Hello Everyone! Please help! I am conducting a survey for current and former special education teachers to complete my MA in special education. Please take 5 minutes to fill out this short survey-your input is valuable! Thank you in advance:) [link removed]
And by the way....you DO get paid for summers, holidays, etc. You divide by 52 weeks and get paychecks over the summer. If you say, "No, I divide by 40 because that's how many school days there are..." then you are an idiot and shouldn't be teaching. DUH!
Substitute teaching is a very difficult job, although regular teachers do seem to see you as a "babysitter" type, at least from my experience, and they don't really seem to expect much out of you, even though you likely do have a degree in Education and are willing to learn. Most places, like my district, even use an automated system for choosing subs, so the regular teacher may not even get a chance to meet the sub. The busy work left for the students indicates that the regular teacher expects very little out of the sub, but I guess that's just the way the system is set up. My district also doesn't allow subs to access teachers' computers or use any of the online resources available to the regular teachers, but that's the policy; it's not the teachers' fault.
I also think that it's fruitless for new graduates to criticize the teachers who already found jobs in a better economy and worked for their tenure; from what I've seen, the older teachers are in a league of their own. They've gained experience and education that allows them to effectively deal with situations most would struggle with. It's definitely probably difficult to train a new teacher to deal with similar situations. I, personally, though, would almost work for free to receive some of that training and respect, though and would like to be trained by one of those seasoned professionals. Where can I sign up? Student teaching was not enough and barely prepared me for anything. My respect goes to veteran teachers across America who had enough courage to mess up, stay in, experiment, learn more, and grow through experience.
On 6/08/12, To: anon wrote: > I couldn't have said it better myself! AMEN!! > > > On 6/08/12, anon wrote: >> There are so many falsehoods here it makes me sick. As a >> teacher you are NOT paid for summers and holidays, and you are >> only paid for instruction hours. You take tons of work home >> or work after hours at school to get caught up. You are >> basically laid off during the summer; teachers typically get >> their checks spread out over 12 months so the districts don't >> have to pay UI when teachers are laid off for the school year. >> You think teaching is easy? Try it instead of being > such a >> jealous jerk because you made lousy life choices. >> >> You are such a jealous, filthy liar it isn't really worth >> responding to you. >> >> >> >> On 6/03/12, Lauren wrote: >>> First of all Janice, you are NOT worth 117,000 a year! I >>> don't care HOW LONG you've been teaching. How do you even >>> begin to justify that much???? The poor tax payers in your >>> school district are being raped financially just so you can >>> live your life of Riley. That's almost 10,000.00 a month! >>> And the poor machine operator who struggles to put food on >>> the table and send his kids to school pays whopping taxes so >>> "Janice" can her outrageous pay. And for what? Basically >>> glorified babysitting. It makes me sick! I don't want any >>> part of your profession. >>> >>> And by the way....you DO get paid for summers, holidays, >>> etc. You divide by 52 weeks and get paychecks over the >>> summer. If you say, "No, I divide by 40 because that's how >>> many school days there are..." then you are an idiot and >>> shouldn't be teaching. DUH!
Anyone ha...See MoreOn 6/04/12, Lauren wrote: > Oh Janice, > I'm SOOOOOOOOOO glad you responded! I completely forgot > another reason I think teachers are spoiled brats...WHO do you > think pays for all those 30 extra credits, master degrees and > Who-Z-Whatsy extra credits you so tout as YOURS! > That's right...poor Joe taxpayer.
Anyone have a clue for Lauren? she needs on desperately. FYI, Lauren, no one paid for my advanced credits except ME, I took out loans to pay the tuition, I put the gas in the car to get to classes at night and over the 8 week summer break, I paid for the books. AND I'm "Joe Taxpayer" for your information! After achieving my advanced degrees, advanced training, and years of experience, I am making a good salary teaching. On which I pay taxes, DUH~ From your writing style you demonstrate to most of us here that you do not have the maturity and education to make a successful career in education, so have fun with data processing. And stop whining, it's so unbecoming. I've never seen eyes as green as yours!
I'm still having trouble finding a teaching job in my district; I've been searching for a few months. I was wondering if any of the teacher unions helped newly licensed teachers find work. I would like to start working and am excited about joining the teaching world.
