Saturday, September 13, 2014

DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: 30 Years a Teacher! And Still Going Strong!

DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: 30 Years a Teacher! And Still Going Strong!:



30 Years a Teacher! And Still Going Strong!



It's hard to believe that I have been teaching for 30 years. Actually, it's been longer than that since a fresh-faced 20 year old graduated from college,ready to begin a teaching career. Unfortunately, (or fortunately), 1980 was not a good year for teachers in NYC.  I couldn't get a job in a public school for 4 years. Instead, I taught pre-K, Headstart, and kindergartners.

In 1984, I got my first teaching position.They gave me a kindergarten class. I did not want a kindergarten class. I had had enough of the "babies", but, it was a teaching position, so I took it. The first week my class wasn't ready, so I subbed in a 3rd grade classroom for a teacher who was out, just a couple of days. Administration kept walking in and wandering past, I was thinking, "What's going on?". Next thing I knew, that was my class, and they moved that teacher to the library. (I hope he was happier there).And so it began. I taught there for 15 years, two months in Baltimore, and the rest in my present position.

Last year, a 1st year teacher said to me, "My husband said he doesn't see me as just a teacher for 29 years,(the number of years I had been teaching), he sees me as an asst. principal or principal."

You know, sometimes you really don't catch on to what someone has said, and what it really means, until later. Just a teacher?

Here's the thing. There seems to be the misconception that teachers are at the bottom of the rung when one considers hierarchy in education. For some reason, many people, including teachers, believe that the main objective for becoming a teacher is to eventually leave the classroom.

I have chosen to remain in the classroom. If I am fortunate, I will retire from the classroom. The only thing I will miss from an administrative position is the salary.:) That is my choice, DIARY OF A PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER!: 30 Years a Teacher! And Still Going Strong!: