Teachers, talk to me.

[flamingeaux]

I'm thinking about getting my teaching certification.  What do you feel are the pros and cons of your job? Do you feel like you have a good work/life balance?

[joenali]

I get to leave no child behind.

[steph196]

I love the job, but you have to deal with a lot of BS from administration and parents on top of actually teaching. If I only had to deal with what happens within my classroom, I would be extremely happy. I love being able to spend more time with DD, since we get out of school earlier than an office job. I have to bring stuff home to work on if I leave when I'm allowed to leave, but it's worth it to spend time with her.

Like any job, there are a ton of pros and cons. Just don't consider going into the profession for the time off. Everyone I know who went to school for teaching, with the time off as one of the things they were excited about, has left the profession.

[mcmel]

This is my last semester before graduating and I'm currently intern teaching.

The biggest pro for me is that they pay off my student loans and will pay for my masters. Also, the kids are usually awesome. Of course you have good hours and summers/holidays off so that's great.

The biggest con that has been staring me in the face since my friend died last week is that if I have an emergency I can't just leave. Also, parents can suck.

[game blouses]

You have to love it. Like, love it so much you'd do it for free if you didn't need the money. I didn't love it that much and it was difficult for me most of the time. I'm using my credential at my current job (not teaching) and I like it much more.

As for work/life balance, I taught before my kids were born so I was able to balance pretty well, but my mom taught throughout my whole childhood and she did not have a good balance. She was in the classroom until 5 or 6 every night, and all weekend, and graded papers when she was home. Many teachers I worked with had the same schedule. It's not the kind of job you can just leave from at 3 when the bell rings.

Pros would be that the kids are really awesome most of the time. Like another poster said, if the job just consisted of what happened in the classroom, it would be a perfect job. One of the biggest cons for me was that I couldn't go to the bathroom anytime I wanted, lol, and that I had to eat my lunch during a 30 minute lunch period while grading papers in someone else's classroom (I didn't have my own room). 

[hymen]

I'm not going to lie, it's high pressure right now. I love my job (i.e. the kids and the subject matter), but the hoops administration and the state ed department want us to jump through are ridiculous. I feel like there are people constantly breathing down my neck, and I'm a damn good teacher. I have been teaching for 7 years and have already thought about "what else" in the future.

Not to scare you - it's just the reality. If you do get into teaching find yourself a good support group of educators you can vent to. Also, be prepared not to have much of a life outside of work for the first 3-4 years.

[hymen]

Jan 26, 2015 1:23:39 GMT -5 @kirkette said:

What do you feel are the pros and cons of your job?
I just left the classroom this month after teaching for almost 6 years.
Pros - I loved my subject matter, student population, and knowing I made an impact every day. I had 75 units past a BA/BS, so my salary was comfortable. I liked my campus, and had 90 minutes of planning or free time each school day. I taught 11th and 12th, so I got to help kids cross the finish line, and get into great schools. I really liked my coworkers and parents too.

Cons - In a nutshell, new admin killed our culture and it made the school begin to feel chaotic. If admin isn't solid, everything else can be perfect, but it still makes it hard to do your job. 

It's also not a good climate for teachers. There are too many cooks in the educational kitchen creating noise and distractions from teaching effectively. Sometimes it felt like teaching on a roller coaster. The highs were high, but instability is just around the corner. 


Do you feel like you have a good work/life balance?

Yes, but I had those 90 minutes a day to use wisely. If I didn't, I would've had to take things home. Sometimes, it is also hard to shut your brain off even if you are not actively working on something. 

I didn't realize you left teaching. Are you working in another field or SAH?

[noradog]

Teaching is the best job in the world if you love it. It is the worst job ever if you don't .

I've taught for 10 years and I love it. This year has been REALLY hard bc my performance and attention to my job suffered last semester because of some things going on at home. It is not a job that you can do part way and do well. I also am in charge of an extracurricular team and that takes a lot of time and focus away from home.

But I love my job, team, students, and administration, so I'm lucky.

[W.T.Faulkner]

I was an English teacher for three years. I'm hoping to be a teacher again starting this fall; right now, my job is more of a counselor role.

Pros: I love my content area and the age group (high school). I feel like I'm doing something very meaningful every day. There is a purpose to my job and it's something I believe in and want to do well. Kids are HILARIOUS and seeing them learn and succeed is rewarding. Where I teach, parents are not difficult for the most part.

Cons: During my first two years I had literally no work-life balance, and I do now only because my position changed. I lost my prep period more than I had it. At my last job, the administration single-handedly ran the school into the ground. Outside of my desk or classroom, I have very little say in decision-making that affects my day-to-day. I am tired a lot. In some situations I feel like I could smack a child's parent.

My pay is middling, but that's because I work at a charter. I'd not trade my working conditions for a few extra thousand, since our district (Philadelphia) is a disaster.

[tacokick]

It really depends a lot on your expectations and the school culture. Both my husband and I worked in struggling schools with very difficult, unsupportive administration that made each day miserable. We did not have planning periods 95% of the time. We had 20 minute lunches (really 5-10 minutes as we had to walk the kids to and from lunch) as our sole break. I worked at a school with an extended day (an inner city school initiative here; not a "after school" type situation, we taught the whole time) so was at work from 7-4:30 with the children.

