Why I left Teaching after 13 Years

[dorothytackett]

Whenever a college student tells me they are going to be a teacher I say If you are not called by God don’t do it. That’s the only way I survived teaching 30 years. There was so much paperwork, disrespect and disruptive students and their parents blaming me. I love being retired.

[TomsTinkeringandAdventures]

As a spouse of a teacher, it’s sad to see how poorly educators are treated…mostly by the administration that’s supposed to be supporting them!

[montanamark]

I recently retired after 28 years for many of the reasons you mentioned. One of the big flaws in education that I saw time and time again is that often it is the worst teachers who become the administrators. They can't handle being in the classroom, so they get their administrator certification and then become really terrible at running an entire school or school district.

[idas]

I am a retired teacher in South Africa. Over the past few years teaching became hell. Undisciplined and disrespectful students, no support and the teacher is always wrong according to the powers that be. Since children got rights, teachers have none.

[jasonmcgarry]

I left in 2019 after 15 years of teaching. Loved working with young adults, but I was bullied and there is no equal opportunity to move up. “Do it for the kids” excuse no longer worked on me.

[jimloree]

So true. The light bulb went off when they told me I was required to do "lunch duty" everyday. Meanwhile, the principal was using the PA system to randomly listen in on classes. Talk about Big Brother is watching you. There's a reason why both schools and prisons are called "systems".

[rubyruby]

You speak the truth guru. I have been teaching for 25 years and I am burnt out. I love the kids but hate the hoops, hurdles, mandates and politics. It's exhausting. It's like riding an exercise bike and expecting to reach your destination.

[grilledcheeseandsoup]

My mom was a teacher who loved to teach. She put up with a lot. But even she finally had her breaking point. There is no other professional that needs to obtain a college degree and ongoing learning credentials that is told they don't know how to do the job and to step aside while someone else who doesn't know how to teach tells you what to do. Infuriating!!

[maryl]

I quit last year. A few weeks ago, I had my First Year Review at my new job. My boss apologized during the meeting, “sorry we can’t promote you yet; we have to wait two years to move you into the next level.” He was worried that I might want to quit because of it.
I laughed… hard. And then I explained that teaching has no promotions. What is this magical concept? In fact, I’m happy just to be able to use the bathroom when I need to, or eat when I’m hungry. It’s amazing. Wish I’d quit sooner.

[teacher]

When are we supposed to actually get to know our students?! My day is mapped out with so much rigorous curriculum that there is no time for me to just connect with them and hear their stories; every minute is accounted for.

[nancygreen]

Amen, brother, after 40 years teaching I retired 2 years earlier than I planned because of all the reasons you state. My retirement check nets me more money than my previous paycheck because I’m not spending thousands for insurance or buying materials and books for my class. Thank god I dodged COVID times, I actually loved teaching but things went downhill starting with “No Child Left Behind” and continued through Common Core. Administrations are totally clueless as are most school board members. Wishing you all the luck in the future!

[stevencortez]

Shop teacher here....love teaching kids, tough to sort out all the acronyms that block teaching IEP, CRT, 504, RTI, PLC, PLEASE just let me teach kids to work hard, be on time, problem solve, and be proud of their finished work!

[s.d.]

I love teaching. I love working with and helping students. But, I was so stressed out. I gained weight. I had panic attacks. I couldn't sleep. I am also taking a break. I don't know, man. I love it, but I hate it.

[mingo-mingo]

I quit teaching last year and it was the best thing I ever did! I had taught over 35 years and retired. I had wanted out for years, but felt stuck because I had so many years and advanced degrees devoted to that career. For anyone going into education as a major, I beg you to rethink and actually talk to a teacher or two. This guy isn't even scratching the surface of the misery teachers face every day. I miss the students, but the rest of teaching was a huge headache and the more they dump on top of you the less time you have getting to help students anyway. For those of you who are thinking of leaving, and there are so many of you, find a different job and get out! You will feel so much better about life. Best of luck!

[KevinJennissen]

To be honest, Call of Duty changes waaaay less each year than teaching expectations.

[melissacoco]

I needed to hear this. Today, one of my students emailed me that she wishes I was back and I started feeling guilty. After 40 years of teaching, I decided to retire due to COVID (I was terrified of going back to in person teaching since I have asthma). I was in tears that the district wouldn't find a way to let me continue virtually (I taught high school French). I knew I would miss the kids, but then I realized: I'm tired of paper correcting, reading bad French, google translate used for homework, helicopter parents, the stress of prepping and giving IB orals, the push to not give homework or Ds and Fs, the new law in CA to document the minutes of instruction, etc. I miss the fun we would have in my classes, but I don't miss the stress!

[anncoxwell]

In May I retired after 40 years in education. I woke up one day and was just done, plus I physically could not make the day, having to disinfect after each of 9 classes back-to-back. (I have rheumatoid arthritis and 2 other immune disorders). So far, I’m finding it to be a good decision for me. As I’ve gotten older, I have less tolerance for the bs that comes from the legislature and the state department

[madisonwares]

I'm convinced it's because we don't have the time to advocate for ourselves. We are doing the job ALL THE TIME. Many of us have families of our own, too. The community has to advocate for us because we are busy teaching their children.

[marisaveilleux]

I feel like you should do voice acting for your next career. You’re funny and you’ve got a great voice for it!

[enb]

As a student one of our lunch staff members said goodbye to me today, after two weeks of working at our school. She was one of the nicest people in our school, always taking the time to greet students and just wish them a good day. I always made sure to wish her a good day as well. It made me incredibly happy and sad to have her say goodbye to me specifically, and yet I really hope that she can find a better job elsewhere in an environment that can support her well. I've only had a few minutes of conversation with her at most because there was no time in the rigorous schedule to even ask about each other's day, and yet she tried anyway. Godspeed to any teachers out there who are struggling or just having a hard time in general, know that there are students who care for you, both in and out of the classroom because you made an impact on us, and we're not going to forget that. Y'all are amazing, and I hope you find what you're looking for. ❤️