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I didn't mean to imply that people from industry cannot make good teachers, just that they underestimate the job. And it is a specialty in and of itself. I know that you came from industry by your previous posts and its obvious to me that you take it very seriously and devote the time required by any teacher who takes his or her job seriously. You are the exception, though, based on my observations within my district.
It's a tough, though job, far more demanding than anyone realizes until they do it. But I think you are right, when people have options they leave and that is certainly in accounted for in the higher attrition rate.
I loved the limbo comment too. So apropos.
You know, I didn't underestmate the job itself. I over estimated job satisfaction. I ASSumed that job satisfaction would be the trade off for lower pay and no time. Turns out there's very little job satisfaction. You spend most of your time under someone's gun and then you go home and try to figure out how to make a budget that is just too short work. For me, knowing I can make twice as much as an engineer and watching my kids do without has been one of the most difficult things. My dd loved going to Interlochen every summer. We can't afford that anymore. Is it noble to teach other people's kids while my own pay a price?
Both of my kids have told me they were more proud of me as an engineer than a teacher. To the parents of the kids I teach, I'm the hired help. To my admins, I'm too stupid to know anything about education wihtout being told what to do. And the pay and the hours suck.
There are things I like about teaching but they just don't make up for the negatives and I have other options that don't have those negatives. I can teach and teach well. I just no longer want to. I am going to continue to write lesson plans though and put them up on the internet for anyone who wants them. I enjoy the research part and developing activities. I'll miss getting to see how they work out though. There's nothing quite like the feeling when you hit a home run.
During the real estate boom, many left teaching to sell RE. Most have now returned, and are anxiously awaiting the "next big thing" to come along, so they can leave again. The outrageous conduct we are forced to tolerate, while attempting to teach, grows worse year after year. At some point, America's leaders will have to stop pretending that they are "fixing the system", and actually do something. Meanwhile, they continually "kick the can down the road".
Most of the egregious behavior I've witnessed for the last 30 years has been caused by one group, who represents 20% of my school. I'm not sure what the answer is. Perhaps single-sex academies or mandatory boarding schools? For the foreseeable future, nothing is likely to change. We will continue to address "inclusiveness" by teaching to the bottom, tolerating insanity, and wringing our hands at the outcome.
IDEA, although began with good intentions, has really been a huge factor in the demise of education. IEP's allow for such bad behavior even when behavior is not a manifestation of the disability. All bets are off when trying to deal with an IEP student. It has eroded the ability of teachers to require good behavior. Then when other students see some getting away with it, they begin as well and pretty soon, the inmates are running the asylum and bad is the new normal. And you better control the new normal or you are a bad teacher that cannot control students.
It's not a popular thing to say and I risk being branded as an uncaring teacher by saying it, but federal special ed regulation has become an unmanageable behemoth and no longer serves the population it was intended.
You know, I didn't underestmate the job itself. I over estimated job satisfaction. I ASSumed that job satisfaction would be the trade off for lower pay and no time. Turns out there's very little job satisfaction. You spend most of your time under someone's gun and then you go home and try to figure out how to make a budget that is just too short work. For me, knowing I can make twice as much as an engineer and watching my kids do without has been one of the most difficult things. My dd loved going to Interlochen every summer. We can't afford that anymore. Is it noble to teach other people's kids while my own pay a price?
Both of my kids have told me they were more proud of me as an engineer than a teacher. To the parents of the kids I teach, I'm the hired help. To my admins, I'm too stupid to know anything about education wihtout being told what to do. And the pay and the hours suck.
There are things I like about teaching but they just don't make up for the negatives and I have other options that don't have those negatives. I can teach and teach well. I just no longer want to. I am going to continue to write lesson plans though and put them up on the internet for anyone who wants them. I enjoy the research part and developing activities. I'll miss getting to see how they work out though. There's nothing quite like the feeling when you hit a home run.
I underestimated the job. I knew it was going to be long hours, but to do everything that is required is about 12 hours a day and/or weekends, holidays, and summers. At least, in certain subjects. I don't think PE teachers have the same issue. I leave after 9 hours completely guilt ridden and exhausted. Because I couldn't do more during the week, I have at least 16 hours of work to do this weekend. (Yeah, I know. How dare I come on this forum when I should be doing it for the kids.)
I underestimated so many things like the frustration and powerlessness of the classroom teacher.
This will probably be my last year in education. I am completely heartbroken, but the little glimmers that I get here and there are not enough to sustain me faced with the reality of the demands. This is my second career as well. Time for round three.
I underestimated the job. I knew it was going to be long hours, but to do everything that is required is about 12 hours a day and/or weekends, holidays, and summers. At least, in certain subjects. I don't think PE teachers have the same issue. I leave after 9 hours completely guilt ridden and exhausted. Because I couldn't do more during the week, I have at least 16 hours of work to do this weekend. (Yeah, I know. How dare I come on this forum when I should be doing it for the kids.)
I underestimated so many things like the frustration and powerlessness of the classroom teacher.
This will probably be my last year in education. I am completely heartbroken, but the little glimmers that I get here and there are not enough to sustain me faced with the reality of the demands. This is my second career as well. Time for round three.
