this teacher has left the building- Page 2

[hermionejuliet]

Posted: 4/9/08 at 7:35pm

Gee, Elphaba, hope that outburst made you feel better. Perhaps I was a bit overzealous to use the word "right." However, the fact that you respond to my other valid comments on your opinion with only personal insults does not vouch for your credibility on the topic.

I just think it is sad that SO many people believe they are experts on education when they haven't stepped foot in a classroom. That's why NCLB is such a disaster. It is also why so many important programs are denied funding. Because everyone is an expert on education.

What I do find interesting is the personal reactions of teachers all over the country. Even in this thread, you can see that the range of emotions related to the profession is wide.

[me2]

Posted: 4/12/08 at 1:30pm

DG, that's a fair question. I guess I meant that while I was very good at what I did and really cared about my students, I was all that even though at the end of the day, I really didn't want to do it any more.

The GREAT NEWS is that I started my new job on Wednesday, and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. I have the most amazing bosses ever, have a great group of people to work with, and the work itself is engaging and important. I leave at the end of the day with all my work at work, and I have energy to write and do other things.
Broadway Mouth: New Broadway Shows to Naysayers: I Ain’t Down Yet

[adamgreer]

Posted: 4/12/08 at 1:51pm

As someone in the middle of year 4 teaching, I can attest to the fact that people's experiences as teachers are widely shaped by the environment with which they work in. I love my job and would never consider doing anything else. I get discouraged by people at work who clearly don't like what they're doing. They went in to teaching for all of the reasons, and it very obviously shows.

I agree with those who say you need to give it about 5 years. Experiences vary so much from year to year, that you can't possibly form a solid opinion after just one or two.

I've also found that the teachers who burn out are generally the ones who don't separate themselves from their job enough. We had a teacher at our school who stayed every night until 6:00, and came in to work on Sundays. She had no other life, and it was very sad. Needless to say, she left the profession after one year. There comes a point when you need to put the papers away and realize that it will be ok if they don't get their tests back the very next day.

By the way...whoever mentioned Harry Wong...that mans's books are my Bible. I keep them on the shelf behind my desk and refer to them often. He's a genius.
Updated On: 4/12/08 at 01:51 PM

[Elphaba]

Posted: 4/12/08 at 2:00pm

"I've also found that the teachers who burn out are generally the ones who don't separate themselves from their job enough."

You've hit the nail on the head, AND...I'd go one step further and say this can happen in any job.

I put 17 years into my last company, but didn't separate myself, and things really got to me.

With the new company, doing the same sort of job (for more money, heh heh)I absolutely love it as I can now separate.

Frankly I was thinking of changing fields as I thought I was burning out. It turns out I was burnt out from the former company, not what I did for work.

[thatgirl712]

Posted: 4/14/08 at 9:26am

Good luck to you!

[jasonf]

Posted: 4/14/08 at 6:05pm

I wouldn't disagree about burning out from doing too much work, but I have to say it's NOT the time that's getting to me - it's the CONSTANT beat down teachers get from higher up. I'm SO glad that my immediate administrators are as amazing as they are, because the information that we get from the district and the state is just horrible. Today we had a staff meeting where we were told a state mandate went into effect that essentially says teachers (and apparently this, coming from the GOVERNMENT, only affects those in the education field) aren't worthy of little snacks at any kind of school function - they're not allowed to buy us ANY food for anything with school money any more. This includes the banquet that was given annually to honor teacher of the year. This includes the little snacks we were given to make faculty meetings where we have to hear this crap that much more tolerable. This includes the already tiny bagel "welcome back to another year" breakfast we get each year.
Before any one jumps in with "wah wah they don't get their snacks" let's remember our already pathetic salaries, the hours we put in, the pressure we're put under to perform and THREATS if we don't, the lack of ANY motivation whatsoever OTHER than that we like the kids -- I'm telling you, the camel's back of education is bending pretty damn far, and we're getting to that last straw really soon.

Honestly, as much as I enjoy my time in the classroom with the kids (which IS why I stay), if I could afford to take the risk of being a writer, I would definitely do that because the other nonsense is really starting to pile up. What this is all going to lead to is going to be either the complete collapse of our educational system (which is where we're clearly headed) or a revolution - which to my mind can't come soon enough!

[Jess1483]

Posted: 4/14/08 at 11:32pm

I agree that the hardest part is, as you so elegantly put it "the beat down from the higher ups." I'm a first-year teacher (and maybe shouldn't have read this thread...) and have made some serious progress with my kids this year that I'm really proud of and so are the kids. We've gotten over most of the major behavior problems, and while I have my "I hate this" days, they've become fewer and further apart.

