What makes teaching such a great job? Is it the money? Not really. The pleasant working environment? Probably not. The variety of work? Maybe.
Or is it the impact teachers have on the young people in their care?
As Christmas approaches, teachers have been telling SecEd about the cards, letters and messages they have received and kept over the years, that are gathering dust but which they just can’t part with.
Antony Little, vice-principal of The Hewlett Academy in Norwich, said he had accumulated a “hefty bag” of items from students and recently had to decide whether to keep it.
“I asked on Twitter and the overwhelming response was that they are a sign of my impact on so many young lives and to keep them,” he said. “On re-reading the cards, I realised that I did remember each and every one of them.
“The fact that they didn’t have to send the card but chose to do so, made it all the more special. As I went through the box, a few stood out.”
One lad, Ben, recalled a throw-away remark from Mr Little about a piece of work, which he had never forgotten. “It really made me think that, as a teacher, we have an incredible influence on the way we make our students feel,” he said.
Another card came from a female pupil, a looked-after child, with whom he met in year 12 to discuss her options – these were to quit sixth form, or work hard and show some resilience. She later achieved three top grade A levels and is now at university.
His favourite was from a pupil called Kelly who thanked Mr Little for “turning up every day”.
“She said I was pretty much the only person in her life who did,” Mr Little added. “I couldn’t throw those cards away because they represent the best of what we do as a profession. And for every card we receive, I know there are dozens more who never get round to putting pen to paper.”
Sue Cowley, a former secondary teacher, now an author and teacher trainer, picked out an extract from a card sent by a member of her tutor group.
The student wrote: “I don’t know how to put into words how much you’ve helped me. Whenever I was in trouble or needed advice or just being there for me. You’ve done a thousand times more than you needed to for us and for that I will always remember you.”
Meanwhile, a year 11 GCSE English group held awards and awarded Ms Cowley “Favourite Female Teacher”.
She added: “The certificate is amusing because they spelt ‘category’ as ‘catagory’ throughout which probably doesn’t say much for my English teaching, but receiving this certificate was still one of my most treasured moments.”
John Peters, who has taught in several secondary schools around the country over a 25-year period said: “I have a huge box of such cards, which I can’t bear to throw away. After a bad day at work I sometimes get them out to read, to remind myself that this is what it’s all about. Nothing else – just the pupils.”