Terrible Boss?
Posted: 03 Aug 2019, 22:22
I would like an opinion about my current boss because I would like to know if others have been/are in the same situation as me...
A little bit about me: I've been teaching for 8 years and have a CELTA, TEFL and I'm an examiner for Pearson, Cambridge and IELTS. I've worked in Spain, Holland, Italy, Austria and now live in Germany.
I love my job and I would never change it. However, my boss is a narcissist and very competitive. I HAVE to follow all her lesson plans, materials and use course books which are not exactly to my taste nor style. Sometimes, naturally, I like to add my own materials but she hates it. She has a regimented way of doing things and micro-manages me. She has never even seen me teach but she continues to make horrid comments about my style and way of doing things. I got shining feedback from all my courses apart from one thing: the course-books we're using - the students hate them. This did not go down well. She said that I wasn't open-minded about using her materials and that the students would LIKE the books more if I liked them. "Teachers have an influence on students so if you don't like something, they also won't do it". True, I guess, but in this case they actually just didn't like the books. She's had 4 teachers leave this year because they can't stand her, the terrible contract we have and/or the teaching method.
Now, I have ALWAYS had great feedback from students in the 8 years I've been teaching and have never doubted my methods or style of teaching. However, after hearing these comments over and over I have begun to doubt myself and I hate that. She's made me feel that I'm a bad teacher or that I should be perfect ALL the time. Working at this company with this boss has made me sick, stressed and sometimes miserable. I've been in hospital for two months because of stress-related problems. She's lovely one minute and then insanely horrid the next and I don't know where I stand. I'm a nervous wreck and the students can see this.
Of course, she has no sympathy and she's done everything and been everywhere and has always been worse off than everyone else. That's her flaw: she doesn't LISTEN to people. The funny thing is: she's a leadership and change consultant. WTF? She can't even lead or keep her own employees. Total fraud.
What should I do? Has anyone been in this situation?
A little bit about me: I've been teaching for 8 years and have a CELTA, TEFL and I'm an examiner for Pearson, Cambridge and IELTS. I've worked in Spain, Holland, Italy, Austria and now live in Germany.
I love my job and I would never change it. However, my boss is a narcissist and very competitive. I HAVE to follow all her lesson plans, materials and use course books which are not exactly to my taste nor style. Sometimes, naturally, I like to add my own materials but she hates it. She has a regimented way of doing things and micro-manages me. She has never even seen me teach but she continues to make horrid comments about my style and way of doing things. I got shining feedback from all my courses apart from one thing: the course-books we're using - the students hate them. This did not go down well. She said that I wasn't open-minded about using her materials and that the students would LIKE the books more if I liked them. "Teachers have an influence on students so if you don't like something, they also won't do it". True, I guess, but in this case they actually just didn't like the books. She's had 4 teachers leave this year because they can't stand her, the terrible contract we have and/or the teaching method.
Now, I have ALWAYS had great feedback from students in the 8 years I've been teaching and have never doubted my methods or style of teaching. However, after hearing these comments over and over I have begun to doubt myself and I hate that. She's made me feel that I'm a bad teacher or that I should be perfect ALL the time. Working at this company with this boss has made me sick, stressed and sometimes miserable. I've been in hospital for two months because of stress-related problems. She's lovely one minute and then insanely horrid the next and I don't know where I stand. I'm a nervous wreck and the students can see this.
Of course, she has no sympathy and she's done everything and been everywhere and has always been worse off than everyone else. That's her flaw: she doesn't LISTEN to people. The funny thing is: she's a leadership and change consultant. WTF? She can't even lead or keep her own employees. Total fraud.
What should I do? Has anyone been in this situation?