First off I'd l...See MoreOn 6/11/12, subfrommobile wrote: > I'm still having trouble finding a teaching job in my > district; I've been searching for a few months. I was > wondering if any of the teacher unions helped newly > licensed teachers find work. I would like to start working > and am excited about joining the teaching world.
First off I'd like to wish you good luck on your job search. In my state, there is a student version of the teachers' union that is directly related to the teaching union itself. I would suggest looking into that union and what is available to its members. Ours offered advice regarding our portfolios, interviews, and other similar job search resources.
Second, I'd like to pass along some information from when I was looking for a job in a tough market. Our teacher preparation program was taught in a cohort format, so I went through all my classes and student teaching with the same group of people for a year. After that year, I was in touch with all of them and tracked them as they did their job searches while I went on to earn my M.Ed.
Many of them, (about half) did not find a job their first year. Those that did -accepted jobs out of the area in rural or urban schools or they accepted jobs in (their)less desired subject matter/age groups. The areas of greatest need at that time were teaching language learners, special education, or middle school aged students. Our credential was aimed at elementary education and many of the teachers wanted primary aged students. The ones that were open to moving found jobs easiest. We lived/went to school in Orange County,CA - a major continuation of the suburbs of Los Angeles. Teachers moved to the desert, to Los Angeles, to pretty much anywhere there was a boom in population or a shortage of teachers and got jobs without much problem.
Those that didn't have jobs within that first year subbed for about a year. School districts would often interview in panels and what many of them heard during those interviews was that the more experience they had subbing, the more desireable they'd be to hire on full time once there was an opening.
When I did get a job, I found one teaching middle school in ELD/Language Arts/Social Studies in a low performing school. Once I was in the district and established tenure, I was free to look at job openings around the district and found the 4th grade opening at a school where I really wanted to teach.
Keep track of openings in your district, make friends of the teachers you sub for and eat lunch with, check in with the administrators so they know your face and name. Do your job well- sticking as close to teacher plans as possible when they are available. Stay positive and humble (subs that brag about being more qualified than the teachers they sub for tend to make fewer friends). You'll find a job.
On 6/20/12, Kimberly from SoCal wrote: > On 6/11/12, subfrommobile wrote: >> I'm still having trouble finding a teaching job in my >> district; I've been searching for a few months. I was >> wondering if any of the teacher unions helped newly >> licensed teachers find work. I would like to start working >> and am excited about joining the teaching world. > > First off I'd like to wish you good luck on your job search. > In my state, there is a student version of the teachers' union > that is directly related to the teaching union itself. I > would suggest looking into that union and what is available to > its members. Ours offered advice regarding our portfolios, > interviews, and other similar job search resources. > > Second, I'd like to pass along some information from when I > was looking for a job in a tough market. Our teacher > preparation program was taught in a cohort format, so I went > through all my classes and student teaching with the same > group of people for a year. After that year, I was in touch > with all of them and tracked them as they did their job > searches while I went on to earn my M.Ed. > > Many of them, (about half) did not find a job their first > year. Those that did -accepted jobs out of the area in rural > or urban schools or they accepted jobs in (their)less desired > subject matter/age groups. The areas of greatest need at that > time were teaching language learners, special education, or > middle school aged students. Our credential was aimed at > elementary education and many of the teachers wanted primary > aged students. The ones that were open to moving found jobs > easiest. We lived/went to school in Orange County,CA - a > major continuation of the suburbs of Los Angeles. Teachers > moved to the desert, to Los Angeles, to pretty much anywhere > there was a boom in population or a shortage of teachers and > got jobs without much problem. > > Those that didn't have jobs within that first year subbed for > about a year. School districts would often interview in > panels and what many of them heard during those interviews was > that the more experience they had subbing, the more desireable > they'd be to hire on full time once there was an opening. > > When I did get a job, I found one teaching middle school in > ELD/Language Arts/Social Studies in a low performing school. > Once I was in the district and established tenure, I was free > to look at job openings around the district and found the 4th > grade opening at a school where I really wanted to teach. > > Keep track of openings in your district, make friends of the > teachers you sub for and eat lunch with, check in with the > administrators so they know your face and name. Do your job > well- sticking as close to teacher plans as possible when they > are available. Stay positive and humble (subs that brag about > being more qualified than the teachers they sub for tend to > make fewer friends). You'll find a job. >
with your own favorite cast of the evil empire ... see CEO's ) or the power of politicians ( with union membership dropping) so get use to having a target on your back. Just like that English teacher said at the graduation exercise, .." we are nothing special..." With the greed is good attitude of the seventies and the F*** the public attitude of government in the 80's, our prestige and influence has never been lower. We are still working class people ( government's definition ) because we are members of a union and since we cannot afford the high priced lawyers like businesses can, we are effectively screwed. Do we deserve goo pay ? ( Doctors get big bucks for what they know and do.(just like us) but no one screams to cut their pay. Cops and firemen put their lives on the line but CEO's don't. Our job is to help the future of this country, so why should we be saying, " do you want fries with that?" Unions are still the only thing that protects us from the stupidity of the people. Congress has laws to protect them, whynot for us too ?