I feel your pain! I finally had to quit killing myself, trying to serve a population that doesn't care. I still do my job, and do it reasonably well, considering the fact that I have 37 to 40 mostly low-performers in each of my six classes. I also taught many of their parents, and believe me, these apples didn't fall far from the trees!
One big change I made a few years ago, is that I no longer grade classwork or homework. I give credit if it's completed, and the test shows whether or not they learned anything from it. It cut my evening workload a lot!
Meanwhile, I'm ready for "round three" as well. I will be retiring, as soon as Christmas. If I'm having a good year, I will stay until June. Only if!
Sorry you will be leaving the profession. From your previous posts, I'm sure you have been dedicated to your job.
Best of luck, wherever you land!
I underestimated the job. I knew it was going to be long hours, but to do everything that is required is about 12 hours a day and/or weekends, holidays, and summers. At least, in certain subjects. I don't think PE teachers have the same issue. I leave after 9 hours completely guilt ridden and exhausted. Because I couldn't do more during the week, I have at least 16 hours of work to do this weekend. (Yeah, I know. How dare I come on this forum when I should be doing it for the kids.)
I underestimated so many things like the frustration and powerlessness of the classroom teacher.
This will probably be my last year in education. I am completely heartbroken, but the little glimmers that I get here and there are not enough to sustain me faced with the reality of the demands. This is my second career as well. Time for round three.
You are, exactly, where I am. The breadcrumbs I get now and again aren't enough to put up with the workload. Our problem is that we're trying to do the job right and they don't give us enough time to do that. People wonder why some teachers mail it in. This is why. If I can't do the job right, I don't want the job and the only way I can do this job right is to eat, sleep and live teaching. Maybe I'm selfish but I have a life and my own kids deserve something.
And to those thinking, "You have the summers off", it's not enough to make up for 10 months of, literally not having enough time for my kids. It's not enough to make up for the games I miss, the times I'm not available to help my kids with their homework, the times I have to tell them no because we can no longer afford the things we could when I was a engineer....This career change has been heart breaking for me. It's what I always wanted to do but I cannot do right by my family and do it right because they give me too much work to do and don't give me the time to do it. My choices are sell out (like many of my coworkers have) or get out. I'm choosing get out.
I went into teaching to make a difference only to find that teachers have no power to do that. That's the most disheartening thing about being a teacher.
Are there any former teachers out there who now work int he business world? Did you find it a massive improvement over teaching? I have not heard this from any former teachers, in fact, I have not heard anything at all. If you got out of teaching, did you find what you are looking for and you are now happy and have job satisfaction?
I have often wished I had gone into teaching 9or law enforcement - FBI) instead of law. While the money is nice and the constant challenge keeps it from getting dull, it is not always that personally rewarding to move money from company A to company B and spend 70 hours or more a week doing it every year without change or breaks. teaching appeals to me because: I love kids and would like the opportunity to really make a difference in someone's life, even if it is only one or two kids ever; I like interacting with people and the practice of law is more about interacting with paper and computers; I like change so the change over the summer and the change from year to year or even semester to semester appeal to me; It would be nice to be off of work by 3:30 instead of 7:30 and get home in daylight and when things are still open (even if you have to do some more work later at night; having some weekends and all kinds of holidays off is very appealing - we work thought many or most holidays; I think I would be good at it - that is the primary reason why practicing law still has some appeal to me - I am very good at it. It would stink to do something that you re not good at. Someday when I retire, I will probably give teaching a try if that is practical, but in the meanwhile, are there any people out there who went from teaching to business (or law) and found it massively better?
I thought I always respected teachers. I was polite to them in school (even if I did not like going to school), and many of my friends went on to study education in college. But after my experience being a substitute teacher this week, I have a new level of respect for teachers. It is a deceptive job--it looks simple, it should be simple, but it's not.
I only read the first page, and I had to laugh. Someone said teachers know what they're getting into. It has changed so much over the years, that what you think teaching is, ends up being so bogged down by beaucracy, that it doesn't resemble what you thought you were going to be doing.
The comment about only working three seasons is true. However, you're also only paid three seasons, so unless you draw money out of your regular salary every month, you have to get an off season job.
We get off work at three. Unless you have to lesson plan, meet with parents, do adjunct duties, or grade papers.
It's also one of the few jobs that seems to inspire intense prejudice from the public. Anytime something comes up in the news about a teacher, the comments I see are so venomous. It never ceases to amaze me how many people seem to hate teachers.
To the OP, in answer to your question, I think secondary education has fallen away from what the kids really need. I feel there are not enough electives in practical skills like plumbing, carpentry,etc. There is too much emphasis on state tests, there is not enough funding for good programs, and it makes me sad.
What is your opinion of the teaching profession (in regard to public secondary education)?
I taught HS for 5 years back in the early/mid 90s and enjoyed the teaching part of the job. What forced me out what the drastic cut in income. I have a lot of respect for those in the teaching profession and found that the vast majority of folks involved in the public schools to be dedicated individuals who truly cared about the upcoming generation doing well and living good lives. In some cases, teachers showed a lot more concern for some kids than the parents did. And that's a sad comment on the American public, but I suspect that it's true almost everywhere.
I also know that even though I received excellent evaluations, I simply could not survive the amount of crazy bureaucracy that has followed the NCLB act. Under current conditions, teaching must be hell.
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What is your opinion of the teaching profession (in regard to public secondary education)?
