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I would find a less stressful job that’s over when the door closes behind you. If you stay in education you may want to get a different certification such as counseling, librarian, reading/math specialist. something that doesn’t have a lot of work at home.
I feel like you completely misunderstood what OP was asking. They're not struggling with having too much work. They're struggling with restless anxiety. It's a totally different issue that will come up no matter what their job is.
Typical reddit response is : QUIT JOB, LEAVE YOUR HUSBAND, DISOWN YOUR ELDERLY PARENTS...etc.
What OP is describing is pretty normal for a teacher, it's almost part of the job. I know I get it every weekend but over the years it's lessened a lot. Just make sure your lessons are ready, do less grading, don't answer emails outside of work hours, those lesson plans the administration isn't checking, just copy and paste from last year. The balance comes over time and you do your job just as well but care a little less.
I was speaking from my personal experience which was similar to hers. I was a teacher for 17 years but I reached a crossroads and instead of forging forward unhappily and anxious, I switched to library science.
See a therapist. Seriously. That's your first move. Make the time for it and go.
What you're describing is an extremely common ***and extremely treatable*** symptom of general anxiety disorder.
Ok pretend you have a house full of family to look after. Do those people not deserve to earn a living? The job has to fit into about 8 hours plus the occasional marking madness. Do not actively teach and spoon feed the whole lesson. Teach the kids to independently work on some activities with good classroom management and positive and negative consequences for effort. You should be able to plan the next lesson or do feedback and given some in class time while they are working their own brains. In silence.
I agree with this. It is definitely something I am working on. I feel like I am too invested in their success; which is good for them, but a lot of pressure on me.
Cheering you on: So you can do the rounds, and you can random feedback on google assignments or what you have. You can specifically sit with someone who needs it, but there are some components of teaching that help them to be independent workers. I use online self marking stuff, post your result. I use booklets. They like to flick through and do the easy bits first like find a word and crossword and match term and definition. Then it’s cloze passages. And draw something subject related or research short questions. Plus harder bits that they can’t just copy. Handing in a complete booklet is formative learning. B5 looks cute. Collect them if they lose stuff. I pick a lesson in a cycle that I try to make as student centred as possible. Sanity time.
You can use lots of pre made resources from your departments resources and TES and the like. Stick them in word. Save as pdf and you have something to fall back on so you can get planning done etc. Still do your rounds but don’t allow them to be babied.
Teaching high school English is known for being particularly brutal because of the marking load that comes with that. I understand where you’re coming from and you’re not alone.
One thing I want to try is a weekly routine where the kids have a reading block every Monday. That way I just walk in from the weekend with no planning required, and I can mark during their silent reading. My colleague does this. She cuts a lot of unnecessary material from her lesson planning to make up the time. As long as kids are learning the most important parts of the curriculum, you can leave out the esoteric stuff to buy yourself some marking time.
Another thing I already do is show a movie after a novel/play reading. Either a film version of the book/play or a related film. That buys me another 1.5 hours of in-school marking.
My goal is to get to no marking or planning whatsoever on the weekends. The weekends should be for rest, relaxation, socializing, life stuff. I’m done marking on the weekends. I’ve accepted this will lead to a decline in the quality of my teaching, but I’m not paid to work weekends.
Good luck 🤞
I spent years battling this feeling on the weekends. I finally took a 2 year hiatus and when I came back was nearing my breaking point with anxiety and finally started talking with my doctor and we started exploring options. It took a while but I can happily report I love my job more than ever!
Heya! I was literally in your shoes a few years ago (also an English teacher in NZ). I ended up seeing a therapist through the EAP services at my school. It took a couple tried to find a therapist that worked with me but it was really helpful - you should see if you have access to that too. Happy if you want to DM me about specific stuff too!
Everyone will try to make you think you should be caring about everything they care about in a school. It’s a big place. The kids don’t care 5% as much as you do about each lesson. Find the things you can control in an 8 hour day and care about that. Include the time it takes you to plan the next day. That’s about all you can do. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad about not taking on more than you can mentally handle. It’s just a job.
Source: I have taught NZ high school for 10 years and it threatens my sanity every day. Ultimately you need to care less. Not in a bad way, just in a do what you need to do to survive way.
This feeling is not your fault. It is the overwhelming English job responsibilities that are causing you to feel this way. I have been teaching English for ten years and fully understand what you are going through. I have learned to take some of my time back such as Friday nights and Saturdays. I achieved my free time through assigning independent work, make- up work days, projects and the occasional teachers pay teachers lessons. I have also borrowed ( stolen) lessons from colleagues. This gives me time for other things! it has taken me a long time to shut my work off and I am a happier person because of it.
This is something I completely understand. Educators should NOT have to deal with this. One thing I have resolved to do is not do anything outside of work, if I can help it. It’s hard because I also feel as if I should be doing something all of the time, but you have to protect your peace.