Good for them! They deserve it. I wouldn't teach in Chicago for any amount of money. I want to live.
> Teachers as well as most other government jobs have never paid really > well. You knew that going in or should have. If you don't like it you > could certainly change careers and make more. Many have. >
The posts here are trying to clear up misconceptions about teacher pay. These misconceptions drive the public to not support us when we look for pay increases. No one went into teaching to become rich.
> I always like the comparison to CEO's and Dr.'s. I don't know many > teachers who could run a corporation. There are tons of people with > as much education as you that don't make a lot more and those that > make less but you always choose the top of the crop to compare > yourself to even though study after study has shown teachers are not > the cream of the crop in colleges. >
They are the cream of the crop in Finland. Why? Because Finland pays teachers well.
No one said we can do the same job as CEO's or Dr's, just that they are professionals, too. (Since many teachers think they are professionals).
I have accepted the fact that I am not a professional based on the pay and treatment from everyone. I consider myself a lowly public servant. My pay is slightly above the principal's secretary (she makes $37,000, I make $38,000).
> As we tell our children take responsibility. Sitting around feeling > sorry for yourself doesn't accomplish anything for you or those > around you. If you don't like it either work to change your > profession or find another one. > > Or just keep sitting around crying to each other. >
Who is crying? Just stating facts to people who don't know any better.
Doctors you say? I wouldn't put teachers on a doctors level at all but that is besides the point. Doctors income has dropped dramatically. As those same CEO's make the decisions on what doctors can be paid by insurance companies many are now going into BK> They can't afford their businesses anymore. Others are not taking insurance at all. They'll give you receipts and you file yourself.
Same with nurses. They used to do patient care, while doing that it allowed them to evaluate the patients status. Now min wage employees do that. Nurses only dispense medicine etc. They have more patients than ever and since they are no longer involved in the lower forms of care patients are not getting the care they used to.
All professions are suffering, all professions have taken huge pay cuts as C level employees are raking in more and more.
On 6/15/12, LocoLouie in NY/NM wrote: > Wake Up People!!!!! We, as teachers, think of ourselves as > professionals; when, in reality, we are merely hired help. > Despite salary gains over the past 40 years ( I started at > $5300 for 10 months and worked jobs over the summer ) we > continue to compare ourselves to private sector occupations > with the same level of education. With this poor economy, > we sometimes forget the people who merely have minimum wage > jobs to support themselves and their families. We will > never have the prestige of the over priced _________ ( fill > in the blank > > with your own favorite cast of the evil empire ... see > CEO's ) or the power of politicians ( with union membership > dropping) so get use to having a target on your back. Just > like that English teacher said at the graduation exercise, > .." we are nothing special..." With the greed is good > attitude of the seventies and the F*** the public attitude > of government in the 80's, our prestige and influence has > never been lower. We are still working class people ( > government's definition ) because we are members of a union > and since we cannot afford the high priced lawyers like > businesses can, we are effectively screwed. Do we deserve > goo pay ? ( Doctors get big bucks for what they know and > do.(just like us) but no one screams to cut their pay. Cops > and firemen put their lives on the line but CEO's don't. > Our job is to help the future of this country, so why > should we be saying, " do you want fries with that?" Unions > are still the only thing that protects us from the > stupidity of the people. Congress has laws to protect them, > whynot for us too ?
