When a Teacher Like Me is Ready to Quit, Things Are REALLY Bad

OP claims she is no longer able to stomach her two-decade-long career as a teacher due to its high demands. Is it time To quit?

The Quintessential Teacher

“When a teacher like me is ready to quit, things are REALLY bad.”

The original poster, OP, describes herself as the perfect “quintessential” teacher who goes above and beyond for her students. Every evaluation she gets is perfect; she gets teacher-of-the-year recognition and has been in this field for two decades.

Multitasking and Prioritizing her Students

She goes the extra mile to ensure her students are well cared for, addressing their mental health needs and providing essential items. Not only does she arrive early to class, but she also stays late, working tirelessly for each individual student’s success.

No Support in Her role

But she’s done with her job because districts don’t have the stomach to advocate for teachers, and parents don’t seem to care who teaches their children.

OP comments, “I see that teaching is an emotionally abusive, deeply problematic field that conditions educators to believe that their job REQUIRES self-sacrifice and self-harm.”

Quitting Is The Only Option

As a result, she’s leaving and has no intention of ever returning. She hopes other people continue fighting for teachers, so they don’t have to leave the field.

What advice can you give this teacher venting her frustration, and to all teachers for that matter? Is it time that she quits?

Reactions

The comments that the OP has shared demonstrate her strong dedication and care for her students, and it is heartbreaking to hear about how she feels about teaching.

The comments and upvotes for this teacher flooded in as the Redditors shared their opinions.

1. Teachers Expressed Similar Feelings

“If I could quit right now, I would. It’s a thankless soul-crushing job, and I’ve never been so miserable. All people do is scream at me,” one user commented.

“Ditto,” another teacher commented. “Hit the wall in 2017 after 19 years. Two national teaching awards, commercials in campaigns, mentor, home visits, blogs, etc. I will never, ever go back. I mourned for over a year but am much happier now. Thank you for doing the hard work for as long as you did.”

“I understand. I resigned last month after seven years, and I would describe myself as a great teacher to have. It was like the weight of the world was lifted off immediately,” one person said.

2. Pay Them More

One person commented that teachers’ salaries need to reflect the amount of work they put into their job.

Every day, teachers take work home with them and buy classroom things that should not be coming out of their own pockets. Instead, districts should be doing more to provide necessary resources for classrooms and advocate for teachers so that they don’t have to suffer financially.

Ultimately, teachers are making an invaluable contribution to society, and they should be compensated fairly for their hard work.

3. Teachers Are Heros

Some commenters applauded the teacher for taking action and quitting. One user commented: “If you’re leaving teaching now after this long – know that you’re my hero. If you’re someone else reading this that is staying in teaching after all this – know that you’re also my hero.”

Another teacher thanked her for her acts of service, her legacy, and the massive impact she has had on the students. “You’re amazing. Thank you.”

4. Take Care of Yourself

Many users shared that the most important thing for this teacher to do is to take care of herself and make sure she’s in a place mentally where she can be happy.

It’s important to remember that while teaching is an immensely rewarding job, it comes with great responsibility and can be overwhelming. It’s essential to recognize when it’s time to move on, and it’s never worth sacrificing your mental health for a job.

At the end of the day, only you can decide when it’s time to quit. If teaching is no longer fulfilling or satisfying, then it may be time to look into other career paths.

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Conclusion

Teaching is an emotionally challenging job, and there is a lot of talk about the need to provide teachers with more resources and better salaries. The pandemic has exacerbated the already difficult job of teaching, and it’s important to remember to take care of our mental health.

What are your thoughts on the teaching profession, and is there anything we can do to help dedicated teachers like OP?

This post, Teacher Is No Longer Able to Stomach Her Career. Is It Time To Quit? was produced and syndicated by TPR Teaching. The article has been inspired by Reddit and does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of TPR Teaching.