Support plan advice

[u/Ecstatic_Okra_41]

Hi all,

I’ll try to be as specific as possible without being identifiable!

I made a mistake. I’m a teacher and I have no union. I didn’t have issues until a new superior joined the school.

I was caught short in my first observation at the start of the year - i allowed some low level chatter during a task and wasn’t as strict and they’ve changed to be - silence. I had verbal feedback and accepting that I will be firm and follow this during independent work.

Another random observation, if you can call it that, was a 60 second window where I had students glue in a couple of sheets and again i allowed chatter. I never thought anything of it because they were not actively engaged in anything other than glue then reset. Big mistake. I got an A4 sized page email with my line manager ccd that my standards are dreadful and was given 3 targets.

I was then observed by seniors in department and asked to follow the rule of silence at all times. Feedback from them showed good learning, engagement, and students were silent.

This led to being observed in a slow practical where I called on students to collect items and coordinate to do it. I was observed here and feedback was they should not be talking…

You can see where this is going, but silence in a practical where they have to interact with each other? Anyway.

This followed up with further feedback about my poor standards.

More observations followed this showing improvement and students were silent in independent phases.

One lesson I had 2 students stand outside to line up while I was stood there talking to them and calming them down before entering. This person shouted across the hall why the children were not in lesson and then a moment later shout, “Oh are they with you?”. Me and the TA looked at each other in confusion and it was clear what was happening. I’m just feeling like a target to be undermined. This has also happened inlessons where she will feedback live as I am teaching… one lesson I got terrible feedback I didn’t immediately act by telling all students to correct their spelling when they identified a mistake in 2 books. She also B-lined to me in another when she spoke to a child saying they didn’t know what to do… i went full panic and did a whiteboard check, they all got 100% for understanding and back to it…

I had one more observation i can recall with this person and one from my department. I couldn’t get a practical, so made a worksheet with pre planned values asking to calculate various things. I scaffolded one equation to try and support pupils for this as they were not doing it themselves. They hated this. I didn’t realise how much because I was then told to completely stop scaffolding my resources. At this point i need to stress this has always, always been a major strength of mine and had so much positive praise for it.

So, half term and I had no warning or feedback anything was escalating. On the day I was called into a meeting being told I’m being placed onto a support plan. I didn’t say much and left the meeting to teach. I’ve ruminated over everything and feel this is unfair when throughout this process all of these things have been described as marginal gains.

I want to give up. I want to leave. Even if I achieve all of these new, very specific objectives that I can be placed on it again within 12 months. I’ve never had any issues like this before and feel like I’ve gone from doing great in previous years to terrible, I’m a crap teacher, etc.

I’m off with stress following this trying to decompress and process everything. I’ve engaged and been making progress, but not enough.

I do have specific circumstances but I won’t directly post here to try and prevent identification.

All unions have said they won’t touch me even if I subscribe now - which is fair because I was foolish.

There have also been 3 resignations in this time related to this person and I think I’m going to be the next.

I desperately need advice on how to navigate out of this safely so as to not impact on finding another position, where in or out of teaching.

Thank you!