By Grant Smith, education reporter

BRITISH TEACHERS are so stressed that half have considered giving up, an opinion poll has found.

Long working hours, pupil indiscipline and a lack of support from management have all been blamed for high levels of dissatisfaction with the job.

More than 800 teachers took part in the survey, run by pollsters You Gov for the Government-funded digital television channel Teachers’ TV.

Some 61% of those questioned said they felt stressed as a result of teaching—even when not in school.

When asked about the causes of their feelings, 71% of secondary teachers cited lack of respect from pupils. Many said they had been verbally abused and 14% said they had been physically attacked.

Other major triggers included pupils using electronic gadgets in class, large class sizes and a lack of classroom resources.

Among primary teachers, 37% said they were worried about unreasonable interference by parents. Some 71% of all those questioned said they did not get enough backing from their headteacher or senior management in helping them to cope with stress.

Andrew Bethell, chief executive of Teachers’ TV, said, “Teaching is one of the most demanding professions and it is clear that our teachers are feeling the pressure.

“We need to ensure that there are systems in place to help those teachers who experience stress to access available resources and support networks.”

The channel is showing a week of programmes on classroom stress and coping with workloads starting at 9pm tonight.