— Kid is blowing up robots or monsters or whatever in their “educational game.” This might go on for a good while without any questions being asked to the student.

— A question finally pops up on the screen. Kid switches to another tab, looks up question with AI, and answers it. Rinse and repeat.

— Kids asked about this will just shrug and say: “Nobody really reads the questions. We just play the game.”

— And yet consultants and administrators hype up these programs because “Look at all the points they have! They love it! They’re learning so much!”

What the hell is going on!?

Step 1: Teachers use AI to ceate formative assignments without the AI's output being reviewed let alone modified for their specific teaching style.

Step 2: Students use AI to do the assignment without reading it / attempting to complete it themselves first, without limiting AI usage to analyzing their work.

Step 3: Teachers use AI to grade those assignments and/or to write responses to the student, without the student's work being read by that teacher, without the AI's grading being verified by that teacher, and/or without the AI's responses being reviewed by that teacher.

Rinse and repeat.

7th grade ELA teacher here. Classroom management has always been my strength except for this year. Here’s what I’ve tried:

- Expectations are posted
- Assigned seats (several times)
- Pods then moved into rows
- Contact parents regularly
- Redirect behavior
- Reflection sheet
- Calm corner
- Mini lessons to maximize time working on a task

What we can’t do:
- Take away recess
- Assign detention

What have you tried that works? I’m genuinely going crazy.

If someone hasn’t already, I’m sure soon enough an insurance broker will visit your school to talk to all of the new teachers. They’ll be super duper nice and try to sell you on a “risk-free guaranteed lifetime income” after retirement. Do not fall for it. These annuities charge massive annual fees, grow very very little, and can severely limit how your retirement contributions are invested.

If you’re already in one, roll it to an IRA, even if you’re still within the surrender period.

Just a friendly PSA to my teachers out there :)

This momfluencer account was just recommended to me and from what I can tell, her brand is mostly telling IEP parents how to fight with teachers for accommodations. And then there’s this post. Basically, she writes how impossible it is to be a perfect mom to a neurodivergent child when you have -gasp- ONE other child?? And society should stop trying to make her feel bad for not following the typical recommended accommodations because it’s actually impossible to meet TWO totally different need sets in the same household?? Girl now imagine that plus 30 other kids. Obviously not to say it’s not hard to be a mom, just that the double standards from what this type of parent expect from themselves vs others are insane.

Editing to say: she’s right! It is impossible to meet even two different sets of needs correctly. I’m only roasting her because she seems to be profiting off of taking teachers to task for the same thing.

One of my kids came in today, saw his grade on his short story and I could see him holding back tears. Like on one hand, I know he put a lot of time and energy into it and I felt bad seeing his reaction. But his story was the lowest grade I gave so far because there were so many convention mistakes, no quotation marks around dialogue, and he had a paragraph that ran for 2 pages without any sort of paragraph break.

So it was difficult to even try reading it, but then seeing his reaction, I felt a bad.

They're going to get a chance to revise their stories, so he's not stuck with that grade.

I teach preschool. (Ik I’m not a ‘real teacher’ I just thought this was the best place to ask lol.) Last week a child sneezed and I responded “bless you.” I got the dirtiest looks from 3 BHTs standing near. I’m not even religious; that’s just what I’ve heard my entire life when someone sneezes. Is saying bless you to a child wrong/bad/not socially acceptable?

I am a high school Earth and Environmental Science teacher in the US. For the past 2 weeks, we have been doing a lot of graphing and analysis of temperature data. Today, after 2 weeks of this, I asked them how they would calculate the difference between two temperatures. Out of a room of 28 kids, the only one to answer said, "add?"

It took myself and my co-teacher 4 different times explaining what we were asking them to do for them to grasp that they needed to subtract one temperature from the other. In the past 2 weeks, I've seen this happen many times. Asking them to calculate the difference should, in theory, trigger them thinking "difference: subtraction" but that association is clearly not happening. They are also incapable of setting up graphs and plotting a few points on a graph. They seem somewhat capable of READING graphs, but actually doing the work is where they get tripped up.

Of course, this isn't all of my students. Some of them are figuring it out without the multiple prompts and hints. But I'd say it's around 70% of my students who can't do these basic word problems on their own.

What's happening here? Is there some deficit in the math curriculum? Is it COVID? I don't want to shame them, but at a certain point this should be embarrassing for them. I also do not have time to go back and teach them basic math. It feels impossible to get them to be able to do meaningful analysis if they're not capable of very basic problem solving.

