Mobile phones have spawned a generation of students who think teachers are oblivious to the fact they're looking at their crotches, smiling. Hate to throw the sweeping "back in the day" comment in here, but we never had Google translate to cheat in French, and certainly no Wikipedia for quick answers about History. If we're honest though, they're probably not on educational sites. Let's not go there.
2. Kids Having "Accidents" In Class
Whether it's wetting themselves or diarrhoea - they certainly don't prepare you for this in university. Oh, and let's not forget the joy of periods (and leaking on chairs) either. All in a days work.
1. When People Think You Have A Ridiculous Amount Of Holidays
"Teachers have it so easy!" Say that again when I have a freshly sharpened pencil in my hand, I dare you. There is no tired like end of the year teacher tired. Still, teaching is the only profession you take a day off work, to catch up on work. A huge amount of those holidays are spent sweating over paperwork: you're either lesson planning; thinking about lesson planning; talking to our friends and family about lesson planning; or browsing Pinterest for lesson planning ideas. Another hefty chunk of it is, you know it, the big M - the torture of marking. Next time you hear someone commenting on the "state of teaching" today, or how beneficial teacher's jobs are, or that we're in it for the money and holidays... show them this. What are your teaching pet peeves? Have you had any nightmare experiences in the classroom? Feel free to share your problems/stories in the comments below!
