Dear Education System

Dear Minister for Youth and Education,

I am 37 going on 38 navigating a tumultuous recovery from burnout as a result of working within a chronically underfunded education system.

Straight up the system is broken and the bandaid needs to come off. Please stop patching it up with new ideas, incentives, frameworks, jargon and MODERN LANGUAGES.

I do not want this to be a note of anger or frustration as that will neither help me or you. But can we just take a moment and ask ourselves what is it we are trying to achieve here? What profession assumes you can operate multiple disciplines without providing training opportunities, resources, funding, manpower? Unfortunately many. The government are expecting the best from an underfunded society. Passionate, intelligent, creative and driven individuals are leaving their professions or worse moving abroad. The health system is in floods of tears. And it is just not good enough.

Pay is important but when it comes to my mental, physical, emotional and social wellbeing it doesn’t come close to trumping. What is life if you’re constantly running on an over active nervous system, frequently ill and feeling like a failure due to the high standards you place on yourself but even more so the conditions and expectations we are subjected to; tick every box under the sun and cater, provide, support, empathise, differentiate, assess, liaise, collaborate, deliver, manage, delegate, reflect professionally, oh and TEACH, inspire, empower, esteem, motivate and challenge.

I chose to be a teacher. Hands up. It wasn’t for the money.; it was to help others navigate the trajectory of life and fulfill their unique potential whatever that may be. I am saddened that in the latter stage of my 14th year teaching that I am considering leaving the profession. I will not be insulted and say it’s due to stress/burnout. Speaking my truth, it is because of the system. It is broken and unfortunately it has broken me.

Please listen to the cries and lived experiences of the professionals that will communicate to you this week. We need to be heard. The system is not sustainable; one that  expects thriving minds to learn, grow and ultimately flourish when we the educators are barely holding it together ourselves.

Overloaded, pressured, feelings of failure meet and an oversized classroom with an unhealthy ratio and diverse needs with no real support is not okay.

Be the change…

We can start the engine but you are behind the wheel. Please steer this right. Lead us to hope. Cut back on curricular demands and roll outs and put more energy and funds into refurbishing an archaic system where only the more robust characters survive.

I appreciate you are human and I wish you the best. At the same time our voices need to be heard.

#irisheducationsystem #cryforhelp #advocateforus #supportus #provideandfund #ouryouthdependonit #ouryouthdependonus

Photo sketched by me; adapted from Louise. L Hay’s ‘You Can Heal Your Life’.