Ofsted has told schools to reveal more about staff shortages as teachers leave in droves. CHRIS TITLEY asked three former teachers about life in and out of the classroom.

THE FLY-FISHERMAN

ROGER Beck was a teacher for 27 years, rising to deputy head of Manor School in York. He chose the profession because he wanted to work directly with young people.

Over time, however, the quality of school life deteriorated. "You got increasing interference by well-meaning amateurs, people such as politicians and governors who meddled in things they didn't know anything about," he said.

Young people were also evolving, and "the school system singularly failed to adapt. They should, for example, have realised they were imposing on youngsters requirements that had nothing to do with their education, like having to wear certain special clothing to school."

He also believes football causes unhealthy jingoism and aggression and should be banned. "There's a great deal of conflict in the outside world and unfortunately schools continue to propagate that conflict by insisting on allowing them to continue to play football."

Roger took early retirement from teaching on health grounds brought on by the stress of the job.

"What was required in schools not only changed rapidly, but also people kept changing their minds about what they wanted us to do.

"The workload became ridiculous. I couldn't undertake all the requirements of my workload and still have some time for myself and my family."

Over ten years the stress got worse until Roger, 53, suffered a series of depressive illnesses. He left teaching and turned to his long-standing hobby, fly-fishing. He is now a fully-qualified fly-fishing instructor based at Ampleforth.

Although not fully recovered, Roger is getting better. "Teaching fly-fishing, I can apply my own professional ways of teaching and I have not got somebody on my shoulder saying 'you shouldn't do it that way, you should be doing it this way'."

And he has a suggestion for those who criticise teachers.

"Politicians, and people who talk about long holidays and things like that, they really do need to come and spend some time with a primary school teacher in particular. Many of them have absolutely no non-teaching time at all. It's horrendous."

THE VICAR

VICAR of Appleton Roebuck, the Reverend John Roden, began his working life as an electrical engineer before switching to teaching. He trained at St John's College in York and taught at what was then the York Minster Song School, at the technical college and at St Peter's School in the city, with a period spent at a Zambian school in between.

He taught religious education and was involved in the church, but had not considered ordination until it was suggested to him. For a time he combined the two callings, teaching at Batley Grammar School and commuting to Appleton Roebuck where he was a non-stipendiary diocesan youth officer.

He finally joined the Church full time 16 years ago, but a part of him still wants to teach.

"I have always enjoyed it," he said. "I still miss it. But it was getting harder and harder. All the people who trained with me, and who were younger than me, have retired because it just got horrendous. All that paperwork - I would have found that very difficult."

John found his time as a teacher in western Zambia very instructive. "There, you had to do everything. You got far more experience and far more responsibility.

"By the time I left I had done things that would have taken 20 years or more in this country."

If he could change British schools for the better, he would reduce the centrally-imposed regimentation and the paperwork. Teachers today are struggling, he said. "You can see them almost wilting."

THE PAINTER

FORMER teacher Kit Wade realised her workload was excessive when she was starting at 6am and finishing at midnight. "In the short term it's fine, but when that becomes more the norm than the exception, then you pay the price in the end."

Again, the price was her health. "The work increases to the point where you can no longer sustain it to the standard you think other people were entitled to."

Stress-related illness had claimed another teacher.

Kit joined the profession in 1969, specialising in art, and craft, design and technology. She was a head of department and later became involved in school inspections.

One of the most noticeable changes during her time in the job was the developing parental expectation "that sending a child to school to some degree abdicated responsibility for the wellbeing and welfare of children".

Only days into the summer holidays, parents were often heard saying they will be glad when their kids are back at school.

"If you are like that with only one or two, how do you expect somebody else to handle 30-plus? It's an anomaly.

"In some ways it's the most marvellous State baby sitting service - it's perceived as that."

Modern society expects far more from teachers than teaching their subject. "In the early days, you had a class, you took the register, then you got on with it. Now you have drugs education, sex education, family and home. All the things that were previously part of domestic culture are now part of the school culture."

The increased paperwork was undoubtedly a problem for teachers. "When I was working alongside teachers, rather than in the classroom, I could see for primary school teachers there was a remarkable increase with the SATs standard assessment tasks and the National Curriculum."

Secondary school staff had to cope with new exams and extra report-writing duties.

If her health had allowed, Kit would still be in teaching. Instead she established Staithes Painting Holidays earlier this year, where she tutors artists in this age-old beauty spot.

"I am enjoying this work. It's teaching in a different form.

"It's to do with knowing that your teaching is being seen as valuable."

Updated: 12:40 Thursday, June 28, 2001