We Are Not Happy. Why?

It's telling how, simply by glancing through the Tomorrow.sg website, one can come up with the number of grudges, grunts, and overall noises of dissatisfaction against the System.

Why I Hate Teaching
D&T above all else

And wow, even a petition for a principal to please, quit already.

Ironically, I remember when I went for the mandatory Reflective Practice course, the trainer was trying to tell us that we had the power to change our situation. If we could just take our own positive affirmative action, then we could drastically change our teaching outlook and approach, and generally, at least life would look a little better for us.

I think I can only half agree with her.

Firstly, there are just too much crap going on outside of the actual teaching that is causing dissatisfaction within the teaching profession. In my very-short career, talking to other contract teachers and senior teachers and reading other blogs has yielded one result: that it is NOT the children that is causing the dissatisfaction, but all other things like the leadership, the administration, the non-curriculuar activities.

Above all, it is the expectations. It is telling in the trainer's presentation that the reason why WE suffer is because of US and that WE can take action to solve that, while having faith that the system is doing its best behind the scenes to help us.

There is a lot expected of teachers isn't it? Is it because we are working in a vocation [as opposed to an occupation] that people think it's only right that we suffer all these with a whisper of complaint? I feel as if we are expected everyday to do more and more and more for the children, but only for that few extra peanuts. [and not gold-plated ones, to boot]

But on the flipside, I have seen situations where the teacher in question could have avoided extra work with a few simple actions. For example, one BT in school was looking particularly strained because 3 different HODs had suddenly called in her children's workbooks for checking. And suddenly she had to examine and sort out piles of English, Math and Social studies workbooks and files to be handed in the next day

I told her to tell the HODs that she was swamped, and to ask for an extension. After all, it was the eve of the holidays! Why can't she just hand in the books either during the week, or even in Term 4?

She didn't. Maybe she was nervous, after all, a BT telling a HOD that she can't do it, would she look bad? Would the HOD just demand it of her anyway? Maybe she was afraid that it would give her a bad, or unprofessional image to the HOD, but still! Isn't this a pretty impossible uphill task, even for a senior teacher???

Why not at least make the effort to ask, in a professional way, and explain the situation to the HOD? If you asked, at least you get the chance of a reprieve, rather than suffering in silence all the while.

[anyway I learned my lesson from her situation. From next week, I'm hounding my students for all workbooks, worksheets and files, and I'm making sure they stay in school, unless it's exam period. That way anytime someone wants to see my books, they're prepared.]

I hope our suffering is not caused by our own silence. There is only so much that we can all take to a certain point. Why allow others to put you past that point? If you think people are shitting on you, then raise a stink and make sure they know of it!

I hope I never reach the point where I suffer things blindly.