Seriously. High school ESL 3rd year teacher here. I feel like all I do every day is play whack a mole while simultaneously helping the select few who actually want to learn.

What I mean is, cell phones. Our school allows phones for “learning purposes” (Ha! Ha! Ha!) where as anybody who’s been in a classroom recently knows they’re only using their phones for IG, Snapchat, Netflix, etc. Overall, our admin is good, but they sweep the phone issue under the rug and do nothing about the rampant abuse of the policy.

No sooner do I get one student off their phone and back on task, than another one pops up. Multiply this times 180 students all day long. There’s 1 of me; and 35 students each class period

This year it feels like only about 50% of my students actually want to learn. The rest, it’s like pulling teeth. The methods I’ve read up on to keep students engaged in class don’t really seem to work when you’re competing for their attention against social media. I try to pick engaging content, include variety, etc. nothing works

I wonder if this issue is less of a problem at the elementary level where phones aren’t allowed

All I know is at this point I’m thinking of applying for a school librarian position instead. At least then, I’d get the same schedule without pressure to close achievement gaps or have impeccable classroom management. Teaching is supposed to be about making a difference, but I don’t really feel like I am. Feels more like being the phone police.