I'd like to see more articles like this one. Do you know where I can find them?adhd blogChildren with ADHDThere is a plrepexing state of affairs in today's society, there lies a strong correlation between the affluence of a society and the amount of disease that is present. There is also another correlation that troubles many a people and that is w...See MoreI'd like to see more articles like this one. Do you know where I can find them?adhd blogChildren with ADHDThere is a plrepexing state of affairs in today's society, there lies a strong correlation between the affluence of a society and the amount of disease that is present. There is also another correlation that troubles many a people and that is with affluence comes disease at an Earlier age.Working with children and the parents of these children I often get asked the question, 'Why are Children with ADHD on the increase?'The answer as you shall find is one that is both interesting and challenging.Children of today are really no more different from the children of yesterday in terms of genetic makeup. However, if you examine the issue more closely you will tend to find that many children today have been given labels. For example, 'Oh, those are children with ADHD' or 'Those are the children who can't sit still.' Or 'That is the kid that always gets into trouble.'These labels are not only destructive but also become a self fulfilling prophecy as it is repeated adnauseum.So as a 21st century parent or a parent with a child with ADHD or a parent with children with ADHD, what knowledge framework do you need to equip yourself with to ensure your children live out their true potential?Here is a quick reference list for thinking about ADHD? ADHD is a source of great frustration because it is misunderstood? ADHD medications are a great short term time buying device and should be avoided long term? The above point goes for any sort of drug consumption. Think about it for a minute. Unless you have a biochemical deficiency in your body like Type 1 diabetes where your body fails to produce enough insulin or any at all, why would you take an external drug? A body that is in balance is totally healthy. It is only when the body is out of balance that dis-ease symptoms start to creep up.? ADHD is a biochemical imbalance of the mind and body.? The Head of Psychiatry in Harvard states that drugs for ADHD simply mask the effects of ADHD. It does not cure ADHD. This is an important point because a cure implies never to have to take the medication. This means that once you start on medication you will have to be on it for the rest of your life i.e. you have medically acquired a dependency for a biochemical imbalance. That is like stuffing all your rubbish (problematic behaviors) into a closet (medication) where no one can see it. But if you continue to stuff more rubbish into that closet, one day you will not have enough space and need to do one of two things. You either empty the rubbish (the natural conclusion) or you get a bigger closet (i.e. change to stronger medication to control the symptoms). The choice is obvious but sometimes when you don't have the necessary tools to deal with ADHD you tend to think the bigger closet is the only option.? ADHD children are super sensitive to the emotions around them. Often they pick up emotional cues from their parents without realizing. Many parents come home frustrated or annoyed from work, the child with ADHD picks this up and starts to 'cause trouble' by becoming restless. Parents frustration increase because they just want some peace and quiet. They get angry which in turn is picked up by the child who then intensifies their activity. Things get way out of hand and some sort of punishment is handed down to the child who has no idea what just happened. The cycle repeats itself every so often. ? Our brains are wired emotionally. Positive praise is interpreted as an analytical/thinking exercise. Negative criticism including scolding, name calling, physical punishment all go directly to the emotional brain of children with ADHD. This means in order to ensure you get your message across in the most optimal way, you need to learn how to communicate with your ADHD children the way they like to be communicated with.? Every negative comment requires 16 positive comments to neutralize the emotion. Save yourself the frustration and agitation by practicing positive communication.The list is by no means complete. In dealing with children with ADHD there are a certain set of behavioural principles to follow. I will detail these steps in the coming weeks. I'll also build on the list as you continue to learn about what appears to be a mystical disorder known as 'Children with ADHD'
> I'd like to see more articles like this one. Do you know where I can find them?adhd blogChildren with ADHDThere is a plrepexing state of affairs in today's society, there lies a strong correlation between the affluence of a society and the amount of disease that is present. There is also another correlation that troubles many a people and that is with affluence comes disease at an Earlier age.Working with children and the parents of these children I often get asked the question, 'Why are Children with ADHD on the increase?'The answer as you shall find is one that is both interesting and challenging.Children of today are really no more different from the children of yesterday in terms of genetic makeup. However, if you examine the issue more closely you will tend to find that many children today have been given labels. For example, 'Oh, those are children with ADHD' or 'Those are the children who can't sit still.' Or 'That is the kid that always gets into trouble.'These labels are not only