I am in my second year of teaching and found your feature “Leaving because they care too much to stay” (Comment, 14 February) interesting. I attended a positive, balanced teacher training programme and, along with the rest of my classmates, left bright-eyed and keen to implement a range of new ideas.

As the year progressed, more and more talented teachers from my cohort left the profession. They seemed disheartened by the emphasis on data and on ensuring that they “knew the way of the school”, and felt they were not given the chance to try their ideas. I am aware of the importance of learning from experienced teachers, but just because things have always been done in a particular way, it is not necessarily the right way.

Anna Swann, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire.