Friday, February 1, 2013

A Simple Teacher's View


I am a teacher and some days, I weep.  Let me just give a brief background about a sliver of my life. My salary as a teacher has been such that my children are presently on state insurance and have often qualified for free/reduced lunches.  I currently have no health insurance myself as what I make is just enough to pay the bills and occasionally enjoy a day out with my children.  I live in a home with no trim around the windows and plywood flooring. When something breaks down, I have to go out and work a second or third job in order to pay for it.  My vehicle is over ten years old, I don’t take summer vacations and eating a rib eye steak is a luxury. 

The idea that most have about teachers only working nine months and getting summers off; it doesn’t exist in most teachers’ worlds. I don’t just work forty hours a week.  I grade papers after the kids are in bed and do lesson plans on the weekend.  I also spend hours in professional development or taking more college courses in order to retain my highly qualified position the government says I must have.  Most, if not all of this comes out of my own pocket with little compensation on the pay scale. I also work several other jobs within the school, and somehow still find time to make cupcakes for my kids’ school parties. 

I challenge my students every day.  I challenge them to strive for something better even when they are disrespectful, cursing at me, curled up in a ball in the corner or crying.  I listen to parents tell me their child isn’t at fault, and I should teach differently.   I have worked with administrations which didn’t support their staff and boards of education who didn’t understand the intricacies of how to run a school.  I struggle every year under the ever-changing, next-best assessment and work hard not to get angry when told I will be given less resources, but am expected to have more students meet standards.  Then I sit quietly, shake my head and ball my hands into fists when my state says it will revise my retirement plan (as I shouldn’t need what I put into it) and then not only work against my right to be in an organization of teachers, but also work to take away my bargaining rights, my right to strike; basically, my right to stand up for myself and my fellow teachers. 

How sad that the greatest profession in the world, and one most necessary, is slowly and treacherously being destroyed.  How sad that our future, my children’s future, our country’s future is being dismantled piece by piece.  How sad that this country cannot figure out the basic idea that we educators are the backbone of our nation; we are the ones who create the next generation of thinkers, problem solvers and leaders.  If you can read this, you’ve had a great teacher. If you have a degree, it was because teachers helped you get there. If you are in the legislature working against teachers, maybe you need to sit down and reminisce about how you got there, by the effort of a dedicated teacher, I’m sure.

I know some fabulous teachers.  Teachers who give of their time, money, efforts and more, even while skimping on these very things for their own families.  And while this point of view may sound drear, I love my job.  I just often find it disheartening. I believe it is a noble thing to teach.  I believe it is an awesome responsibility; one I approach daily with prayer. What I have also realized over the years is this … I am not just a teacher; I am a missionary working on a shoestring budget, not knowing what tomorrow will bring, and some days, some days, I weep.

No comments:

Post a Comment