destructive but also become a self fulfilling prophecy as it is repeated adnauseum.So as a 21st century parent or a parent with a child with ADHD or a parent with children with ADHD, what knowledge framework do you need to equip yourself with to ensure your children live out their true potential?Here is a quick reference list for thinking about ADHD? ADHD is a source of great frustration because it is misunderstood? ADHD medications are a great short term time buying device and should be avoided long term? The above point goes for any sort of drug consumption. Think about it for a minute. Unless you have a biochemical deficiency in your body like Type 1 diabetes where your body fails to produce enough insulin or any at all, why would you take an external drug? A body that is in balance is totally healthy. It is only when the body is out of balance that dis-ease symptoms start to creep up.? ADHD is a biochemical imbalance of the mind and body.? The Head of Psychiatry in Harvard states that drugs for ADHD simply mask the effects of ADHD. It does not cure ADHD. This is an important point because a cure implies never to have to take the medication. This means that once you start on medication you will have to be on it for the rest of your life i.e. you have medically acquired a dependency for a biochemical imbalance. That is like stuffing all your rubbish (problematic behaviors) into a closet (medication) where no one can see it. But if you continue to stuff more rubbish into that closet, one day you will not have enough space and need to do one of two things. You either empty the rubbish (the natural conclusion) or you get a bigger closet (i.e. change to stronger medication to control the symptoms). The choice is obvious but sometimes when you don't have the necessary tools to deal with ADHD you tend to think the bigger closet is the only option.? ADHD children are super sensitive to the emotions around them. Often they pick up emotional cues from their parents without realizing. Many parents come home frustrated or annoyed from work, the child with ADHD picks this up and starts to 'cause trouble' by becoming restless. Parents frustration increase because they just want some peace and quiet. They get angry which in turn is picked up by the child who then intensifies their activity. Things get way out of hand and some sort of punishment is handed down to the child who has no idea what just happened. The cycle repeats itself every so often. ? Our brains are wired emotionally. Positive praise is interpreted as an analytical/thinking exercise. Negative criticism including scolding, name calling, physical punishment all go directly to the emotional brain of children with ADHD. This means in order to ensure you get your message across in the most optimal way, you need to learn how to communicate with your ADHD children the way they like to be communicated with.? Every negative comment requires 16 positive comments to neutralize the emotion. Save yourself the frustration and agitation by practicing positive communication.The list is by no means complete. In dealing with children with ADHD there are a certain set of behavioural principles to follow. I will detail these steps in the coming weeks. I'll also build on the list as you continue to learn about what appears to be a mystical disorder known as 'Children with ADHD'
and when you have the misfortune of getting a vindictive evil principal even half as dangerous and incompetent as one I had, would you want HIS OPINION posted for all to see. Under NCLB, teachers are to be HQ, so some sort of rating is open to the parents of the students in your care. But what need would there be for opening up your files to everyone? You say you get good evals, but are you perfect? Are there never any items in your eval indicating that some improvement would be a good thing? Do you realize what one or a small group of evil minded, too much time on their hands, parents could do with that information, even if you are an outstanding teacher? The kinds of things that keep Unions busy protecting teacher members! >
On 6/22/12, anon wrote: > Absolutely not. The evaluations aren't even reliable anyway, > given the fact most principals aren't the best people to be > evaluating. Besides, there is no such thing as an objective > evaluation in public ed. > > > > > > > > > > On 6/17/12, Veteran Teacher wrote: >> Just wondering what you think about teachers' evaluations >> being open to the public to view. As it stands now, only >> the kids' parents can view the results of the evalustions >> (efficient, inefficient, etc). It seems that if the general >> public can view teachers' salaries they should be able to >> see if the teachers are, in fact, earning those >> salaries....after all it's the taxpayers who pay these >> salaries. I know I'm opening up a can of worms but I just >> think it's only fair. Teachers and the unions shouldn't be >> trying to cover it up. I always receive good evaluatons >> but, even if I didn't, I think John Q.Public who pays my >> salary, should know how I'm performing. >>
ElaineOn 12/01/12, Teachers.Net Gazette wrote: > It was a slow death. Indeed it took years to wake him up to > the fact that he was dead. [Click below to read the rest.] > > [link removed]]
this was very good...and pretty much how I felt when I decided to retire. Thanks for posting the link
Substitute teaching is a very difficult job, although regular teachers do seem to see you as a "babysitter" type, at least from my experience, and they don't really seem to expect much out of you, even though you likely do have a degree in Education and are willing to learn. Most places, like my district, even use an automated syste...See More