I jumped onto this career path without any preparation and without having much experience in the field. I had done some volunteer tutoring, but it was only one hour a week and it was more likely babysitting than teaching. I will admit I was searching for a career that would make me feel like I was an adult and I was important. I needed something that would give meaning and substance to my life. I wanted to be challenged and connected to the community. I wanted to give to others and I wanted to share my passion for history with others. And to not have much experience in the matter of teaching may have been a little foolish. So you can understand that I was a little worried that I may not be cut out for teaching. I am a naturally shy person and I often lack confidence. I am passionate about social studies and literature, and I truly want to inspire and help others, but I was unsure if I had the skill set and determination necessary to succeed. All the money, time, and sacrifices I am making makes this a big endeavor. I am taking some big risks with my life. But without risk, nothing can be accomplished. And with risk comes reward. I had my review last week and it went pretty well. I was extremely nervous and I didn’t have that great of a lesson planned. And facing this professor that I revered and feared was truly daunting. But, he said that I was connecting with my students, that I seemed comfortable, that I knew my content and he liked my use of control in the classroom. Of course he had some pointers that I need to take into consideration in regards to class management, and he suggested I take a trip to D.C (which I would love to do). But, what a relief. His review made me realize that I can do this, that I was right in choosing this path, and that I can stop worrying. I knew this job would be challenging, but boy its ten times more so than I thought. But I love this and I am so glad I chose this path.
February 2011
17 posts
Detroit has been ordered to close half the city’s public schools and consolidate students as part of an emergency plan that would eliminate the district’s $327 million deficit by 2014. The plan also means that class sizes in Detroit will jump to 60 students per class.
what
Are you sick of high paid teachers? Teachers’ hefty salaries are driving up taxes, and they only work 9 or 10 months a year! It’s time we put things in perspective and pay them for what they do - baby sit! We can get that for less than minimum wage.
That’s right. Let’s give them $3.00 an hour and only the hours they worked; not any of that silly planning time, or any time they spend before or after school. That would be $19.50 a day (7:45 to 3:00 PM with 45 min. off for lunch and plan — that equals 6 1/2 hours).
Each parent should pay $19.50 a day for these teachers to baby-sit their children.
Now how many do they teach in day…maybe 30? So that’s $19.50 x 30 = $585.00 a day. However, remember they only work 180 days a year!!! I am not going to pay them for any vacations.
LET’S SEE…. That’s $585 X 180= $105,300 peryear. (Hold on! My calculator needs new batteries).
What about those special education teachers and the ones with Master’s degrees? Well, we could pay them minimum wage ($7.75), and just to be fair, round it off to $8.00 an hour. That would be $8 X 6 1/2 hours X 30 children X 180 days = $280,800 per year.
Wait a minute — there’s something wrong here! There sure is!
The average teacher’s salary (nation wide) is $50,000. $50,000/180 days = $277.77/per day/30 students=$9.25/6.5 hours = $1.42 per hour per student–a very inexpensive baby-sitter and they even EDUCATE your kids!)
WHAT A DEAL!!!!
“…The richest nation on Earth has never allocated enough resources to build sufficient schools, to compensate adequately its teachers, and to surround them with the prestige our work justifies. We squander funds on highways, on the frenetic pursuit of recreation, on the overabundance of overkill armament, but we pauperize education.”
— From March 14, 1964 speech by Dr. Martin Luther King upon accepting the John Dewey Award from the United Federation of Teachers.
Do It Anyway, Courtney E. Martin (via lancecore)
I love this. If I could hug this quote, I would.
Today I taught three periods and it was glorious. I am in the first stage of my practicum at this moment so for the most part I am supposed to just be observing. But there have been several times that my cooperating teacher steps out of the room to get something or use the restroom, the bell rings and she has yet to come back. At those moments, I have tried to really seize the moment and teach on the fly. Its been a little bit of a struggle, especially since I had no clue as to that day’s lesson plan. Even more so, I am endorsed in social studies, not language arts. I love literature and reading, but that is not generally where my mindset has been. So when my CT doesn’t show for LA and I have to figure out what the heck I am supposed to impart upon these young minds, I have a moment where I silently freak out. I am adjusting and beginning to engage my literary mind, but it has been tough. I have stumbled words, mixed up terms, confused character, and have been absorbed in shame afterwords.
But today, I was prepared. I had a block modeled for me and then went sailing on my own. And for the most part, it went incredibly well. Not only was I able to give out information, I connected with the students. I am learning how to speak to 14 year olds, connect with what they love, and guide them in the right direction. It is a wonderful feeling to really engage with them and get them to understand the concepts I am discussing.
The best part of all was that at the end of fifth period Social Studies. I was going over the background material for the Civil War, which I feel can be difficult for 8th graders to fully grasp. I had two students come up to me after the bell rang and they asked me higher level thinking questions that reached beyond their age and general learning goals. I was so impressed and excited to interact with them regarding the material that I about peed myself….don’t worry I held it in, but that is truly how happy I was that they were actually connecting and analyzing this material.
I will cherish this moment. There are so many times that I struggle through this process so much. I hate only get 4 hours of sleep. I miss seeing my friends and boyfriend. I feel as if I have no time to relax and that I will never master all the skills necessary to succeed. Juggling work, school, and teaching seems to be a Mount Everest of feats at this moment and i want to just collapse under the weight of the pressure. But the feeling I get when I teach, the evidence of my students actually learning from me, and the sense that I can actually do this is truly glorious. These moments, however few and far between, are going to get me through this. And unfortunately, none of my typical friends or boyfriend seem to be able to connect with me. So I am sharing this with you, and I am excited about that!
