25 Teacher Frustrations You’ve Never Considered

Posted by , Updated on December 12, 2023

Those who have never worked in a school might not realize it, but teaching is actually one of the hardest (and sometimes also most underrated) jobs. Naturally, teachers are supposed to teach, but they very often perform a whole bunch of other roles such as psychologist, adviser, policeman, therapist, detective, paramedic, judge etc. On almost a daily basis, teachers have to deal with rude students, arrogant parents, and ruthless bosses, knowing they will get paid a ridiculously low salary for all their hard work and efforts. Moreover, with all the latest lifestyle changes and modern technologies, the challenges and problems that today’s teachers encounter differ greatly from those that teachers faced in the past. As September is the most dreaded month for most teachers, we decided to compile a list with some of the frustrations that teachers have to deal with so that we will pay tribute to this meritorious but underrated job and raise awareness about teachers’ hardship. If you thought teaching was all about holidays and finishing work at 3 pm, you will be surprised to see how demanding and unenviable of a job it actually is. From the feared teacher-parent meetings and the infamous lunch duties to Facebook friend requests by their students, here are 25 Teacher Frustrations That You Probably Never Thought About.

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25

They have to hear literally every excuse under the sun, including some of the most ridiculous and improbable excuses that were ever made.

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24

They have to deal with parents who are firmly convinced their children can do no wrong. Yes, parents of the naughtiest students in the school think that too.

angry-manImage: pixabay.com
23

They hate cell phones and all smart devices that students love to use to cheat on exams and also for cyber-bullying.

students using cell phonesImage: en.wikipedia.org
22

They experience the extremely uncomfortable moments when all the students are laughing, and they have no idea why.

children-laughingImage: pixabay.com
21

They often hear that teaching is an easy job. Yes, teachers usually work until about 3 pm, but how about all the countless hours spent on their home preparation?

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20

They have to deal with an incredible load of paperwork (such as report writing and grading homework) both in school and even at home.

paperworkImage: pixabay.com
19

They have to make the life-changing decision whether to accept their students' friend requests on Facebook or not.

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18

They can only helplessly witness the heartbreaking decline of the English language.

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17

They are more likely to get ill. Working with so many people in confined spaces significantly increases the risk of getting an infection.

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16

They always learn there will be changes to the curriculum just after they got used to the old one.

angry womanImage: commons.wikimedia.org
15

They often meet people who earn much more than them for doing much easier jobs than theirs.

face palmImage: en.wikipedia.org
14

They are not supposed to have a favorite, but it might be very hard not to have one when there is a smart and well-mannered student in a class of villains.

school-boyImage: pixabay.com
13

At the end of the summer holidays, teachers are among the most depressed people in the world, knowing the whole new school year is about to begin.

depressionImage: da.wikipedia.org
12

Teachers often act like teachers even when they are supposed to behave like normal people. They tend to push in chairs at restaurants, reprove disobedient kids, etc.

reprimandImage: en.wikipedia.org
11

They experience those frustrating moments when their students ask them questions they don’t know the answers to.

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10

They want to sleep longer on weekends and holidays, but they wake up early in the morning anyway.

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9

They often run into their students in the most improbable and awkward places such as underwear stores, sex-shops, etc.

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8

They have to remember hundreds kids' names and learn new ones at the beginning of every new school year.

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7

They have to be professional and hold their laughter back, no matter how stupid and hilarious some of their students' answers might be.

teacherImage: commons.wikimedia.org
6

They often find bizarre objects such as staples, pencils, rulers, pieces of chalk and even foreign cell phones in their pocket at the end of the day.

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5

They have a limited choice of names for their future kids as nobody would give their kid the same name as was the one of the nasty student. And teachers know many nasty students.

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4

Young female teachers teaching in an all-boy school and young male teachers teaching in an all-girl school might be harassed by their students brimming with hormones.

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3

At almost every meeting with parents, teachers have to tell some parents the heartbreaking truth that their kid is not as smart and brilliant as they thought.

Teacher Parent ConferenceImage: Shutterstock.com
2

When they think they finally have some time for themselves during a busy day, they get assigned to lunch duty, which is a real nightmare for every teacher.

school canteenImage: woodleywonderworks via flickr.com
1

Apart from all the naughty, stupid, bad-mannered, and obtuse students, teachers also have to deal with students who always forget to bring their equipment to the class and students who always have an “accident” in class – be it nose bleeding or diarrhea.

frustrated teacherImage: Shutterstock