I am going to be a senior in college and Im going into teaching and now I think that I made a huge mistake?

Question

We were encouraged to go to board meetings and stuff for class. Well we went to this one meeting and this parent gets up there and just starts yelling at the school.

He then says "If teachers are so dedicated as we hear then how come none of them are working for free! Instead its because of them that my tax rate is through the roof!"

I was horrified! I then talked to some of the teachers to find out that parent was a lawyer! Then the teachers told me that now a days you can not be in a room with a student alone in case they student tries to lie or say anything about you. They also said that they have parent teacher conferences and parents dont show up then throw a fit when their child fails.

I dont know if I could handle being so under appreciated and just having people say that I should work for free? What do the people of Yahoo feel about all this stuff that has happened? Teachers have you faced similar stuff? Please tell me of any horror stories that you have faced.

Answer 1

Food for thought:

Teaching isn't a JOB.

It's a CALLING.

You don't become a teacher for the money or the bennies.  You do it because you are CALLED to educate and form young minds.

If ALL new teachers gave up before they started,

Where oh WHERE would our babies be?  What would become of them if all the GOOD ones, the ones in it for the right reasons, allowed themselves to be "scared away?"

Answer 2

What u are hearing is GOSPEL. it is not all "Roses and Happiness". Back in the day, you could be in a room alone with a child and not be suspected of anything. now a days, it ain't gonna happen.

You have to CYA. And yes, parents don't show up for PTC and the parents that do AREN'T the ones you need to talk to.

And you will have parents who say, MY CHILD CAN DO NO WRONG.

That's the way of the world in education. The lawyer saying that it is because of the teachers is 100 per cent wrong.

It is when property values go up, that salaries go up. That's the only way. the Levy is the same. Only by a vote of the people can a levy be raised.

The question I would ask the lawyer "if you are so dedicated to your client, why don't you work for free?". Oh, yeah. that would shut that loser's mouth in a heartbeat.

Another comeback

When you charge 25.00 an hour for your service, maybe teachers might think about it. But you won't so deal with it

And this coming from Mr. 250.00 an hour for a phone call and a cup of coffee.

If you are going to look at this as a glass half empty, then you need not go into teaching. If you are going to let the minority outweigh the majority, then  you need to not go into teaching.

What I really think you are looking for here is an EXCUSE. Sorry, you should have done your homework. You have 2 choices. both of which suck

1. finish your degree and live with it.

2. Change your major and continue your education.

Your call. Not ours. As was said, it is a CALLING. I'm trying to figure out if you picked up the phone or listened to the answering machine.

Answer 3

I agree it is very depressing to hear comments like that, but they are thankfully pretty rare.  Whenever I tell someone I am a teacher, their response is almost always positive.  People thank me all the time for being a teacher (right after they tell me what a thankless job it is!).

Answer 4

I'm a teacher of 10 years.  Get out.  Get out now and run as fast as you can!  Honestly, don't do it.  You're lured into it because of all the benefits of a great pension, great schedule, and great health insurance.  Everything else you deal with is not worth it.  I regret that I made that decision and now I'm stuck and can't seem to get out.  Believe me though, I'm trying.  Truly, if you have an interest in anything else, do it.  You can always become a teacher in your 30's.  As a 20 something, I would go out and live it up.  Get as many cool jobs as you can until you decide to settle down.  Work on a cruise ship, teach English in a foreign country, work with inner-city kids or an Indian Reservation.  But, once you start teaching, you're lured into the benefits and don't want to get out, even though the job itself sucks.  The stuff you learn about in college with teaching is not at all what it's really like in the classroom.  There is SO much more that you are expected to do and SO much more that you have to deal with on your own without the assistance of your principal.  Believe me when I say that the parents are the last thing to be concerned with.  Thanks to "No Child Left Behind" your job is on the line if your kids don't do well on a standardized test.  Not to mention that you can be physically assaulted at any moment or that you can be videotaped by your students' cell phones and uploaded to YouTube and MySpace instantly.  Or that your staff looks down upon you because you're a first year teacher and they treat you like you're 12 years old.  And, God forbid you become anything that is "less than" a grade level elementary teacher, such as an art, music, or PE teacher.  Then you're treated as though you're a teacher's aid or cafeteria worker.  Seriously, do yourself a favor and change your major.  You're better than this field.  If that parent's comment bothered you, you already have your own red flag up and are going to be aware of the lack of respect for this field.  If only I could be in your shoes and do it all over again- I would probably just sell shoes at the mall or bag groceries.

Answer 5

I've taught at the college level, but not below.  But I've spoken to a few teachers recently, mostly science teachers, who said they get threatened with law suits when they try to teach actual science to the kids - you know, the stuff that they are required to teach (evolution, cosmology, etc).  Apparently people think their supstitions should be elevated to the post of science just because they really believe in it.  I'd never teach school.  Teachers are underappreciated, under paid, overworked, and abused.  It sucks.  Good luck.  Or consider moving to the college level, where you can laugh at them for threatening to sue you for teaching the truth, kick them out of your class for being disrespectful, and never have to deal with parents.  The pay is better too.

Answer 6

Does the lawyer work for free?

Teaching is sure to be a very difficult challenging post. You'll have to think very hard - it's not too late to change your mind. Have you spoken to any experienced teachers? (You just might enjoy teaching).

Answer 7

First and foremost you're not getting your degree to work for free.. because the goverment wants there money back when you're done.... The lawyer doesn't work for free and she probably never works pro-bono....I'm thinking of going into this profession as well I'm not going to be  intimadated by parents who don't care about their childs education until the end of the year. As a teacher you keep good notes of what the parent did to help their child or even if they didn't bother as well. Don't let people bully no matter what profession you choose

Answer 8

Don't take one bad experience and have it determine your fate. Also don't take other horror stories and think of them as your own.

It's like that with any job, you will have the really cool people AND you will have the idiots.

But what made you decide to go into teaching in the first place? Was it for the money? Or was it to make a difference in a child?

If it was the latter that's all you have to remember.

Yes you can't be alone with a child, but that's protecting YOU and THE STUDENT. The place we are now is not the same place as when you or I were in school or our parents. We have to change as the world changes.

I have my teaching degree. I don't teach (my choice, more for lack of teaching positions) but I do work for a non profit agency when I teach in a way and still work in the schools. And I love it. It works for me.

But ask those teachers about their horror experiences and also ask them what they remember the most and what changed them the most, that will over rule anything scary.