I constantly feel myself stretched between children… There doesn’t seem enough of ‘me’ to go round.

What does the issue of staff to student ratios mean for you as a teacher, and the tamariki you teach?

I constantly feel myself stretched between children – settling one while extending another. By the end of the day I am shattered, yet still have to plan and document in order to prepare for the next day. There doesn’t seem enough of ‘me’ to go round.

What will it take to fix staff to student ratios?

Recognition that both teacher’s and children’s wellbeing is strongly interwoven with the ratios within our environments.

When we fix staff to student ratios, what impact will that change have on you as a teacher, and the tamariki you teach?

Children will have greater opportunities to form secure attachments, thus supporting their learning and development, and teachers will move from crowd-control to actual teaching.