IT'S time for the school holidays and, for the first time, I am prepared to shout from the rooftops how much teachers deserve their long break.
Why? Well, Master W has just completed his first year as a maths teacher and now, after much trauma, he is fully qualified.
I admit that, previously, I didn't have an accurate concept of the sort of pressure teachers were under.
Now I know that the scrutiny of those recently out of university is incredible intense.
Master W has been observed by mentors at school and from his local council.
He has faced children, who, sensing uncertainty in their new teacher, have misbehaved.
Meanwhile, some parents have been demanding the highest standards while others couldn't give a fig.
I had not realised that, after three years of studying for a maths degree and one of gaining his mandatory Professional Graduate Certificate in Education, my son was about to face the toughest 10 months of his young life.
Put simply, if he had been deemed to have failed his inaugural school year, he would never have been allowed to teach in this country again.
This Draconian rule meant that a metaphorical axe was over his head.
And things didn't begin well.
He went into school, thinking he knew it all from his time on university placements and now admits he knew nothing.
He tried to be friendly towards the children and they saw this as a sign of weakness.
They gave him a hard time and his lessons suffered to the point that he failed his first term.
He felt isolated. In a new city, sharing a house with people he had not previously known and in a job which he found ultra-stressful.
However, in the last six months, he has turned it around and I couldn't be more proud of his success and how he has already had a positive impact on pupils' lives.
Indeed, one of his classes which took their GCSE maths exams in February has celebrated results which were much better than expected.
This led to the moment which all teachers must cherish when one pupil made a point of thanking him for his help in getting him through.
Master W is 23 and I had imagined that, by now, my worries about him would have been long over.
Wiser folk among you will appreciate that never happens and, in my head, I have been living the life of a maths teacher in the same way as I lived his Sats, GCSEs, A-levels and degree and all the moments of self-doubt along the way.
The academic year has left me drained. I can only imagine how he feels.
By the way, every holiday since September he has spent great swathes of time preparing his lessons and marking books. Likewise weekends and evenings.
Now he needs to relax and recharge his batteries and so does every teacher. Happy hols to them.
