ah, didn't see the new posts since I started typing, oh well, you're getting this anyway
This is my personal experience in what happens to most educators. Most of the work is draining. Working with difficult people,... you have to produce a high quality product with less .... reach a point where its just not fun anymore and it just become drudgery.
Not to discount your description of what it's like to be a teacher, but you do realize that pretty much every line of work has new challenges over the course of a career? I could provide a litany of issues I've dealt with in my line of work, but I wouldn't want to hear it myself.
Most people are confronted with .....
I'm with you Midpack. I don't doubt that a
(fill in the blank - not just teachers) career is tough. But when I hear someone talk about how tough
their chosen career is, a voice in my head says,
'yeah, right, it's tough all over...'. We make our choices, let's move on. The more they seem to have to talk about it, the more it sounds like rationalization to me. There are many careers that I could not handle, but conversely, those people probably would have failed miserably at my job. None of us are really in a position to compare/contrast.
... Its just that working with older children "CAN" become a drag after about 25 years. I've never seen that situation with anyone who works with kids under the age of 8. This group is just truly youth rendering for adults and no matter what their issue, they add life to your life.
So you are saying that we don't need as generous/early pensions for those teaching the under 8 group, because they don't get hit with the same stress, and can handle a long career? Sounds like an opportunity to improve our state budget there. Perhaps you could mention this to your Union rep, and report back on the response?
Many places have taken a wonderful thing and turned it into a nightmare.
Ever prepare for an ISO9000 certification?
I recently heard of a school district in PA that was given state permission to abolish their art and music and physed curriculums to make the kids have more classes in reading and math to make higher scores on the tests. How many of you owuld have like to got to school where you had no music, art or physed and just spent your whole day on reading and math?
Z
It isn't just the NCLB causing this. In our district, when the teachers had an opportunity to preserve the art and music programs, they declined.
Like many school districts, ours was facing a deficit due to reduced funding from fewer new building permits, and lower property tax revenue. The ~ 5YO teacher union contract provided 5% annual raises (written in relatively good times). These raises were unsustainable, and unreasonable in an economic environment where the kids parents were often facing wage freezes or cuts, or reduced hours, etc. The school board asked the union if they would open the contract for negotiation, because after making other cuts the choice was to cut more programs (the only way they can lay-off teachers) or cut those raises to preserve more programs. The union refused to open the contract, so the art and music programs got big cuts. So when I hear time and time again about how much teachers care about the kids, I get a little worked up.
More relevant, and closer to that thread on the Illinois pension changes is this comment:
I know a number right now who should retire, but cannot do so for another 3-5 years. But they cannot leave because to do that would throw away a pension that they have worked very hard to get.
This is confirming my thinking that pensions tied to jobs really need to be eliminated. It happens in the private sector too, where someone hangs on for the benefits, but would probably be more productive and happier in another job.
Of course, another difference is, if that private sector employee gets so burnt out that his performance is dragging, he may find himself being shown the door, or getting lower/no raises, or even worse work assignments. The teacher in this position has a lot of protection from tenure, which is pretty much non-existent in the private sector.
Enough about how tough one career or another is - I don't want to start a flame war over that, just pointing out that there are multiple sides to any story. We all have our stories.
-ERD50