Dan - I am not sure which country or phase you teach in, but in the UK, there will be a great percentage of teachers retiring in the next ten years giving me hope that it will be better in the future for those remaining in the profession. I have felt some easing of unnecessary paperwork and unrealistic expectations on my time, due to change of Head and my own expectations of myself.

I have taken time out of teaching and long since returned to the classroom. I have kept a balance in the last 10 years by always learning something out of school - computer courses, another language, music etc. You have to make time, be with different people and allow personal development.

Do you love teaching enough to feel it is your 'vocation'? I know one can scoff at that old fashioned idea, but if it is, could you change direction -

- change school
- go on a Local Education sabbatical abroad to refresh and bring creative ideas to our practice?
- aim to teach within a specialised field - EBD, Deaf, Autistic etc
- workshadow a friend in The Real World for a few days to see if it would suit you.
- work less than full-time to allow you to focus on developing new skills with a view to leaving teaching completely.

I daresay you have reflected on all the above and I wish you the best - back to my STP where I must note the LT for the SEN and EAL, include AFL, CTG and ICT opps.