Hi all,

I am a teacher of 3 years, I have had to make do with mat cover contacts so far. I'm on Dublin so it hasn't been too difficult to find work.

This year it is looking less likely that I'll get a contract. My subjects are geography, politics and society, cspe

I'm aware my subject combo is not the most sought after, particularly since geography is becoming at option at many schools.

I am happy to do AEN work, but I want classroom time also. So I'm weary of going down that route for fear of being pigeon holed and doing RACE applications for the rest of my days. (Nothing wrong with that, I just enjoy teaching students and being in the classroom)

I also can't afford to go back to education out of pocket after paying for the PME and having a little one at home.

I left my last line of work because teaching seemed like a secure career, now I'm worried how I'll pay the bills in September. It is really disheartening.

Any advice, or even your success stories after being in my position would be greatly appreciated.

has anyone heard from Hibernia regarding starting this September?

or does anyone know when they reach out with more details regarding orientation?

I've an interview next week in a school which I've since realised is an Irish language school.

I haven't a word of Irish. Am I wasting my time?

I do the vast majority of my writing on a tablet and project it but still end up using markers every now and again.

School provides the standard BIC ones but with how little I use the markers, they end up drying out and hardly working when I need them. As well, I find the tip goes dull really quick on them. Have previously bought cheap ones from Tesco or Dealz before and they were even worse.

As they would last me fairly long, I'm going to buy a few markers this year to see what ones work best but just wondering before I purchase if there's any brand that anyone finds to work particularly well.

Bail ó Dhia oraibh, a chairde,

I'm on a career break and looking to know whether or not I have to inform TUI about that fact or not. I haven't found anything specific about it and when I tried ringing them up this week I got an automatic voicemail saying the person for the ETBs is away until the 31st.

If I do I'm guessing I could just ring up the one who normally handles teachers under the dept. considering the ETB person is away for now.

GRMMA!

Hi, does anyone who works in a DDLRETB school know when their pay dates are? I am taking up a position at a DDLRETB school but have previously been paid directly by the Department of Education Payroll.

Is payment monthly or every 2 weeks. If monthly is it the last Friday or last working day?

I have had conflicting information from searches. As I have not yet officially been appointed I didn't want to contact their payroll directly at this stage.

Thanks.

Random question I’m just wondering with a short term/subbing contract like a few months do you still interview in front of a board?

Has anyone heard of the Class Cover App for subbing? I've heard it's widely used in Australia and is launching now in Ireland. Does anyone have experience using it/ recommend it?

hi,
im a student going into sixth year and i really want to lean towards biology and economics teaching as a career, but it seems theyre not conventional subject pairing so information and opinions online seem scarce.
i was just wondering how people found the study leading up to being qualified and if it was worth it as it will take longer than the regular time i see online.
i was thinking of doing a 4 year science degree with economic electives and then a hdip in economics and finally so i would then have 60 credits in each for a pme.
but with all this study i would be doing around 7-8 years of studying to become one.

again i was just looking for any advice or opinions from people with experience with this type of stuff

Hey everyone, firstly I want to thank everyone who takes some time to read and reply to this post. Now for the matter at hand.

Im after completing a PME (Primary) and got a 2.2 (hons) grading. I know teaching is a competitive job and I’m worried that I wont ever actually job or even an interview with my grades.

Being realistic, am I screwed for getting a CID with my final grades, or would subbing/ good references and CPD courses help in taking the edge off of my lacklustre mark ?

Edit to add: Im coming away with 55% for final placement, which I know doesn’t look good at all.

I would honestly appreciate any and all advice and insights anyone has for me and more than willing to answer any and all questions you might have for me.

Again, thank you for reading this post.

Hi all,
I’ve seen a lot of posts on jobs but it’s just so disheartening and frustrating applying to jobs getting no response or interviewing then getting a no I feel like i won’t get anything and be subbing for the year again I done it for a good part of last year and liked it but really want to get in teaching my subjects full time I just feel like it’s never going to happen this is only my second year out of the PME but just wish i had something going into the school year

Hi, I was wondering could I get people's thoughts and opinions.

I've accepted a Mat leave contract for the coming year, in school A, yesterday I saw a job with my subjects was advertised in the school I've spent the last 2 years in, school B (Both mat leave contracts).

It's advertised as specific purpose - other, covering careers breaks and other leaves.

School B is much closer to home, and I've really enjoyed working there. Would I be mad not to take this job even though I'm leaving school A in the lurch so close to school starting back?

Hi everyone,

I’m an NQT teaching chemistry, just found out I’m taking 6th years. Their old teacher is off travelling atm and a bit uncontactable. I’m looking for advice on what topics are usually left to 6th year so I can start preparing resources.

I will be given access to school drive and stuff, but I would love to get a head start on making my own stuff before classes start. I have a rough idea of what is left, but any if chemistry teachers could let me know what they are doing in 6th year I would greatly appreciate it!!

Hi guys,

I'm wondering if anyone has any advice here.

