked with in her last school. She carries a big admin load as well as a substantial teaching commitment. When I saw her a fortnight ago I was shocked at how tired she looked.She's a lovely person, but her face looked drawn and grey. She certainly needs her holiday and I can't believe how generous she is to share it with her MiL.

Tegan you summed it up exactly - that could be my daughter you've just described.

Thinking that I should know more about him, I Wikipida'd him. Reminds me of a doctor I worked with who had a brain the size of the universe but was an absolutely rubbish doctor. I hadn't realised that the teachers had a vote of no confidence about him [the first time it has ever happened].

We do indeed Tegan - my daughter is also a teacher in an area of high deprivation, as are a number of her former school pals. I have a number of friends who still teach. Gove has been an unmitigated disaster and like others, I feel the damage is done to a large extent. I do hope the new minister has better personal skills and can begin to re-build trust with teachers ( trying not to laugh, and remain positive, Polyanna again)

Yes we do, Tegan, hope she can get some much-needed R&R now.

You'll have to excuse me being personal about Mr Gove but I think it's all down to the fact that I'm seeing my daughter [who loves teaching] under so much stress [and wanting to leave the profession, which will be a loss to education and certainly a loss to the pupils that she would have taught in the future]. This has all come about over the last couple of years, and mainly due to things that have been added to the job since he took over; a 'straw that broke the camels back' scenario. If it wasn't for that I'd probably be thinking that it was another case of 'teachers moaning about something else'. I don't want to ask her of those changes [she's got an infection at the moment but won't let anyone down by not going to work]; she has told me in passing but I've forgotten what she's said. It may just be that she works at a particulary bad school but, either way I need to hate someone. So, Mr Gove it is! We all feel venomous when something affects our children, don't we.

Tegan, when you say 'he and his' in reference to M Gove, I don't think he is one of the privileged 'Cameron cronies', private prep then Eton and so on to Oxbridge that way.
I think he was the adopted son of a fairly ordinary family who went to state school then won a scholarship to an independent ( horror, even worse I suppose!) and then to Oxford.
Just to set the record straight.

I wonder if anyone has thought of the child's perspective on this? I recently asked a group of (12 year old) children what they think about having older teachers and without exception they all acknowledged that 'old' teachers have a lot of experience, but they said they prefer to be taught by teachers who are 'young' and have more energy and are more in touch with their generation. I suspect that 'A' level students may have given a different answer as knowledge and experience may be valued over (perceived) youth and enthusiasm. In one of the schools I worked there was a teacher who had taught many of his pupils' parents and the children in his class all thought that he was absolutely ancient. Of course he was only in his fifties at the time.

Mr Gove sends his children to state schools. ( reply to durhamjen)

Possibly ever so slightly ''Off the main drag.''
One set of words that keeps appearing is - ''hard working''.
Politicians don't anymore speak of ''Working people'', but of ''Hard working people.'' There has been much use of similar sets of words concerning teachers and teaching in this discussion too.
Since when has it been a virtue to work HARD?
Efficiently; effectively; enthusiastically; with dedication; ...YES.
All of those require thought, planning, expertize, knowledge of the client, ....
Most of the 100s of teachers I've met over the years in my long service as a school Governor have demonstrated the professional skills necessary to be efficient; effective; etc.
I'm not sure that a crash course in Working Hard in a classroom will result in retired people gaining the specialist professional skills necessary to be a teacher - but who knows.
After all the Govt is going to FORCE:
unemployed people to Volunteer to work in Voluntary organizations, and
people with mental health issues to undergo treatments identified by Office staff working for Agencies like ATOS.
So perhaps it WILL work?