Lesson 4 of 6 · 5 min · 8-card deck

Sustaining yourself in the profession

Workload, boundaries and the long game.

Around 30% of new teachers leave the profession within five years, with workload and wellbeing cited as the leading causes. Looking after yourself is not selfish — it is professional. Burnt-out teachers are not good teachers, and a sustainable career serves more pupils than a brilliant flame-out.

Build sustainable habits early. Cap your weekly working hours. Decide which two evenings per week you will not work, and stick to them. Take your full annual leave. Eat lunch. Use the bathroom. These sound trivial; over a career, they are decisive.

Active recall flashcards

Work through every card. Try to answer in your head before flipping — the act of retrieving is what builds durable memory.

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Practice scenario

A second-year teacher caps weekly hours at 50, blocks Tuesday and Thursday evenings as non-working, and switches to whole-class feedback to halve marking. Her pupils' progress doesn't drop; her sustainability does. She is still in the profession five years later.

Try this in your classroom

Cap your weekly hours and protect non-working evenings.
Be selective: invest in high-impact, not invisible, work.
Build a support network — mentor, peer, non-teaching friend.
Take your full annual leave, every year.