[Forloveofbirds]

Hi,

My sister is a teacher and is seriously considering moving to Florida, as they seem to be seriously hurting for teachers. (Or, at least, they were prior to the economic crash.)

I have heard about some sort of hiring freeze in parts of Florida, but I still want to inquire about the schools located in the Panhandle area (between Tallahassee and Pensacola, ideally, though she really isn't interested in teaching IN Tallahassee, as she isn't a fan of big cities) to give her some ideas of where to keep an eye on, hiring or not. Understandably, she would prefer to avoid the schools with bad reputations/poor structure and are poorly funded/are crime-ridden. Her ideal work environment is where she can spend her time actually teaching, not disciplining all day and worried about her own safety, and not the type of school where it is not uncommon for students to bring drugs to school, or for cops to be stationed outside of every class room. Also, she much prefers to teach middle school.

That being said, can anyone suggest some counties/districts or even specific schools that have overall good reputations, or would be considered as "good, safe" schools? She realizes that there is no such thing as a perfect school, but some are leaps and bounds better than others. Thanks!

[annerk]

Florida is NOT hurting for teachers--in fact teachers are being laid off left and right, and I'm hearing that 20% or more could be laid off with the upcoming budget cuts. All available teaching jobs in the state will give first priority to teachers laid off from Florida schools. Unless she teachers ESL SpEd, her chances of getting a teaching job are slim to none.

[lukeb321]

They laying off teachers state wide. The surplus list is growing daily and those get any job vacancies first. Tons of great teachers with years of experiences let go and waiting for a call. If your not in the system now, don't bother. Sorry but its true.

[Forloveofbirds]

Yikes, it seems things are far worse down there than she (we) had realized. It certainly is a shame - not because it will likely mean that my sister will not find a job down there, but because the funding for education is so bad that the state can't afford to keep an ideal amount of well-trained, terrific teachers on board, which, in the end, hurts the students.

[grapico]

Tallahassee has quite a few good schools from athletics to the arts to education, then only a handful of bad schools. Sad that the Academic Resource Center got so many funding cuts though...that was the best thing the city had going for it for "gifted" students.
Tallahassee is a big city??? pop 160K...
Ft. Walton/Destin/Niceville also have some good schools.

[AAbsolute]

Originally Posted by annerk

Florida is NOT hurting for teachers--in fact teachers are being laid off left and right, and I'm hearing that 20% or more could be laid off with the upcoming budget cuts. All available teaching jobs in the state will give first priority to teachers laid off from Florida schools. Unless she teachers ESL SpEd, her chances of getting a teaching job are slim to none.

Doesn't that speak loud and clear to why Florida's schools put out students who are unprepared to compete in the global marketplace? This is a time when Florida can choose the best and the brightest for educators, but instead they will choose chronies. Most businesses that have to compete want the most highly qualified.

[annerk]

Originally Posted by AAbsolute

Doesn't that speak loud and clear to why Florida's schools put out students who are unprepared to compete in the global marketplace? This is a time when Florida can choose the best and the brightest for educators, but instead they will choose chronies. Most businesses that have to compete want the most highly qualified.

Did I say otherwise? I think that ALL government should be run like a corporation. You don't do your job well, you don't get a raise. You do your job poorly, you're given a box for your personal stuff, security watches you pack, and you're shown the door. That goes for everything from legislators to judges to school employees to police to state paper pushers. Soup to nuts, all public employees.

[AAbsolute]

Originally Posted by annerk

Did I say otherwise? I think that ALL government should be run like a corporation. You don't do your job well, you don't get a raise. You do your job poorly, you're given a box for your personal stuff, security watches you pack, and you're shown the door. That goes for everything from legislators to judges to school employees to police to state paper pushers. Soup to nuts, all public employees.

Thanks Anarchy, You're my new best friend.

[Dappleganger]

The funding for education is *always* bad down here--yes, even long-time teachers are being laid off everywhere down here.