Local well run school - Teacher Today School. Employee Review

1. Direction: the team are very supportive and are always there for teachers, including the two directors who are very transparent. There's a major emphasis on team-building and resource sharing to help teachers in their roles, and they're open to suggestions. Everyone is very nice and there's always a good atmosphere. You also won't be forced to take on any extra classes, and they try to give you your preferred ages/levels where possible. 2. Material: all classrooms are outfitted with interactive whiteboards, which after you get used to them are very useful. The teacher's room is well stocked with different books/games/material for crafts. Also there's online resources like presentations, additional material and a Kahoot account to help teachers with their lessons. Considering we're not paid for lesson planning, this does help cut down on time spent planning. 3. Staff tend to stay for years, with some working here for 10, 15, 30+ years, which is a very reassuring sign from the outside.

1. The pressure in this job was insane for an academy. The syllabi were very tight for all levels with little to no wiggle room, and you feel like you have to sprint through the book with not much time to do as much speaking/communication practice. Exam and reports time was also very stressful, with very tight deadlines to get everything done - depending on the level you have, sometimes only 1.5 days... The attendance/homework lists also had to be completed everyday by a certain time. All this leads to feeling like you can't turn your brain off and pure exhaustion by the end of the term. Everyone acknowledges that it's all too much and there is some annoyance throughout the teaching staff yet nothing is said, which makes you feel like you can't complain. 2. The onboarding of this job was a lot, with the first months being a crush of information. Sometimes things got lost and not everything was explained, which lead to confusion. Also you're observed once or twice more after an already extensive interview process, which includes an observed lesson (done for free...). I felt like I couldn't relax in the first term. 3. Change is SLOW. Things have been done a certain way for a long time, which I feel has lead to the current situation with the syllabi and using certain books that are unsuitable for the age but that can't be changed due to their courses being built with a Moodle platform that getting the students to use is like pulling teeth. 4. You have no say in the exams and revision packs, yet no answers are supplied with them so that's another thing on the to-do list at the end of the term that is already very busy. While we were treated better than most academies and the job was very secure, I couldn't see myself staying as long as some of the older staff due to the stress and pressure of the job for the pay I was given.

Teachers are wonderful people with a lot of experience

The hours are a little late