I burn baby burn like disco inferno…
I’ve been at the new school for 10 days now and things are only getting better. As I get to know the students I can see that these kids have been craving consistency, a challenge, and someone who wants to be there for them and not just for a paycheck.
There is so much potential for growth at this school. The students are willing to do whatever it is I ask of them and the parents will be supportive as long as their children are learning and excited about school. I’m happy at the start and end of every day and I wasn’t able to say that before.
Money is still an issue though. My last job paid me much more money, but I feel as if I traded that money for piece of mind and you cannot put a price on mental physical health and happiness.
I’m still weighing my options but if they can meet some of my salary demands I think I want to return for the 2009-2010 school years.
We shall see.
I’ve worked in a pretty rough neighborhood for the better part of four years and I recently separated from my most recent employing school system. I took a lot of abuse in the last job, both personal and professional.
I’ve been cursed out by students and their parents, hit, punched, kicked, and disrespected in ways (by other adults) that I don’t really care to get into here. Recently, I’ve been hired to work as a math/social studies teacher in a charter school.
The school doesn’t have as many resources or as much money but it does have involved parents, eager, respectful students who are always willing to work, and an administrative staff that is very hands off. I’m free to do whatever I feel is needed to get these kids to learn.
So why do I miss my old job? I always find myself romanticizing terrible times in my past. For many people, hind-sight is 20/20. For me, hind-sight is blind. Why can’t I just enjoy a good thing ?
I’ve tried to tell myself students like my former students are those that need me the most. They’re neglected, attention starved, misunderstood. They’re individuals, free thinkers, and more independent than my current crop of students. All of these things are true…but my new students are much less defiant than the old crop. They’re more willing to learn from me. They do their homework every night. They don’t fight or curse. And yet I find myself craving that old challenge…and that old sense of daily adventure.
The new administration is VERY hands off. I’m free to do whatever I want to get the job done. I don’t have state audits and district walk throughs every other day. My classroom isn’t being broken into every weekend. I can leave my door unlocked without fear of someone ( most likely another adult teacher ) stealing anything from my classroom.
I’m working in a dream environment and I still miss the old school. Am I crazy ? Or have I worked in a stressful environment for so long that I crave stress and professional abuse?
I love and loathe ed-tech. It’s the gift and the curse.
I allows teachers to use multimedia to convey conceptual and contextual information. It empowers students…and it also handicaps bad teachers and serves as a distraction to disengaged students…but I still rely on two major pieces of equipment.
My LCD projector ( I just received my very own epson LCD in the mail) and my tablet PC.
What are your must have teacher tools ?
I’ve been taking two classes at GSU this semester…each is an introductory class to research. One class is quantitative and the other is qualitative.
The quantitative class has been very easy for me to get into. My background has always been based in numbers and the relative certainty that I thought numbers provided. As I read and study more I realize that numbers, just like words can be manipulated to tell whatever stories we wish. I’ve always know this from a statistical perspective but I still felt that numbers offered more objectivity than words until I began digging deeper into these qualitative studies.
The qualitative course has been incredibly challenging because I actually have to think critically about what I am encountering. I haven’t had to really do that since high school…or possibly my freshman year courses. Initially I shied away from the challenge, trying to convince myself that I just wasn’t interested in this brand of research. I was actually running away from the challenge.
I think I’m going to try to learn as much about both types of research as possible as each offers distinct advantages when trying to analyze issues in education.
I’m actually excited about my education again and I haven’t been in a very long time.
This story is about me getting fired.
I was two months away from graduating from college and I had dreams of climbing to the next rung on the corporate ladder.The job wasn’t particularly challenging or interesting but it paid the bills and I didn’t hate it. I was comfortable where I was.
I was able to complete my mundane tasks relatively quickly and efficiently. I tried explaining how I did what I did to my supervisors but they had no interest in me or what I had to offer. My interest in the company began to wane. I spent less time focusing on the work and more time on the internet.
I was called into the manager’s office one day and asked whether or not I was using the internet for personal use on company time. I answered yes.
I was asked whether I knew that this was a violation of company policy or not. Again, I answered yes.
I didn’t bother to explain that I was bored by the work. I didn’t bother to explain that I felt that I had more to offer the company or that I really wanted to share my ideas about how we could do better business. I just answered his questions and accepted his judgment.
I was fired that day. All of my personal effects were stuffed into a used cardboard box and I was escorted out of the building. At first I panicked. I had never been fired before and I didn’t know what to do. I had rent to pay and car payments to make and I had no savings to draw on.
However, I quickly learned that getting fired is actually freeing. I didn’t vanish into the ether the next day or the day after that. I continued to exist. I was humbled but I still WAS.
Getting fired was the best thing that ever happened to me.
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