That said, I feel bombarded by the administration all the time. They tell us we don't put our foot down enough and set limits with the kids. I take away talking at lunch, recess (which we just got back in a 9-hour school day--for 5 months they weren't allowed to go outside or have recess in the gym), their dance class, working in groups, art projects, etc. We have the most elaborate positive behavior management tracking ever (mostly because I didn't know what I was doing at the beginning and just kept adding stuff, but it's working now.) I call parents many times a day when necessary, but the thing is, when a kid kicks a desk at me...for the fourth time...the administration needs to step in and suspend him. But instead, no, I must be doing something wrong. Even though he is the only child in my classroom. And granted, of course I could be doing more--we always could. But I am at school for 12 hours a day and making phone calls at night, and I need support--and, oh yeah, it's in the handbook.

Okay, that got more rant-like than I meant. I really do try to live by the successes, however small, and take the negative administrative comments in stride, but this is an incredibly difficult profession to be a part of. Something needs to change...and quickly, because I can tell you from the inside that the charter school thing isn't going to fix anything.

[george95]

Posted: 4/14/08 at 11:40pm

I am very lucky to have a supportive principal and vice-principal.

Teaching at a Catholic h.s. with only 240 students, we are supposed to teach them spiritually and emotionally as well as academically. That's where it can get tough for me--when we have certain who are so messed up and have so many problems and take up so much of our time and energy--but they're at our school because they wouldn't survive anywhere else.

The thing that keeps me going is seeing kids come into the school in September as nasty, rude, mean-spirited, introverted hoodlums......and then 4 years later they walk down the aisle as ladies and gentlemen on their way to college. The only problem is, the 4 years it takes to get them there takes tons and tons and tons of work every single day. And the patience! These kids are used to people just yelling at them and getting loud with them, so detentions, suspensions, punishments, nothing like that will work.

[SweetQintheLights]

Posted: 4/14/08 at 11:43pm

This poem seems to fit about now.

THE POWER OF 1

Once upon a time there was a wise man

who used to go to the ocean

to do his writing.

He had a habit of walking

on the beach

before he began his work.

One day he was walking along

the shore.

As he looked down the beach,

he saw a human

figure moving like a dancer.

He smiled to himself to think

of someone who would

dance to the day.

So he began to walk faster

to catch up.

As he got closer, he saw

that it was a young man

and the young man wasn't dancing,

but instead he was reaching

down to the shore,

picking up something

and very gently throwing it

into the ocean.

As he got closer he called out,

"Good morning! What are you doing?"

The young man paused,

looked up and replied,

"Throwing starfish in the ocean."

"I guess I should have asked,

why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?"

"The sun is up and the tide is going out.

And if I don't throw them in they'll die."

"But, young man, don't you realize that

there are miles and miles of beach

and starfish all along it.

You can't possibly make a difference!"

The young man listened politely.

Then bent down, picked up another starfish

and threw it into the sea,

past the breaking waves and said-

"It made a difference for that one."

[george95]

Posted: 4/14/08 at 11:52pm

The starfish story! I used to tell that one all the time!

But you know what? The thinking behind that poem causes controversey at school sometimes, for example:

We have a female senior who transferred in from a public h.s. last fall, and she was a hot mess---rude, talking back, constantly taking out her phone, not doing any work, putting her head down, you name it she did it.

Then she got arrested for inciting a riot at a basketball game. For real. Then she got arrested again for causing a 10-girl fight in front of the school a few weeks ago.

However, she is on some serious medication, and the problem is, without her medication, she is totally pyschotic and dangerous. On the medication, she is quiet and fine. The other problem is, when she is on her period, the medication doesnt work. So for a few days each month....she goes wacky. And that's when all the "you can't tell me to sit down and be quiet" outbursts happen.

So on one hand, the school says that yeah, she is our starfish, one of God's children, and we have to help her and accomodate her and her medication drama. But, we also have to say we have a whole lot of other starfish whose classes are constantly, constantly disrupted because of her antics and whose safety is jeopardized because of her behavior.

So the question is, do we save this starfish even if it means we greatly diminish the education of our other kids.......or, do we tell her she needs more help than our school can offer.

[brdlwyr]

Posted: 4/14/08 at 11:56pm

The other problem is, when she is on her period, the medication doesnt work.

Who told you that? That sounds like a goofy statement.

[SweetQintheLights]

Posted: 4/15/08 at 12:06am

The Starfish story is only general and shouldn't really be brought into specific contexts. It just means that helping 1 person come out of a bad situation is bringing one more to "stay alive"

There are bizzilions of people who need to be helped (thrown back in the sea) but taking 1 of them and helping them, is really a lot more than doing nothing and throwing none of them back.

I can't help with the situation because I don't know it and I'm not experiencing it. While your account may be correct, there are at least 2 sides to every story.

The one thing you cannot do is save a "potential starfish" if during the "potential saving" you are putting others at risk.


*Sorry if this doesn't really make sense...my sleeping pills are kicking in.

[george95]

Posted: 4/15/08 at 12:11am

no it makes sense sweet q.

And brdlwr, her doctor who prescribed the meds came to the school to talk to us about the menstraul period-medication problem. He was able to talk the principal into keeping her at the school for that reason.