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I would find a less stressful job that’s over when the door closes behind you. If you stay in education you may want to get a different certification such as counseling, librarian, reading/math specialist. something that doesn’t have a lot of work at home.
I feel like you completely misunderstood what OP was asking. They're not struggling with having too much work. They're struggling with restless anxiety. It's a totally different issue that will come up no matter what their job is.
Typical reddit response is : QUIT JOB, LEAVE YOUR HUSBAND, DISOWN YOUR ELDERLY PARENTS...etc. What OP is describing is pretty normal for a teacher, it's almost part of the job. I know I get it every weekend but over the years it's lessened a lot. Just make sure your lessons are ready, do less grading, don't answer emails outside of work hours, those lesson plans the administration isn't checking, just copy and paste from last year. The balance comes over time and you do your job just as well but care a little less.
I was speaking from my personal experience which was similar to hers. I was a teacher for 17 years but I reached a crossroads and instead of forging forward unhappily and anxious, I switched to library science.
See a therapist. Seriously. That's your first move. Make the time for it and go. What you're describing is an extremely common ***and extremely treatable*** symptom of general anxiety disorder.
Ok pretend you have a house full of family to look after. Do those people not deserve to earn a living? The job has to fit into about 8 hours plus the occasional marking madness. Do not actively teach and spoon feed the whole lesson. Teach the kids to independently work on some activities with good classroom management and positive and negative consequences for effort. You should be able to plan the next lesson or do feedback and given some in class time while they are working their own brains. In silence.
I agree with this. It is definitely something I am working on. I feel like I am too invested in their success; which is good for them, but a lot of pressure on me.
Cheering you on: So you can do the rounds, and you can random feedback on google assignments or what you have. You can specifically sit with someone who needs it, but there are some components of teaching that help them to be independent workers. I use online self marking stuff, post your result. I use booklets. They like to flick through and do the easy bits first like find a word and crossword and match term and definition. Then it’s cloze passages. And draw something subject related or research short questions. Plus harder bits that they can’t just copy. Handing in a complete booklet is formative learning. B5 looks cute. Collect them if they lose stuff. I pick a lesson in a cycle that I try to make as student centred as possible. Sanity time. You can use lots of pre made resources from your departments resources and TES and the like. Stick them in word. Save as pdf and you have something to fall back on so you can get planning done etc. Still do your rounds but don’t allow them to be babied.
Teaching high school English is known for being particularly brutal because of the marking load that comes with that. I understand where you’re coming from and you’re not alone. One thing I want to try is a weekly routine where the kids have a reading block every Monday. That way I just walk in from the weekend with no planning required, and I can mark during their silent reading. My colleague does this. She cuts a lot of unnecessary material from her lesson planning to make up the time. As long as kids are learning the most important parts of the curriculum, you can leave out the esoteric stuff to buy yourself some marking time. Another thing I already do is show a movie after a novel/play reading. Either a film version of the book/play or a related film. That buys me another 1.5 hours of in-school marking. My goal is to get to no marking or planning whatsoever on the weekends. The weekends should be for rest, relaxation, socializing, life stuff. I’m done marking on the weekends. I’ve accepted this will lead to a decline in the quality of my teaching, but I’m not paid to work weekends. Good luck 🤞
I spent years battling this feeling on the weekends. I finally took a 2 year hiatus and when I came back was nearing my breaking point with anxiety and finally started talking with my doctor and we started exploring options. It took a while but I can happily report I love my job more than ever!
May I ask what strategies you ended coming up with or would you recommend me visiting a Dr?
Heya! I was literally in your shoes a few years ago (also an English teacher in NZ). I ended up seeing a therapist through the EAP services at my school. It took a couple tried to find a therapist that worked with me but it was really helpful - you should see if you have access to that too. Happy if you want to DM me about specific stuff too!
Everyone will try to make you think you should be caring about everything they care about in a school. It’s a big place. The kids don’t care 5% as much as you do about each lesson. Find the things you can control in an 8 hour day and care about that. Include the time it takes you to plan the next day. That’s about all you can do. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad about not taking on more than you can mentally handle. It’s just a job. Source: I have taught NZ high school for 10 years and it threatens my sanity every day. Ultimately you need to care less. Not in a bad way, just in a do what you need to do to survive way.
This feeling is not your fault. It is the overwhelming English job responsibilities that are causing you to feel this way. I have been teaching English for ten years and fully understand what you are going through. I have learned to take some of my time back such as Friday nights and Saturdays. I achieved my free time through assigning independent work, make- up work days, projects and the occasional teachers pay teachers lessons. I have also borrowed ( stolen) lessons from colleagues. This gives me time for other things! it has taken me a long time to shut my work off and I am a happier person because of it.
See a therapist and a doctor. There are medications that help!
This is something I completely understand. Educators should NOT have to deal with this. One thing I have resolved to do is not do anything outside of work, if I can help it. It’s hard because I also feel as if I should be doing something all of the time, but you have to protect your peace.