From the ChalkBoard to the DashBoard
Careers following
Teaching UKED Magazine / UKEDchat Exclusive Feature It is often reported how many teachers leave the profession early, most notably Newly Qualified Teachers who leave the job within five years of qualifying. Within the UK the figures reveal that 47,700 teachers left their jobs in the year 2010-11, and whilst these figures are alarming and easy to access, very little is known what teachers do when they leave the profession, especially before retirement age. Towards the end of 2013, UKEdChat opened up a survey asking what careers former teachers followed once they â–ź Do you have that Sunday night feeling? Another sleepless night worrying about marking? You are not alone.
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left the profession, with the results proving to be continually of interest to the online community who actively visit the page for inspiration. Our online survey asked teachers why their former colleagues left the profession, with an overwhelming reaction relating to stress. Internal politics (within school), bullying, and the work / life balance clash were also cited regularly from respondents. But, armed with teaching degrees, Masters Degrees and a genuine passion for their subject speciality, former teachers have turned away from the profession; instead preferring careers which do not share the same stresses. Our survey revealed an eclectic mix of careers former teachers turned to when the school environment proved too much for them: TV Producer; wildlife officer; journalist; solicitor; consultant; and administration were some of the common responses, but other career opportunities included accountancy; self-employment; and one former UK teacher is now happily driving passengers around as a coach driver. One former primary school teacher from London told us, “I could feel the way my school was going, and I had experienced it before, it was becoming more top-down, there was more management interference, and it was more dominated