I've been in the corporate world for almost 15 years and I can't do it anymore. I'm a project manager and I spent 60 hours a week staring at spreadsheets so I can please executives that I've never met. I desperately want to do something that feels meaningful, and for as long as I can remember I've wanted to be a teacher. I loved volunteer tutoring when I was in college, but I went the corporate route because I thought I'd make more money. Technically, I suppose that's true, but I've made enough money. Now I want to be a middle school science teacher.

The thing is, I don't think I can realistically quit my day job in order to go back to school for a teaching certificate. My wife is a SAHM for another year until our youngest starts school. So I'm the primary breadwinner and need to keep my full-time teaching position.

Has anyone here done a similar(ish) career change? How did you bridge the gap?

Forgot to mention I'm in California in case that's relevant.

So in past schools I’ve worked in - I’ve always made blookets to review with in addition to study guides. I always provide google forms after the test asking students what they primarily used to study. 99% of the time, the answer was “mostly blooket”. I spend a lot of time making my study guides, key terms, big ideas, study questions, rather than just giving them the information. The idea is that students will go through the process of actually studying - relying on the work they’ve done (ex the notes they’ve taken an kept organized, the work they’ve completed etc). When I realized they were just drilling the blooket, I thought to myself “what am I teaching them here? That their teachers should essentially do their studying for them, and they click through this premade game until they memorize the content?”.

In light of this, I’ve done away with the blookets this year, and my students are genuinely angry and confused why I would do this. “All my other teachers do it” “it’s how I study best!”. Heard this a million times over the last week.

My study guides are robust, but require students to 1) to have taken good notes and kept materials organized, and 2)put in the effort of studying to actually get something out of them. I told them they are free to make their own quizlets/blookets/kahoots if they’d like, but that this is how it’s going to me in this class.

I’ll grade their tests later this week and have more data to go on then, but wanted to ask for your opinions.

Is this a hill worth standing on? Should I just go back to doing the legwork for them in their studying and make them blookets? Do I have a fundamental misunderstanding of what studying means🤦‍♂️?

Let me know your thoughts. Thanks! (10th/11th grade history for context!)

Edit: I do make jeopardy review games for in class, but that’s it in terms of gamified studying!

Second grade. Have been having issues with him for weeks. He’s on a behavior plan, MTSS, 504, whatever. All the things.

He threw a chair at my head today for trying to get him to engage in a phonics lesson. It hit me hard in the neck and collarbone. Admin came and took him. He was back in my room in two hours. His consequences were the office visit, parent phone call, and he had to write me an apology letter.

My neck hurts. I’ve never had a child injure me before. I have two other students on behavior plans who are aggressive with each other.

I went to a scheduled leadership meeting after school and neither the principal nor the AP said a word to me or asked if I was okay. I’m not.

I’d appreciate any words of encouragement or advice, I guess.

It is my first year teaching and everyone has told me the goal is to just survive. I understand that this job is no easy feat and that it is supposed to be an overwhelming mess your first year, but I am so burnt out.

I started off at Old School at the beginning of the school year and had an awful time with a mess of admin and some kinda terrible kids. I was on the cusp of quitting, until our district had budget cuts and teachers got laid off or reshuffled to a new school. I was reshuffled to a new school.

New School is great. The admin is great, the other teachers are great, and I like the kids more. Huge improvement all the way around. But my kids have not had a teacher for about the whole first quarter. Not to mention that while the classes are in my field (math), I jumped from Algebra 1 to Algebra 2 Honors and Math for College Algebra, so I am adjusting to new courses that I haven't dealt with since I was in high school. Older kids, different needs, two preps instead of one. Plus I am speed running quarter 1 material so we can be actually prepared for quarter 2 material, which I may also have to speed through.

I also have to do a mandatory 1st year course that is not self-paced with 7 assignments due every Saturday, which I am already falling behind on.

I have been planning every day less than 24hrs in advance. Every time I try to relax and take care of myself, I feel as though I fall behind. I dared go out to a Halloween event this weekend and did not have time to plan and prepare today. So I called out just so I can grade and do the things I need to do and hopefully get more than a day ahead.

I am so tired guys. I love teaching and the high that comes from a child getting the spark in their eyes when they genuinely say "I get it!" That part is great. But the everything else is exhausting, especially as a first year. Also especially exhausting with starting fresh at a new school mid semester.

Seems like the new trend is to ragebait the teacher if you don't want to be in class or can't understand the material that day because you can't read in 9th grade. It's gotten so bad this year. Every day I come to work and expect to have a few students whose entire mission is to aggressively ragebait me until they get their desired negative attention.

I try to ignore it. It gets worse. Today, I did that and a girl flipped over an entire table because I was ignoring her screaming my name for over 15 minutes.

