‘I think I’m done’: Teachers’ social posts shine a spotlight on the often tough reality of the job
Want an unfiltered look at the reality of constantly dealing with children? Teachers are at their most honest when speaking to fellow educators – but are they oversharing?
Teachers are increasingly opting for radical honesty in their social media posts, sharing the “real side of teaching”, including their stress, uncertainty and anxieties.
Ignoring the disapproval of some veteran teachers, many are sharing much more than just A Day in the Life and Outfit of the Day posts.
Emma Benli, who posts under @edu—planners, has 8053 followers and nearly 400,000 likes, focused instead on the stress of marking, the “dreaded report-writing season”, paperwork and the impact of poor student behaviour.
“Am I patient every day? No. Do I go home exhausted? 100 per cent,” she says.
“Be organised as much as you possibly can, do the best you can and know you are not in it alone,” she says.
One appreciative follower said: “Thanks for sharing! This is so real!”
Many Day in the Life posts share both the stress and upsides of teaching. Former Melbourne-based teacher @mitchyvandijk, detailed life as a casual relief educator before he announced mid-year: “I think I’m done”.
In the post he says: “there are so many aspects of teaching I love, getting that positive energy from the kids” but said he’d worked out “I am not built for teaching”.
“I am not sure if it’s a me problem or a system problem, I think it’s a bit of both,” he says.
The clip attracted many positive comments from other teachers, including one who says: “IT. IS. A. SYSTEM. PROBLEM”.
Other teachers express concerns about how fit they are for the job, with one, Bridgette Keely, posting mid last year that “I said yes to working in a new school tomorrow, and now I’m freaking the f out”.
“I know im (sic) not alone when these fears pop up. What do other teachers do to move past these fears? HELP ME!!” she posted.
Many teachers responded positively, saying they felt the same way.
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Another teacher who posts as “Lilmiss.sunshinee” wrote about how “overwhelmed” she felt before going into a classroom. “Can confirm I was in fact, overwhelmed,” she wrote.
Another teacher, who posts as Miss L’s World, asked other teachers: “What are you doing to feel good and alive?”
One of her posts celebrating a perk of the job – school holidays – received more than 1.6m views. It shows her lying on a beach in the sun with the caption “‘I could never be a teacher’ but I’m here at the beach on a Tuesday while you’re at work”.
It comes as teachers were spoofed on treasure hunt app Drip Run for being “dead behind the eyes” and “slowly dying inside”.
“If you have the bladder of a camel and love being wildly unappreciated, high school teaching might be for you,” one clip says.
“Today I taught the periodic table while someone threw a sandwich at my head,” another spoof teacher said.
“It’s great for someone who craves routine and has already accepted that they won’t retire comfortably,” another said.
The extensive professional sharing by teachers on TikTok is not appreciated by all educators.
Online forums include many comments from those who object to what one teacher calls the “relentless need for validation”.
Another said such posts were “more about optics than pedagogy”.
Do you agree? Leave a comment or email education@news.com.au
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Originally published as ‘I think I’m done’: Teachers’ social posts shine a spotlight on the often tough reality of the job
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