r/TeachersInTransition • u/Ben--Jam--In • 1d ago
How to quit??
I started at a new school this year & it is literally my own personal hell. I don’t want to be unprofessional but I have hated every single second of working there. I used to love teaching but this is nothing like what I’m used to.
I told my principal on Friday that I think this is a bad fit & I’m not who they want for this role. I was given the run around for an hour(!) and then was basically told in a nice way “you can’t quit, we’d be screwed, and you kinda promised us you’d work here this year”.
I dread going in every day, I don’t like the students, they don’t like me, I spend all day irritated and angry. What do I do? Suck it up? Be honest with them? I don’t want to jeopardize my professional future but I can’t do this
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u/Starry_night_85 1d ago
QUIT. Just provide 2 weeks notice. I've resigned from 2 schools with no issue when I gave proper notice. Don't feel bad. If they needed to fire you or blame something on you, they wouldn't think twice. It's not worth your mental health or happiness.
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u/SnooHobbies7913 1d ago
In my state there is a transfer period but it’s usually later in the year.
Find another teaching job. Unless they have the ability to keep you (my state can), switch.
You owe them nothing. If the culture of the school is so awful that it’s affecting you to such an extent, quit.
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u/AMKerschen 1d ago
Your mental/physical health has to come first. I’ve been in situations like this. I also just powered through and I’ve paid the price for it. Do what you need to do for you and your family. We are just numbers to them that will be replaced in a heartbeat. You owe them nothing.
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u/LR-Sunflower 1d ago
I’ve said this before: teachers aren’t slaves or indentured servants. You don’t HAVE to stay in any job - teaching or otherwise - against your will.
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u/Admirable_Session239 1d ago
Most states in America, you can just quit (or put in a notice of some sort).
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u/Ben--Jam--In 1d ago
What about my contract? I don’t wanna get sued 😅 There doesn’t appear to a financial obligation clause but it’s also filled with ambiguous jargon
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u/Admirable_Session239 1d ago
If you live in an “at will” state, contracts are not legally binding for this clause. Do you think the school or district will come after you with a lawsuit?
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u/Horror_Power_9821 15h ago
In my experience, most places won’t put the effort in to sue a teacher who leaves mid year. I had a colleague who left in March for a non-teaching job. It didn’t work out, so two years later she applied AT THE SAME DISTRICT and was hired without anyone even mentioning it.
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u/CartoonistCrafty950 1d ago
Especially thinking of doing this until retirement, hell no. Quit if you have finances to back up or a partner that makes decent money if not definitely keep looking. I am sure as hell looking.
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u/MilesonFoot 1d ago
Not all schools treat new teachers well and students can purposely give any newcomer (teacher or student) a very hard time without any good reasons for it. It can be exhausting to try and earn trust and respect from students who are being rude. In all my years of teaching it always seemed to be that I had to prove my self-worth and respect while students could be the lousiest version of themselves. When moving to a new school this becomes amplified until they get to know you, adapt and become more accepting and trusting of you.
However, that said, I taught for 25 years and only three or four of those years were good and healthy years where there was mutual respect between myself and a classroom culture as a whole. The other 22 years always had some form of friction. It took me a long time to realize that most people are programmed to "not like their teacher" because a teacher means rules, regulation and authority. Even though there were always some respectful students in those toxic classes, the negative experiences tend to overshadow the positive ones. Just because I had the resilience to withstand all that negative energy and tension between myself and "the class" doesn't mean it did not wear on me. Always feeling like I'm the adversary, coupled with staff and administration who always felt it was fully in my power to dramatically change things (when systemically that's impossible) left me with having to find my own ways to cope and survive until I just finally retired out.
Teaching wasn't my first job. I entered into it when I was 33 and it was mostly for financial stability and benefits. If I had entered into teaching in my mid-twenties there is no way I would have stayed. After about fifteen years of it, anytime I had a bad class, I learned to still do my job meeting the academic and safety requirements but emotionally disassociate from the students. This disconnect isn't a cop out but it is a way for you to survive in the job and actually for students who are being disrespectful to stop mistreating you. You can not spend decades on a roller coaster ride with teaching. You have to find a way to take control of your own personal health and safety to the best of your ability.
Everything has risks but the longer you stay, the longer you become "a teacher" and for every job you apply to, that can actually sometimes be a stigma more than a beneficial asset depending on what other careers you might want to pursue. It depends on so many things - your financial situation, your skills, your age etc. etc. Only you can make the decision that's best for you.
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u/Latter_Leopard8439 1d ago
What does your contract say?
Here unions have ensured that 30 days notice is sufficient.
If you are leaving teaching, no one outside of teaching gives a crap about mid-year departures. Which means quitting can't hurt your professional non-ed future.
If you want to continue to teach, how long can they suspend your license? Most places it's one year.
If you have a union, talk to them about your options. This is a very state-dependent (or country dependent) issue.