I don't understand this. I would have never done this to a teacher. I didn't want to be noticed.

Is this isolated just to me?

I have a student who has the impulse control of a distracted squirrel. Shouts out inappropriate comments, touches classmates next to him, has just been the bane of my existence since the first day of school. And for some odd reason he thinks he’s my favorite student. Today we were discussing totalitarian regimes and Germany came up. I overheard him say to his buddy “I want to do the Nazi salute” and I simply gave him that look so he wouldn’t get the satisfaction from his peers he yearns for. This student still did it. I documented and reported it and he got a detention (should be worse but I digress). I overheard him later talking about me to his friends calling me a fucking asshole. Actions have consequences buddy.

Edit: Apologies for the formatting I’m typing this from the gym on my phone.

I’m a third year high school teacher and I was always told that it’s best to call home and develop relationships with parents asap, but I feel like more and more often parents don’t really want to believe anything that I have to say and phone calls just turn defensive even when I try to be positive for most of the call. No other teachers in my district really contact home for any reason, so I always seem like the bad guy (even when I’ve heard the same things from other teachers about students). The parents always say “this is the first time I’ve ever heard anything negative from a teacher, so I’m just shocked you’re having any issues.” I feel like I may just need to start dealing with things exclusively with students. It’s just hard when a student is just being disrespectful and ignoring anything I say. Does anyone have any advice on getting through to students? I already show up to their games and activities and try to ask them about their passions. I just feel like I’m running out of ways to form positive relationships with some of them.

I also want to say that this is a small handful of students that I have this issue with. Most of my students are great and have great relationships with me.

It makes way more sense in writing now than it did when I was informed of this practice happening during pack-up time today. The pulling of one’s collar, as if you’re about to “jack them up,” I guess. That is not where my head went. We have chosen the new term of “pulling their shirt.” It’s the 50th day of school. Send help. (They weren’t even actually fighting, or attempting to fight, which is only half the reason that it’s funny.)

I have had a serious issue since the start of the school year with getting to sleep on nights before the week starts (mostly Sundays but with a few holidays it’s happened on Monday nights too). I’ve tried so much and nothing has been very consistent that I wonder.. does smoking weed help anyone with falling asleep before school nights? I usually save that kind of activity for long school breaks but am curious if it might be of some help here.

I recently left my MSD (Moderate and Severe Disabilities) teaching position in the middle of the school year, and I have a lot of thoughts about why teaching has become an unsustainable profession.
The workload is genuinely insurmountable. The expectations placed on you as the teacher, as well as the expectations placed on your paraprofessionals, can feel impossible to meet.

You’re expected to manage instruction, IEPs, progress monitoring, documentation, behavior, communication with families, scheduling, staffing issues, and a million other responsibilities, all while making sure every student receives the individualized support they deserve.

And somehow, that’s still not enough.

You take work home. You stay late. You spend your weekends catching up. You sacrifice your own time, energy, and mental health trying to make sure everything gets done. Then, despite all of that, someone is constantly coming into your classroom to scrutinize what you’re doing, point out what you’re doing wrong, or remind you of another expectation you’re supposedly not meeting.
It becomes a never-ending cycle of trying to catch up while feeling like you’re constantly failing.
What makes it even harder is that teaching attracts people who genuinely care. Many of us are people pleasers. We want to help. We want to be good at our jobs. We want to meet every expectation, support every child, make every parent feel heard, and be the kind of teacher our students deserve. When we’re told something isn’t getting done, our first instinct is often to figure out how to work harder rather than question whether the workload is reasonable in the first place.

And the system takes advantage of that.
There is always one more thing you could do for a student. One more resource you could create. One more hour you could spend planning. One more document you could perfect. One more thing you could do to support your paraprofessionals. There is no natural stopping point because there will always be another need, another expectation, and another task waiting for you.

In special education, that weight feels especially heavy because the stakes are so personal. These are children who need us. They deserve individualized instruction, appropriate supports, dignity, and opportunities to grow. You know what they need, and you want to give it to them. But wanting to provide those things and actually having the time, staffing, resources, and support to provide them are two very different things.

The love of children and the desire to make a difference cannot compensate for an unsustainable workload, chronic stress, inadequate support, and a workplace culture that makes you feel like you’re never doing enough.

That is the part I wish more people understood.
Leaving in the middle of the school year was not a decision I made lightly. Teachers know exactly what that means. We worry about our students, our coworkers, the people who have to pick up the pieces, and whether we’re letting anyone down. Even when we’re struggling, we feel responsible for everyone else.

But at what point are we allowed to acknowledge that we’re human, too?

