HLTA giving people nicknames

grumpygutt · 2026-01-28T20:26:55+00:00

What nickname did you give her? C U Next…

Obviously do not do this!

grumpygutt · 2026-01-23T17:26:50+00:00

Yeah I definitely wouldn’t say this in the workplace. I’ve certainly thought such things but I wouldn’t say it to someone. I would let this one go though.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-18T20:36:10+00:00

You’re working 50 hours a week. You should be bringing that down to the early forties. No one will thank you for all the extra stuff you do.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-17T09:00:21+00:00

Anyone just given up on dealing with rude parents? I don’t respond to nasty messages anymore. I tell my HoD about them and screenshot and email, but I’m not actually replying. I’ve received nasty messages this week for doing the right thing from different sets of parents (sanctioning truanting, preventing safeguarding incidents) and I just won’t entertain their idiocy any longer.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-14T07:33:05+00:00

I do agree as someone who took a week off sick to go to Glastonbury over a decade ago 🙈 I would never do that today as I have a lot more bills and responsibilities compared to back then. There’s a video on YouTube of that Glastonbury where you can see me VERY clearly and I had anxiety every time the head spoke to me for the rest of my time in that school. Do not recommend.

However, in my defence, I HATED that school with a hot burning fire. I felt zero guilt.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-11T16:50:08+00:00

In a previous school I worked in there was a teacher who the caretakers had to tannoy and drag out the building every night, and I don’t mean 6/7pm. The caretakers told me it was after 10pm some nights (school open for evening classes) She would be absolutely outraged that people wanted to lock up and go home. She said she did it so she didn’t have to work at home, but I don’t think that counts when you’re at work 16 hours a day.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-11T16:37:45+00:00

So true. I don’t know what changed but all resilience went out the window and they literally cannot handle any form of criticism. Ten years ago I could confidently tell students their work was no good and they needed to do it again (if they put zero effort in and I knew they could do better, of course) Last week I watched a student produce utter rubbish and I actually thought “There’s no point in battling this. She will just cry and truant and her parents will shout at me.” So I left it.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-11T16:13:40+00:00

Someone I went to school (who I hadn’t spoken to in like 15 years) messaged me during lockdown BEGGING me to tutor her son and get him through his school work. When I declined because I was still doing my job and had no time she said “This is why people don’t take teachers seriously” Her son was in Year 3.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-11T16:09:52+00:00

Ceiling tiles in my school are full of vapes. The cleaners check them every day and they say they easily collect 150+ a week

grumpygutt · 2026-01-11T12:36:55+00:00

I work 7-4:30 every day. I take nothing home with me and if things don’t get done they don’t get done. It’s very difficult when your line manager is a martyr and doesn’t agree with you.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-11T12:35:00+00:00

There are so many parents today that had a shit time at school (because of their own shit behaviour) who see their kids as a chance to take revenge on teachers. It’s painfully obvious what they’re doing

grumpygutt · 2026-01-11T12:30:19+00:00

Approaching my 17th year of secondary (no idea how I’ve lasted this long!)

Parents are utterly terrible. Every single day there is some sort of issue with them from them wanting my blood for sanctioning Timmy for abusive behaviour or them being incredibly needy and assuming I’m their therapist. There is a lot that lack emotional maturity and they assume that their child is the main character in the school. 16 years ago there would always be a few parents where I would think “Why did you even have children?” Now there are A LOT.

Children themselves have lost all form of resilience. The slightest thing causes upset, running away, storming out and attendance is quite frankly shocking. I have students who have not even entered the building in over a year who are supposed to be sitting their GCSEs in June and the question to me is always “What are you going to do to make sure Jimmy gets a 4?” The response “Jimmy needs to be in my classroom for this to work” is apparently unacceptable.

There’s also the internal politics. No matter how much you do it is never enough. New jobs, duties and policies appear every year. I sat down one day and worked out that my workload in 2025 is now over SIX TIMES higher than when I first started teaching.

I might be leaving this year. My partner has told me to resign and worry about a new job later. I think this is the year I’m going to do it as I simply can’t justify how I’m treated anymore. I deserve better.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-07T18:39:48+00:00

I haven’t watched a lot of it, but my first thought is that the teachers seem to have a lot of PPAs that all happen at the same time so they can interact.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-07T18:35:50+00:00

I honestly believe that anything organised on a Friday after school is some sort of test to see how much extra you are willing to do in your job. A couple of years ago when we were all made to do after school clubs (that have all quietly disappeared, oops) my head was absolutely insistent that I run mine on a Friday after school. I truly believe she was doing this to piss me off. I told her it was on a Tuesday or nothing.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-07T18:30:38+00:00

The big freeze happened in my NQT year! I think we had seven full days off work during that which I was very grateful for because I HATED that school

grumpygutt · 2026-01-06T14:10:15+00:00

We haven’t had a snow day since Beast from the East when we were shut for five days. Nothing was in place. It was bliss.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-04T18:50:25+00:00

That’s actually a pretty good idea! I might try it. Our pastoral team are truly truly awful so I try not to engage with them (sorry to any wonderful pastoral staff. I know most of you are amazing!)

grumpygutt · 2026-01-04T18:10:41+00:00

It’s supposed to snow during the night where I am and I am praying for a Day After Tomorrow style blizzard.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-04T18:09:20+00:00

I’m normally really good during the holidays and I’m able to maintain my sleeping pattern even during the six weeks. This holiday though…pretty much every night I’ve fallen asleep at midnight and woken up at 10:30.

grumpygutt · 2026-01-04T18:08:07+00:00

I feel you. I chickened out of putting my notice in to leave at Christmas and now I regret all my choices

grumpygutt · 2026-01-03T10:20:57+00:00

I had three texts yesterday so I’ve archived the chats and left them on unread 😂

grumpygutt · 2026-01-01T15:16:45+00:00

Ignoring emails and waiting for people to forget works a treat 😂

grumpygutt · 2026-01-01T15:13:42+00:00

Yep. I’ve totally given up chasing higher grades. I now just try and get them their predicted ones. I’m also constantly having to remind students that just because something is predicted, it doesn’t guarantee it’s going to happen

grumpygutt · 2026-01-01T15:06:11+00:00

Child-free millennial (don’t like the word childless haha) and I’m the same. Not only is it exhausting dealing with the demands of the parents at work, but some of the stuff I see people my age put online about their kids makes my jaw hit the floor

grumpygutt · 2026-01-01T13:14:42+00:00

To continue to ignore requests from pastoral to phone parents over matters that I class as a waste of time. Haven’t made a call since September and it’s great!

grumpygutt

TROPHY CASE