We both left and now I write books/articles and he works in IT again.

However, we had friends who worked in the same district at similarly struggling schools with awesome, supportive admin who really worked with them and they loved it. It was nuts. If we had lucked out and worked at one of those schools, we'd probably still be teaching. We both have MAs in Education so we are considered "highly qualified" teachers.

The kids/planning part was not an issue, it really was the school culture and admin that made it so difficult. Also, I am a quick reader and very efficient so I did not have the hours of work at home my fellow teachers seemed to have.

I would talk to teachers in your area and get an idea of the culture. We found it to be much, much more of an issue than we could have imagined going in.

[RoxMonster]

Pros: I enjoy working with students every day, I like my subject matter, lots of time off for holidays and what not

Cons: The politics of it/government getting involved who know nothing about education, budget cuts and therefore possible lay-offs, an increase in student apathy and obstacles to overcome (poverty, poor home life, etc), THE PAY

Work/life balance? I feel mine is better now. My first few years of teaching it was awful. I was constantly bringing my work home with me, both literally and figuratively. I also teach one of the subjects with the most take-home grading (English essays), so I still have to give up several of my weekends to grading papers, but I am better about the balance now.

[kaybee85]

I agree 110% with everyone who said you have to love the job. I really can't imagine doing it and putting up with the cons if I didn't, especially because in FL ( with a masters and 5 years experience), I make 37k. I feel like I could find another job that is less draining and make a similar salary. That said, I do love it.

Pros:
Kids are hilarious and sweet and fun (I teach middle school)
The parents who are supportive are so wonderful
Time off (I agree with not signing up for this, but it is definitely a perk!)
Getting to sing Miss Mary Mack at age 29 and beyond with kids on a bus.

Cons:
How much you enjoy work heavily depends on administration.
No child Left behind/race to the top fuckery, including boatloads of pointless paperwork.
Grading essays
Some parents. If you teach math, watch out. They really seem to freak over math lol.
Parent sub note- do a weekly email home to update. Parents love it/feel involved and you get a lot more credit from them overall. I rarely have issues with parents, but I also look at that aspect if teaching as customer service and really get to buy happiness equity with them early on so that of a problem arises I'm not some new random commingling about their child.


Work/life balance is hard at first and easy to burn out over. I stopped bringing home work all together because I never actually did it, but seeing it sitting there stressed me out. My required hours are 8:15-3:45. I have chosen to work 7:30-5ish, and whatever I don't get done simply has to wait until the next day. Very occasionally I will bring work home.

[Jalapeñomel]

Ok, so I am currently going through alternate certification in NYC...this is my first year teaching. I'm not going to lie to you, it's fucking hard. I have a TON of work to do between lesson plans, unit plans, grading, grad school work, and my family. It's incredibly intense.

I also work in a very high needs school, so there are a LOT of challenges that I face on a daily basis from behavioral issues to academic ones to administrative ones. 

Are you planning on going the traditional route?

[Jalapeñomel]

Also, what do you want to teach? Because some teaching jobs are incredibly hard to get, especially in a low needs area.

[sporky]

I left teaching this past June after 11 years in the field.

Pros: the kids. I loved working with the kids, even the difficult ones. Nothing is better than that moment when one of your kiddos "gets" it. And connecting with them is just fun most days.

Cons: Everything else. I never minded the parents so much (even the crazy ones), but administrations were horrible. It just reached a point of no return with me. Last year I was in a very low performing, high poverty-rate school and was working 6 days a week, 12 hour days. There was no support from administration (both at the school level and the district level). I had 20 minutes of lunch/planning a day. I was repeatedly asked to do things that went against federal and state laws, and as someone in special education whose name went on legally binding paperwork, I was not at all comfortable with that.

Teaching is a calling. If you really feel like you have a passion for it, then godspeed. But if you aren't able to be 110% into it, you will struggle.

[joenali]

Those of you that didn't have planning built into your day, do you have union contracts, are these charter schools? I feel that living in a union state, working conditions seem better, not perfect but better.

[sporky]

Jan 26, 2015 9:09:46 GMT -5 joenali said:

Those of you that didn't have planning built into your day, do you have union contracts, are these charter schools? I feel that living in a union state, working conditions seem better, not perfect but better.

Can't speak for everyone, but I'm in VA-- no unions. 

[kaybee85]

Unions make a huge difference. Florida is a right to work state so the unions don't necessarily have a lot of power here. I've taught in two different counties. The current one that I teach in has a pretty decent union just because of the make up of the people that live here. My experience in this county has been a lot better than in the other county I taught in and I think it's because of the union in large part.

[theoverlander]

I'm going to be 1000% honest right now. I've been teaching 13 years and the only thing keeping me in is the schedule that gives me the same vacations as my kids.