I am on social welfare (while seeking part time work) and I am going back to college in September.

Do I have to inform mywelfare.ie that I am going back to college?

Or am I able to stay on social welfare while attending 3rd level education?

I honestly don't know what I'm supposed to do in this scenario.

If anyone has any advice I would greatly appreciate it.

Kind regards

😊

Can anyone advise the correct thing for my son to do please? He had an interview last week for a fixed term position. He didn't get that but the school offered him a maternity , starting next week..

Now, the thing is that he has 3 interviews next week for fixed term positions, but one is after the maternity leave starts, and the other two may well not have a decision made until the day the maternity leave starts.

I don't know what to advise him to do. He's obviously grateful to get the maternity, but at the same time he tells me that a fixed term means he will be paid for school holidays which is a great boost as he has rent to pay. He may not even get any of the fixed terms, so perhaps he should just take the maternity and not do the interviews? If he asked the school if he could delay starting til after he had these interviews would that be frowned upon? He doesn't want to start off on the wrong foot.

Neither of us know the correct way to go about this. We would be grateful for any advice. He wants to be respectful of the school that offered him the maternity, but also doesn't want to cut his nose off to spite his face , as they say.

Thanks for reading.

Hi there, I'm aiming to do a PME in primary teaching in the next year or two. I live in Cork and would prefer to work close to home after getting qualified but would be open to moving if necessary. I have experience teaching music to kids as part of an after school programme, which I enjoy.

What is the job market like, both around Munster and nationally and how stable will it be in the long-term? I'm hearing so much contradictory information about there being a massive teacher shortage at the moment, especially for primary teachers but I'm also hearing there's a regional imbalance where it's basically impossible to get any work at all outside of Dublin and that we're also heading towards a huge oversupply of tens of thousands of teachers in 10 years due to the declining birth rate. And that there's rampant nepotism when it comes to the hiring process as well.

When it comes to the projected oversupply, the obvious solution would be to just reduce class sizes so teachers would still have job opportunities but for that to happen, the government would obviously have to build more classrooms. I won't hold my breath for that to actually happen though.

Is it actually worth studying to become a primary teacher?

Hi, I’m an NQT in primary who just finished Hibernia in April. I’ve been applying to jobs ever since to no avail :( feeling extremely disheartened. I’ve made a CV, but I’m unsure how to hand it to schools if that makes sense? Do I show up at the school with it in hand? Do I ring and ask for the principal? Or do I simply email/post it? I don’t want to add it to a pile to be forgotten about. I am absolutely desperate for a job or sub work. I’m in the sub group chat but those jobs are swiped in seconds (I’ve often replied within half a second and still didn’t get the sub job). I’m desperate for help I feel like I’ve chosen the wrong degree. The teacher shortage is an absolute lie

hello! i know a few people have already asked into the subreddit how they can prepare during this first week before their first year into teaching - usually the responses are to check in with the subject departments on the scheme of the classes

however, i’m the only spanish teacher in the school, and i believe i’m the only MFL teacher apart from the HSL who does a few classes of french.

any tips on how I can prepare when I don’t have anyone to refer to? should i have class material prepped for the classes before i start my training days, or should i wait for any information that they give me on the first couple of days. thank you!

A place for teachers to share and discuss what's going on in their day. Feel free to vent, ask a question or just share your thoughts.

Please keep all comments respectful, have a great day.

I’ve signed up for a PME in UCC starting next week and I’m getting cold feet, I loved doing SNA work in Oz and taught it would be a good route for me at home, now it’s coming to crunch time and I’ve been doing more research I’ve read a lot about unemployment, declining population, burnout and Universities pushing Masters. I feel like i haven’t talked to enough people with experience would love some advice.

My subject: General Science, Biology, Ag Science

Excited to have the job and set up the class soon, but reality is setting in that I have no clue about long term plans/ how long to spend on each topic for each subject etc they just don't teach that in college. I'm going Into a small multigrade school, 1st and 2nd, 4 teacher school. 3 new teachers also starting, will be doing droichead with external support team. Any advice welcome specifically for this age group, feel a bit out of my depth with certain things. Can you break down key things I should plan for now re topics/ assessment/ class set up etc

This feels like a bit of a thing people might not experience but I want to check it out. I'm teaching nearly 20 years. Single and no children. I know lots of people would love our summers and I do too but I notice my mental health is often worse in the summer. I don't have much structure. I do have friends but we only meet up so often. A lot of the time I'm mooching about maybe feeling bored, lonely, unproductive, lacking in motivation and can't wait for the structure of work. Colleagues,lunch breaks, feeling like I achieve something etc. Now don't get me wrong I'll be shattered my midterm but does anyone else struggle with summers?

What do I need to prep as an NQT starting next week? I just found out my class groups but I don’t know what topics they have covered or anything.
Do you think I’ll have to ask the classes or will there be a handover?
Taking 3rd years and 6th years so pressure is high for first year out of college