Beyond the "Unteachable": Why We Need to Stop Being Psychologists and Start Being Teachers

There is a growing, uncomfortable silence in the staffrooms of the UK—particularly across South Wales. It’s the sound of exhausted teachers who feel they have lost the right to teach.

We are told that the modern classroom must be "child-centred" and "trauma-informed." But in practice, this has often morphed into a system where teachers are no longer educators, but high-stakes babysitters, navigating a minefield of "individual agreements" that make collective learning impossible.

I want to be real with you: the current bureaucratic model is failing. And it’s time we talked about why high boundaries are actually the most inclusive thing you can provide.

The Individual vs. The Collective: The ADHD Paradox

I have ADHD. I mention this because it is often the "reason" cited for why a student cannot follow a rule.

Early in my career, I put a student on detention for a clear, repeated breach of the classroom code. He also had ADHD. Almost immediately, I was pulled aside by the LSA team. They informed me he wouldn't be attending; he had a "pre-agreed" arrangement where he could leave the room whenever he needed space and would not face traditional disciplinary actions.

By letting the learner choose their own disciplinary path, we weren't supporting his neurodivergence—we were handicapping his future. If we treat a diagnosis as a "get out of jail free" card, we stop being teachers and start being enablers. As someone who lives with ADHD, I know that structure isn't the enemy; it’s the scaffold. When you remove that scaffold for one child, the entire classroom structure begins to lean.

When the Individual Becomes the Whole

When you have one or two challenging learners, you can manage. But what happens when the "exception" becomes the "rule"?

I once took over a Year 8 class. They were branded "The Unteachables." A term that I detest, but a term that is often used. Every teacher before me had been worn down to a husk. The students were disruptive, disengaged, and their grades were a fraction of their actual capability.

I realised very quickly: I could not solve their home lives. I am not a social worker, a psychologist, or a miracle worker. I am a teacher.

I stopped trying to "cater" to thirty different sets of whims and instead focused on the one thing I could control: The Threshold.

The Two-Week Investment: The Art of the Reset

I decided that if we didn't learn a single thing about History or Geography for a fortnight, so be it—because they weren't learning anyway. We went back to the absolute basics.

1. The Threshold: They lined up outside. I didn't shout. I didn't plead. I simply waited. We did not enter the classroom until there was total silence.

2. The Reset: If a student talked while walking to their desk, or failed to stand behind their chair in silence, we reset. We went back to the hallway. We started again.

3. The Cognitive Bridge: Once they were finally seated and silent, I didn't start the lesson. I put a philosophical quote on the board. “Never bite the hand that feeds you” or "A man never walks through the same river twice, for it is not the same river, nor is he the same man". We discussed it. We engaged their minds as humans before we engaged them as students.

In those first two weeks, I sometimes spent 30 minutes of a 60-minute lesson just getting them into the room.

Critics would call this "lost learning time." I call it an investment. After those two weeks of relentless consistency, I never had to reset them again. They became my favourite class. Their personalities, their wit, and their creativity finally had the "safety" of a controlled environment to flourish in and their grades improved.

We Are Teachers, Not Counsellors

We have to be allowed to "waste" time to save the year. Many schools today are so terrified of "lost minutes" or "parental complaints" that they force teachers to push through chaos. This leads to a toxic environment where the teacher's mental health is ignored, and the students' education is sacrificed at the altar of "inclusivity."

Is it more "inclusive" to let a child roam a classroom and learn nothing, or to make them wait five minutes in silence so they can actually acquire the skills to succeed?

It is time to return to the basics. Set the boundaries. Hold the line. Be the teacher.

Level Up Your Classroom Presence

Winning a challenging class doesn't happen in the middle of a lesson; it happens in the first few minutes.

• The First 15 Minutes: Explore our e-learning course on Mastering the First 15 Minutes of Supply Teaching. Learn the exact scripts and non-verbal cues to take command of any room.

• Coming Soon: "The Reset: Dealing with Challenging Classes," will dive deeper into the strategies used to transform "The Unteachables". The modern classroom has shifted. Ask any veteran teacher, and they will tell you: the ratio has flipped. We used to have a handful of challenging classes in a week of "good" ones; now, we are lucky to have a handful of quiet periods in a week of chaos.

Always ensure your management strategies align with your specific school's safeguarding and behaviour policies.