Teaching in PSL???

[TP99C5]

Originally Posted by FlaLadyB

Just and FYI folks... foragoodreason seems to have a problem with living in Florida no matter what- since all 3 of the posts that were made by this new person say the same thing. Negative everything.

I agree!

[lama0798]

Hi NHDavid,

My husband and I are both teachers in PSL. We moved from a cold weather state to sunny FL and our feelings are very mixed. While we love the amount of sunshine we get compared to the cold weather state we used to live in, the summers can be pretty miserable and monotonous. The temperature ranges from 90-94 on a regular basis. You'll hear the weatherman report that there is a "cold front" coming through in July and the temperature drops to 88 degrees. LOL. We are lucky because we spend about a month and a half with my in-laws to escape the heat in the summer. My older daughter was three when she moved here but continually bemoans the lack of snow--despite the fact that she loves the beach (she's now 8). However, during the winter we love being able to wear shorts, play outside, go to the beach, etc. The winters are awfully short and there are some days/weeks where you will have to wear sweaters/coats.

In re: to the education, there does seem to be a laziness from the students and yet, my daughter's pre-school, Kindergarten, first and second grade experiences have been overall very positive and I can tell that she is learning quite a bit. The preschool program was outstanding. She has gone to two different elementary schools and there is definitely a difference in policies. If you'd like more info, please email me privately and I'll respond in more detail. Another thing is that the school district has a dress code for students (the actual code depends upon which school your child attends). I have heard (but have no personal experience) that in middle school, there are kids that are flashing gang signs. There is definitely gang activity in the high schools and students will get into fights because of it. I'm not sure that it goes any further than that. If your children are less than five, there are a lot of great programs available in PSL as well as Jensen Beach.

Another issue to take into consideration in moving is that the Florida legislature has currently passed a law stating that new teachers will be paid based on merit and cannot achieve tenure (they will be on annual contracts indefinitely). Additionally, if your students do not have learning gains on standardized tests in three out of five years, the state will refuse to renew your teaching certificate. This will definitely impact reading and ESE teachers, as these are the students who tend to have learning deficits, esp. on standardized tests.