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My wife is a paraprofessional pianist for a school system
Wow. I've never heard of this job. I've heard of paraprofessionals, and I've heard of school music teachers, but "paraprofessional pianist", no! What does that entail? Does she accompany recitals, give piano lessons, teach choir, practice music therapy?
One reason would be that Master's. School Boards don't like to hire people with that Master's unless you bring something else to the table (a years long record of coaching winning teams, especially football, political connections for grant funding, etc.) because you start out comparatively expensive.
I have been on the teaching forums here, more than most. Many of the people who complain about there being no openings are those who have stayed in areas of declining enrollments or who don't have the credentials/subject area needed.
Are there surpluses in some areas and disciplines? Certainly. Pennsylvania still graduates more teachers every year than the 501 school systems in the state can hire. El Ed is one area where there is generally a discipline surplus, as is secondary Social Studies. Biology is also an area of surplus but you can't find qualified Physics and Chem teachers.
You are correct that these things all vary by region. My experience has always been that a Master’s degree is preferred. The school board would rather tout the number of teachers with advanced degrees within the system. HR does the hiring. They don’t penny pinch over BA vs MA pay. Teachers without a MA are strongly encouraged by principals to get it. The school board recently took steps off the top of the BA/BS scale which effectively forces teachers to get their MA so they can move into the next lane and move up the scale.
I agree that many who can’t find an opening are those who prefer to stay near home for years waiting for an elusive vacancy rather than moving away to take a job.
I don’t know of any programs that do this. I just checked with a few of our newer teachers and they are not getting their loans forgiven. Maybe it’s regional.
Maryland has it, and it includes other public service jobs other than teaching, but there are requirements as to discipline and where you teach (Title I, schools slated for takeover).
Maryland has it, and it includes other public service jobs other than teaching, but there are requirements as to discipline and where you teach (Title I, schools slated for takeover).
Wow. I've never heard of this job. I've heard of paraprofessionals, and I've heard of school music teachers, but "paraprofessional pianist", no! What does that entail? Does she accompany recitals, give piano lessons, teach choir, practice music therapy?
My wife does accompany recitals and student singing in the choir class that she is in. She does give piano lessons on and off. She can teach music and choir and is very good at it, but it must be done under the auspices of the teacher of record or a substitute teacher. I am the substitute teacher that they usually assign since the regular teacher always requests me when she is out. When that is the case, I just sit at a desk, look important, and let my wife do all the teaching, taking attendance as required. So while my wife can teach the class, due to school policy there must be a teacher in the classroom with her. So I am technically her boss on the day that I sub in her classroom. I always kid her about having I intimate relations with her boss (me). LOL!
And since my wife is a paraprofessional and not a certified teacher, she is a regular, permanent employee and not a temp as certified teachers are. She doesn't have to sweat it out at the end of every school year to see if her contract is going to be renewed. It is the same for me. I have a permanent position as a substitute teacher and don't have to worry about any contract expiring. Of course, I earn quite a bit less than a certified teacher, but then I am retired with several income streams.
Could be due to low salaries and disrespectful youth.
This is, without a doubt, the biggest obstacle and frustration that I face on a daily basis. I have rarely had any major issues about pay, benefits, or hours. Student behaviors however have changed a lot over recent years. I am at what most would consider a "good" school. For most of my career I have been privileged to work with engaged students and supportive parents but their numbers are dwindling. I feel I have had good classroom management skills, but that too seems to be on the quick down slope. At any given time I might have a class with almost half of the class off task wandering, blurting, arguing, or just refusing to do any classwork or participate. I share these students with other teachers and it's no different in other settings. It saddens me how they treat each other and how rude many are to adults. There have been physical fights this year. They swear. On three occasions different students have lied about what has happened in school to either try to get me in trouble or to avoid getting into trouble themselves. Many are blatantly defiant. Instruction and learning is disrupted constantly and there seems to be little I can do to rein it in. I feel sorry for those who are there to learn and contribute, but so much of my day is spent trying to manage behavior to little avail. It's quite difficult to paint an accurate picture through a discussion board post, but it has become a frustrating, daily routine.
A young teacher told me she is leaving at the end of the year because she is basically tired of training students how to behave instead of teaching.
When I first considered switching careers into teaching 10 years ago, it was right when the economy (as well as my career) melted down and many districts were cutting, even in "shortage" areas like math and science. I struggled to find a F/T position for many years (my teaching background is middle school math), but have noticed the last 2 to 3 years seemed to be a little more of a "buyers market". So now at age 50 I finally am successfully doing that f/t teaching job....as for pay, pay is relatively good in CT for teachers compared to most of the country (supposedly neighboring NY is better but it appears to be harder to get a teaching job there except for some really tough areas of NY City itself).
I can see now that I do it day to day how many people can burn out within a couple of years, but I think I will be fine.
For all of you complaining about the behavior of youth...realize that children are not stupid and are probably more intuitive than we are. A child can tell when someone cares about him or her and when someone doesn't. Since most people teaching inner city children are white suburban women (who may not have been able to land a job in a better district), the kids know you are there for a paycheck. Please believe they would not behave that way with a teacher that looks like them. If not because they see their mother/aunt/grandmother in that teacher, then because that teacher shows them love. It might be tough love, but it's love. It takes very little to soften a child's attitude toward you. I challenge you all to find at least one "troubled" student to genuinely care about and watch how your interaction and relationship with that child changes almost instantly. You get out what you put in. You treat the kids like they don't matter and they will reflect that behavior back to you. It's simple.
For all of you complaining about the behavior of youth...realize that children are not stupid and are probably more intuitive than we are. A child can tell when someone cares about him or her and when someone doesn't. Since most people teaching inner city children are white suburban women (who may not have been able to land a job in a better district), the kids know you are there for a paycheck. Please believe they would not behave that way with a teacher that looks like them. If not because they see their mother/aunt/grandmother in that teacher, then because that teacher shows them love. It might be tough love, but it's love. It takes very little to soften a child's attitude toward you. I challenge you all to find at least one "troubled" student to genuinely care about and watch how your interaction and relationship with that child changes almost instantly. You get out what you put in. You treat the kids like they don't matter and they will reflect that behavior back to you. It's simple.
It’s not so simple. I am a white male teaching in an upper middle class suburb. My students matter, a lot. I care, a lot. That’s why I get so frustrated with their actions and how they treat others. I keep working at it and will keep at it, but I’m only human and can tolerate so much disrespect towards myself and others. You would get frustrated too if you knew how much they were capable of and how much instructional time is lost due to behaviors. Each day I approach as new. I am most definitely not there just for a paycheck.
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