About a year ago, after 15 years in teaching, I took the decision to apply for a career break from my post as a principal teacher of English at Hermitage Academy, in Helensburgh. I’d been wanting for some time to do a Gaelic course at Sabhal Mòr Ostaig, on Skye, and after a lot of discussion with my partner, I decided to go for it. My career break was granted, and in August 2021 we moved with our two boys to the village of Tarskavaig on Skye’s Sleat Peninsula.
Before I go on, I want to address the first question that everyone has but they’re (sometimes) too polite to ask: “How can you afford to take a career break?” Sadly, my mum died in May 2020. She left me her savings and, supplemented by a student loan and some credit card debt, that’s going to be enough to get us through the year. Without that money, I could never have taken a career break, and that’s a problem with our current system. But more of that later.
Returning to full-time education, on the other side of the desk, has been an interesting experience. Because I’m on an immersive language course, I’m in a classroom almost all week; in many ways the experience is closer to school than what we typically think of as university. For the first time in a long time, I’ve had to really think about how I learn best and what revision techniques work for me. Some aspects of learning haven’t changed: I still go into panic mode when my lecturer springs a question on me, and my blood still runs cold at the mention of exams. But, at 42, I can focus on learning without worrying about the myriad social pressures that our students have to think about.
Without that additional pressure, learning when you’re a bit older is a pleasure. I recognise that I’m privileged to have this opportunity, and I don’t take it for granted. We talk a lot in teaching about “lifelong learning”, but squeezing some professional reading into those moments when you’re not marking or preparing doesn’t compare to being fully immersed in something.
Teacher wellbeing: The benefits of taking a career break
In its submission to the Muir review, Education Scotland has said that career breaks could provide teachers with “opportunities to learn and develop their skills”, but it remains to be seen whether this will feature in Muir’s imminent recommendations. In his excellent book Class Rules, James McEnaney mentions the system in Victoria, Australia, where sabbaticals can be funded through a savings scheme, and something like this in Scotland could be an important incentive for teachers wanting to go off and develop their knowledge and skills.
Of course, a career break needn’t be for learning in any formal sense. You could go and read or write or travel. No matter what, you’ll still end up with a different perspective on life and on teaching. That’s why I think it’s important that government and local authorities support staff financially to take a career break.
I can understand if there’s reluctance. No school wants to lose good teachers. And of course, some of those who take a career break might choose not to come back to the classroom. But the majority will, and they’ll be refreshed, recharged and more highly skilled than when they left.
There are few things in life as tiring as working in a school; that much is more obvious to me the longer I’m away from my job. At times over the past few months I’ve been as busy as a student as I’ve ever been as a teacher - reading novels, writing essays, giving presentations - but I’ve not experienced the incessant emotional turbulence you get in school.
We were already a highly stressed profession, but Covid took that day-to-day stress to a different level. I don’t think I appreciated how much I was carrying until I wasn’t carrying it any longer. Over time, that stress takes its toll: little wonder that over 4,000 teachers left the profession in Scotland in 2019-2020, while many others are currently unable to work as a result of stress. A career break could act as a release valve for those considering leaving teaching, and might help us to retain good teachers in the longer term.
Of course, there are things that you miss. I miss the fun and camaraderie of being in a department. I’m still on the department WhatsApp group, but I don’t get all the jokes. I find myself wondering if I’m missed by my department (probably not), and if my successor’s doing a better job than me (almost certainly). And I can’t deny that going back that first morning next August will be very difficult.
Ultimately, though, a year isn’t such a very long time to be away from school, particularly when set against a career that might last 40 years. It’s already been life-changing for me - and that’s something every teacher should get to experience.
Alasdair Allan is a teacher of English, based in Scotland
