How many days does it take for a teacher to have had enough?
An article posted by TimesDaily.com states nearly half of teachers quit within the first five years of teaching. When people think of dropout rates, they usually think of students who don’t make it through high school. But actually the dropout or burnout rate for teachers is even higher. The teachers who dropout first are usually the most qualified teacher and leave because they have an easier time finding work somewhere else because of their qualifications. Why are teachers leaving? Due to budget cut backs, NCLB, and increased paperwork teachers are finding they can be of service in some other career.
What is causing such a fast burnout rate? Teacher burnout is caused by several reasons and may vary from teacher to teacher. A new teacher soon finds out the day does not stop when the last bell rings and also finds out the work does not stop even on the weekends. Correcting papers, planning lessons, evaluating test scores, and other resource gathering takes time, lots of time. State and Federal guidelines also put burden and stress on a teacher to meet goals in student growth which sometimes seem unattainable. Finally the lack of funding and support can cause missing materials, textbooks and a substandard workplace, which can push a teacher to find work someplace else.
So what can be done to prevent teacher burnout? First things first, THINK POSITIVE! Make to do lists that are attainable and detailed. If you make a list with huge expectations, you are more likely to fail. But setting goals which are easy to attain quickly will give you a sense of satisfaction and pride. Accept there are some things in teaching you cannot change. Relax, watch a movie that makes you laugh, and try something new. Don’t bring your work home with you, leave the teaching at school. Get plenty of sleep every night. Talk with positive people, especially teachers. Finally, celebrate what it means to be a teacher and be thankful for what you have.
Still struggling to continue teaching? Check out the Top 10 Reasons to Become a Teacher, from student potential and success and daily humor, this list sums up some great reasons to become a teacher. Not only will you stay younger when you are teacher, but will have your summers off (which they listed as number 10). But I think the most important reason is the impact a teacher has on the future. They have their hands on so many lives; they will have a huge impact on the future and many more to come.
Showing posts with label teaching. Show all posts
Showing posts with label teaching. Show all posts
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Thursday, October 8, 2009
I'll just go buy it with my own money.
The school year begins and suddenly you realize you need tons of extra supplies your school doesn’t already own. So you make the trip to your local Walmart or teacher store in hopes of finding some deals. While you are there, you find 25 different items in addition to the ones on your list you forgot to think about. Plus you add some extra school supplies to your cart for the students who will forget, can’t afford or loose within the first week of school. You walk out, head down as you just put almost $250 on your credit card. As you are walking to your car, you sink even lower as you think of the parties, motivational items, snacks and other miscellaneous items you will have to purchase throughout the year. But you raise your head back up as you remember, you are a teacher, it is part of the job, and it will make your student’s lives a little easier. Sound familiar? Should “are you willing to spend money out of your own pocket” be included on a teaching application? Or is it something that is common knowledge you gain as a college student?
How much DO teachers spend out of pocket? In a journal article posted by Questia several schools were studied to poll how much money teachers spend out of pocket. Minnesota schools were on the radar. K-12 teachers spent approximately $492 of their own money on their classrooms/students. Add it all up and Minnesota teachers spend almost 23 million dollars each year out of pocket.
In an article written by John Fitzgerald, posted on the Minnesota 2020 website, he states teachers in 2005 had a starting salary of $29,907 their first year of teaching. He also stated how new teachers are the ones who are spending the most out of pocket due to the fact veteran teachers have had years of purchases carrying over. One thing Fitzgerald found teachers spend their own money on, is filling gaps in state curriculum. One example given was a teacher who was short 2 books and went out and purchased them herself. As a teacher, I would do the same thing. But why? Why wouldn’t it be possible for the district or state to provide 2 more books? Is it too time consuming? Is it really going to put a huge crunch on the budget?
After adding up how much money I have spent in my classroom over my 3 years and complaining about it, I have to say I finally have all my family members trained what to keep their eyes open for at garage sales, auction sales, or even stuff people are giving away. I started looking for more numbers to see if Minnesota teachers were at the high or low end of out of pocket expenditures. I came across one website reporting on Los Angeles teachers and their out of pocket expenditures. I was astounded to find teachers are spending over $1,000 each year from their pocket. One kindergarten teacher spends between $3,000 and $5,000 each year on her classroom.
Do we have any help? According to current law, you can deduct up to $250 of education supplies on your taxes to help with some of the expense. You need to be considered an eligible educator and the supplies are ones that are not reimbursed from your school.
But if on average teachers are spending around $500 for their classroom and only getting to deduct $250, what happens with the rest of the money? Will we ever think we have enough to get what we need?
How much DO teachers spend out of pocket? In a journal article posted by Questia several schools were studied to poll how much money teachers spend out of pocket. Minnesota schools were on the radar. K-12 teachers spent approximately $492 of their own money on their classrooms/students. Add it all up and Minnesota teachers spend almost 23 million dollars each year out of pocket.