My class is tough. The kids are so loving but SO high need. The majority of my class are ELL (English Language Learners) and I also have many students on behavior plans for various reasons. It's exhausting, and the testing is draining to say the least. The new evaluation systems that are tied to test scores are soul crushing - especially when we are losing funding because too many of our ELL students are being qualified for special education (wha...?). I spend more time testing than I ever thought possible - pre and post tests simply for my own evaluation purposes. Giving these tests to students who I know won't pass (you know, because the kids don't speak English fluently) is just mean.
Anyways, I've had several breakdowns this year because I feel like it's impossible to be a good teacher AND a good mom AND a good wife. I don't have the energy.

[dowagercountess]

Pros: It's never boring, you get to work with kids, there are those vacations, it's very fulfilling.
Cons: It's hard ass work, there's a lot of bureaucracy, parents suck.

Like pp poster said, you'd have to be willing to do it for free, really love, or it won't work.

[dowagercountess]

Oh, and I have been teaching for 14 years. I've taught mostly middle and high school, but also K, 2, 4, and 5.

[tacokick]

Jan 26, 2015 9:09:46 GMT -5 joenali said:

Those of you that didn't have planning built into your day, do you have union contracts, are these charter schools? I feel that living in a union state, working conditions seem better, not perfect but better.

We had unions but there was a loophole that said we could have our breaks taken away if there was an "emergency". Basically our principals said every day was an emergency in our failing schools so whatever! There were no art or gym teachers so there was no one to take the kids from us during the week.

This was in several city public schools. The union finally did help husband leave an abusive school and break his contract mid year but that was nearly unheard of in our city. The union reps at our schools basically lived in fear of the principals themselves and didn't help.

[Deleted]

I got my MAT in adolescent education for social studies (7-12), and knew after student teaching that it wasn't a good fit; I now work in university admin. I'm an introvert so 5 days of constant interaction should have been my first clue. And mostly, I found it was incredibly intimidating to meet standards at the high school/middle school level with incredibly mixed classrooms (e.g. I had a 10th grader join the class 3 weeks into the school year, with only a 3rd grade reading level; you have to keep those students engaged and up to schedule right along with highly motivated students that are prepping ivy league applications, and the relatively smart students who simply don't care at all). It can also be heartbreaking to see how disadvantaged some kids are with housing, family support, etc. My hats are definitely off to all teachers because it's an incredible amount of talent and juggling; but you really have to have dedication and love it.

If you have friends that are teachers, try to observe classrooms for several rounds. Quiz them on what they love/struggle with, and definitely make the choice based on how much you love working with kids under all sorts of circumstances; not just the subject matter or so-called 'benefits.'

[sugarbear]

Pros: 
I laugh every single day. Sometimes, all day. I love my coworkers and my administration. I have never been told "no," and so I've been able to incorporate some pretty progressive learning practices into my curriculum. I love what I teach and how I teach it. Because I'm in an independent school, I don't have to worry about testing. We do test, but I don't teach to the test. My schedule is great. I have almost two hours of prep a day. I get to school at 8am and I leave almost every day by 4. I have a ton of time off and generous sick leave. Most of the parents I deal with are gracious and supportive (most). 


Cons:
I have three masters degrees and I make $62k. Finding subs is a pain, so taking sick leave isn't an easy decision. The 5% of parents who are difficult can be really, really difficult. There are so many standards to meet: NCSS, state standards, 21st Century skills, Common Core... and while I'm confident that I'm meeting them all, there are a lot of boxes to check. And, finally, I really hate parent-teacher conferences (I don't mind talking to parents; I just hate the two full days of 8am to 8pm conferencing). 

[game blouses]

I'm an introvert too, and I did find that 5 periods a day of being "on" in front of the class was extremely wearing. The extroverted teachers always seemed to be energized by being in front of the class every day, but I was bone tired. I really enjoyed creating the class materials and lessons; that was the most fun part of the job. I also liked interacting with kids in small groups or one on one.

[lg28]

I'm always appalled at how poorly teachers in the US are paid. In Canada your starting pay sucks but you can get to 60-70k pretty quickly, with good benefits and pension.

My high school teacher friends are all between 70-89k.

[noodleskooze]

You have to REALLY want to do it and and REALLY love it--all aspects, not just loving your subject.

[Monica Geller]

I love my students, even the difficult ones. I can deal with parents, most of the time. I have a good staff that I work with and I figure you're going to have bosses you love or hate no matter what job you have. (I currently dislike my principal.)

Being constantly told that you're not doing a good job; you're not working hard enough; you're overpaid; and nothing you do is good enough by the administration/government/general public is exhausting and demoralizing. 

It is not a job for the faint of heart. It is not a "fall-back" job. You can't do it just for the summers. It will kill you if you do it for the wrong reasons.

[Jalapeñomel]

The NYC teaching Union is incredibly strong, so we are super lucky. We can only teach 5 classes a day, and of those teaching periods you can only have three preps (I believe it's three). We have decent pay and excellent benefits.

[theoverlander]

For people who still get pensions, have you been teaching for a long time?  Teachers in my area (Seattle-ish) stopped getting pensions a LONG time ago.  Like, decades ago.  Those of us who started teaching after the early 80's can't pull retirement until we are 67, and that retirement is just what we put in - the districts don't contribute at all.