Why does being a dedicated teacher seem to require sacrificing so much of yourself? Why is working outside contracted hours treated as an expectation rather than a warning sign? Why are teachers expected to meet increasingly complex demands without a realistic conversation about time, staffing, resources, and what can reasonably be accomplished in a day?

And why does leaving feel like a personal failure when the working conditions may be the very thing that made staying impossible?

I still care about education. I still care about children. I still believe teachers can make a tremendous difference in students’ lives. None of that changed when I walked away.

What changed was my willingness to keep sacrificing myself to prove that I cared.

You should not have to destroy your own well-being to demonstrate your commitment to children.

I’m curious how other teachers feel, especially those in special education. Have you reached a point where the workload and expectations made staying feel impossible? Have you left teaching, considered leaving, or found a way to make it sustainable?
I don’t think the answer is simply that teachers aren’t resilient enough anymore. I think we need to start asking why so many people who genuinely want to do this work are reaching a point where they can no longer afford to.

Hello everyone,

My wife is a middle school teacher and has been one for the last 5 years. She's always loved her job and loved the kids, but the two schools she worked at before her current one had terrible admin that did not support staff in any way.

She finally transitioned to a new school that has much better admin, and since the school year began, she was happier than I had ever seen her in this field. She would come home and tell me about her day so excitedly and enthusiastically and it just did me so much good. I was so grateful that she seemed to be somewhere she finally loved.

She had parent teacher conferences last week, and one went very poorly. A father went home and lied to his wife about things my wife had said during the conference, the parent filed a formal complaint with the board and now my wife is being investigated. All of that past trauma and hurt from her other schools came back to her, and now I can see her sinking back into the same feeling of helplessness and depression. I love my wife dearly, but after dealing with so many issues like this over the last 5 years, I don't know what else I can do to help her. She's always struggled with self-confidence, and was told by both her past principals that she is a horrible teacher (basically word-for-word), though her current principal has said she's doing a great job. When things like this happen, she tends to not really fight back and just accepts that whatever is being leveled at her is true, even what it's an obvious lie, and that she must actually be bad at her job.

I know she's not alone in her experiences, but it breaks my heart every time to see her get so excited about her profession only to have a parent or principal or both just drag her back down. How can I help her? What can I do/say? I feel awful for her and try all the time to reassure her of her worth as a person and skill as a teacher (her kids always adore her), but no matter what, she just accepts whatever critiques as being the truth.

Can anyone please comment who has gone through similar things, or maybe looks at events like this in a similar way? I'd like to have something to show to her that helps her feel less alone.

In all my years of teaching I used to leave my classroom feeling like I’ve achieved something with my kids and knowledge was shared but now I feel like I always leave my classroom exhausted without saying anything useful most of the time I’m just correcting behaviors and repeating myself because these kids seem so stupid they don’t understand the simplest concepts. I feel like I’m fighting for my life I hate my job so much what is happening to kids these days. Kids used to be so smart and empathetic and curious.

If one more elementary-aged kid (especially Kinder) says “bruh/bro” one more time, I’m gonna lose it! Stfu and learn to tie your shoe, use Kleenex, and say please/thank you, BRUH!

ALSO. Unrelated. Can I just also say how sad it is that kids don’t seem to have an imagination anymore? I read books aloud (fantasy) and there are constant comments about “bruh, that can’t really happen! The dog can’t do that!” or something to that effect. 🤦‍♀️ And I have to calmly, but often impatiently, emphasize that that’s what is amazing and lovely about stories and reading! Anything can happen! They can be magical and silly and totally unrealistic and that’s why we read! Stories can be about anything! One even said, as we watched a read aloud because I didn’t have access to the book yet, “Bruh, that’s AI!” 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

Rant over. Happy Sunday to all you doing the good Lawd’s work!

What are the signs that a new teacher just sucks (beyond what is normal for a first year?)

Every day I go home, either thinking I’m great at classroom management or I suck. I can’t tell if I’m too nice or if I’m too much of a jerk. Some days I go home thinking my lessons are awesome but more often than not I’m wondering if anything I’m doing is doing anything. I have an observation is around the corner and I’m panicking because it’s my one class that needs to be redirected every minute. How do I know for sure if I suck or if this is just part of the deal being a first year?

I thought maybe I’d share with all you amazing people what I’m seeing in the corporate world. I’m head of organizational and people development. We have interns and recent college grads.

I’ve been doing this for 25 years. New college grads don’t know how to use computers. No email. No excel. No word. No PPT.

I’ve had a few new grads and interns ask me to speak to their moms.

I take them to dinners with execs and they don’t know how to behave.

Tell me how I help college interns stop relying on their mothers!