In an article written by John Fitzgerald, posted on the Minnesota 2020 website, he states teachers in 2005 had a starting salary of $29,907 their first year of teaching. He also stated how new teachers are the ones who are spending the most out of pocket due to the fact veteran teachers have had years of purchases carrying over. One thing Fitzgerald found teachers spend their own money on, is filling gaps in state curriculum. One example given was a teacher who was short 2 books and went out and purchased them herself. As a teacher, I would do the same thing. But why? Why wouldn’t it be possible for the district or state to provide 2 more books? Is it too time consuming? Is it really going to put a huge crunch on the budget?
After adding up how much money I have spent in my classroom over my 3 years and complaining about it, I have to say I finally have all my family members trained what to keep their eyes open for at garage sales, auction sales, or even stuff people are giving away. I started looking for more numbers to see if Minnesota teachers were at the high or low end of out of pocket expenditures. I came across one website reporting on Los Angeles teachers and their out of pocket expenditures. I was astounded to find teachers are spending over $1,000 each year from their pocket. One kindergarten teacher spends between $3,000 and $5,000 each year on her classroom.
Do we have any help? According to current law, you can deduct up to $250 of education supplies on your taxes to help with some of the expense. You need to be considered an eligible educator and the supplies are ones that are not reimbursed from your school.
But if on average teachers are spending around $500 for their classroom and only getting to deduct $250, what happens with the rest of the money? Will we ever think we have enough to get what we need?
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Teaching to a New Generation
After all this research on Generation Y it lead me to wonder more about the generation I teach… Generation Z. After searching for awhile and not finding much information on Generation Z because the age group is still so young, I found information from a Baby Boomer website. It states many characteristics of Gen. Z. A few characteristics that stood out in my mind are how generation Z are not good listeners and they also lack interpersonal skills. The article brought to mind a very good point… Could the world become almost completely virtual because of this generation?
This brought me to wonder why I am fighting it. Why do I keep comparing this generation to my own? I keep saying “it was never like this when I grew up”, or “it worked when I was in elementary school”. I am a Gen Yer and consider my learning style very different then fellow teachers who are older and from a different generation. I found an article from Tech and Learning on Teaching Gen Yers and laughed when it described almost everything about me and how I learn. Is what I am feeling now about the current generation, what my teachers thought about my own generation growing up?
I find I should embrace this generation and use their strengths towards them. I find my class this year keeping me on my toes and wonder what an effect more technology would have on them. They are generation Z completely. I have found I need to keep my classroom moving and active. I have also found anything on the computer is a good thing. Even something as simple as typing in Microsoft word instead of using a whiteboard has them sitting on the edge of their seats. My classroom also received document cameras and projectors this year. Once again, the simple act of using the document camera to project their show and tell was amazing. I had a completely quiet classroom (which rarely happens) and every student was engaged during this activity.
But where do I begin? Marilyn Western wrote an article about many ways to use technology in a classroom. She also gave examples of several sites on the internet that provide free services and programs to help a teacher use technology in his/her classroom. But what result does it all have on the students? It has many positive outcomes. Many are listed within Effects of Technology on Classrooms and Students, but the one that popped out the most is the change in student and teacher roles. It states when students use technology the role of learning turns more active and they are more responsible for their learning.
Is Gen Z, or even Gen Y, such a bad thing? Why am I constantly comparing them to when I grew up? Why do I want them to duplicate students of my generation when clearly they are their own unique generation and have so many new things to offer? Maybe if I let go the past and grasped the future it could become a good thing. Maybe even great!
Maybe if I allowed and encouraged my students to channel their abilities it would bring a whole new aspect of learning to my classroom. One that may even bring change to future generations…
This brought me to wonder why I am fighting it. Why do I keep comparing this generation to my own? I keep saying “it was never like this when I grew up”, or “it worked when I was in elementary school”. I am a Gen Yer and consider my learning style very different then fellow teachers who are older and from a different generation. I found an article from Tech and Learning on Teaching Gen Yers and laughed when it described almost everything about me and how I learn. Is what I am feeling now about the current generation, what my teachers thought about my own generation growing up?
I find I should embrace this generation and use their strengths towards them. I find my class this year keeping me on my toes and wonder what an effect more technology would have on them. They are generation Z completely. I have found I need to keep my classroom moving and active. I have also found anything on the computer is a good thing. Even something as simple as typing in Microsoft word instead of using a whiteboard has them sitting on the edge of their seats. My classroom also received document cameras and projectors this year. Once again, the simple act of using the document camera to project their show and tell was amazing. I had a completely quiet classroom (which rarely happens) and every student was engaged during this activity.
But where do I begin? Marilyn Western wrote an article about many ways to use technology in a classroom. She also gave examples of several sites on the internet that provide free services and programs to help a teacher use technology in his/her classroom. But what result does it all have on the students? It has many positive outcomes. Many are listed within Effects of Technology on Classrooms and Students, but the one that popped out the most is the change in student and teacher roles. It states when students use technology the role of learning turns more active and they are more responsible for their learning.
Is Gen Z, or even Gen Y, such a bad thing? Why am I constantly comparing them to when I grew up? Why do I want them to duplicate students of my generation when clearly they are their own unique generation and have so many new things to offer? Maybe if I let go the past and grasped the future it could become a good thing. Maybe even great!
Maybe if I allowed and encouraged my students to channel their abilities it would bring a whole new aspect of learning to my classroom. One that may even bring change to future generations…
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