Challenges of teaching should not outweigh the joy of being a teacher

Monday 5 November 2018

There is much in the news about the crisis in teacher recruitment and retention.

A report just out shows that recruitment targets have been missed for five successive years with the government facing a significant challenge to recruit enough teachers, particularly in subjects like maths and sciences.

We know that low teacher numbers across the country pose real issues for schools in terms of recruiting high quality staff with the specialist knowledge and skills to bring the best out in their pupils.

And a recent report from the Education Policy Institute (EPI) warns that a lack of staff has already meant a worsening pupil-teacher ratio, rising from 15.5 pupils per teacher in 2010 to nearly 17 in 2018.

This national problem stems from a raft of different factors from suppressed pay through to the burdens of constant change and increasing workloads.

I would never seek to downplay these concerns. Nevertheless I want to focus here on the positives of what remains the most privileged of careers.

Teaching is rewarding beyond measure. I came into teaching because of my own education. Certain teachers in particular stood out as inspirational, and their names are still etched on my memory decades later: Mr Wright, Mrs Colley, Mr Elliott, Mr Stevenson. Through them I fell in love with learning itself, revelling in knowing ‘stuff’.

I learned also about compassion, empathy, courtesy and respect. A great teacher gives you more than knowledge of their subject, they provide a pathway through life. To have the opportunity to try to emulate such wonderful people, whilst also getting paid to teach and share my passion for music was irresistible. And over the years, when former pupils have contacted me to update me on their own exciting lives and careers, I have asked myself what other job can give you a reward which comes even close to knowing that you made a difference to the life of a young person?

So it is sad when teachers leave teaching, or when bright passionate people choose not to join the profession. I understand it, I empathise with them, but I am still sad that they have felt that the challenges have outweighed the joys of being a teacher. If I were starting out again, I would be a teacher every single time. I can think of no other profession where you have such an impact, and can feel such a buzz.

And when the marking stretches into the night or fills the weekends (as it does), you can allow your thoughts to drift to the children, now adults, for whom you made a difference, and who might have your name etched into their memory, just as I carry my childhood teachers with me.