My friend is a teacher and works extremely hard - really long hours .... In London the pay isn't great since teachers don't get the same "London living allowance" as Fire Fighter and Policemen. It is much lower. My friend call it a gender discrimination policy as those jobs are usually staffed by men while the majority of teachers are women. Anyway - sorry a digression.... My point is that my friend DOES get gifts - she was over-whelmed by the generosity of the Xmas collection (state school) and it made her feel amazing that she was appreciated. Therefore I would like to add that not all teachers are "mortified" by gift giving. When my child goes to school I will absolutely be giving gifts/ adding to collections.