Comments on: Recession 2009 And Its Impact On Teaching http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/ Providing HOPE for educators since 2007 Wed, 13 Apr 2011 17:59:29 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: Amberhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-5940 Amber Sun, 12 Jul 2009 00:53:05 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-5940 I think it definitely decreases the job security for teachers who are new in their school district and do not have professional status in that town because with so many layoffs, towns can be even pickier. I'm also finding that more schools are requiring/preferring that candidates have their masters because, as I said, they can be picky. It makes finding a job really hard. I think it definitely decreases the job security for teachers who are new in their school district and do not have professional status in that town because with so many layoffs, towns can be even pickier. I’m also finding that more schools are requiring/preferring that candidates have their masters because, as I said, they can be picky. It makes finding a job really hard.

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]]> By: Sean Pidgeonhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-4742 Sean Pidgeon Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:38:30 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-4742 Hey Tom, I'm glad you liked the J.D. Drew reference. Phillies fans also dislike him. And, J.D. Drew might not be the best reference a non-trying difference maker, because he is hurt half the time, so that makes him unproductive. That would be like having a talented teacher who really doesn't care (which wouldn't be too big a problem if he was good), but also calls in sick half the year. And, congratulations on your novel. I clicked on your webpage. The book looks good. I never went to spacecamp, but I did go to summer camp and later work at summer camp. I came up with my analogy reading a New York Times <a href="http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/04/19/teaching-no-fallback-career/" rel="nofollow">article</a> about laid-off professionals going into teaching as a fall-back career. There were over 200 reader comments, and many were from teachers who are offended by people who go into teaching as a fallback career. I think this ties into the whole debate over teacher certification. I side more with the <a href="http://select.nytimes.com/2006/04/30/opinion/30kristof.html?_r=1" rel="nofollow">Relax the Barriers</a> approach to let talented professionals enter teaching without first going through burdensome certification requirements. (I also happen to be someone who began teaching in a private school after grad school and only later took education classes for certification) Sometimes I think teachers favor certification because they are offended by the idea of people becoming teachers after giving up on some other dream first. (Again, that would be me :-). I played college baseball and planned (hoped?) to play in the Majors, and fell back on teaching after getting a Masters Degree in a humanities field. Teaching is an awesome profession. I love it. I grew to love it. But there will always be people in every job who are there as a backup option. Whether it is teaching, or practicing law, or practicing medicine, there will always be some people in the field who fell back after missing out on their first dream. That's life. Hey Tom,

I’m glad you liked the J.D. Drew reference. Phillies fans also dislike him. And, J.D. Drew might not be the best reference a non-trying difference maker, because he is hurt half the time, so that makes him unproductive. That would be like having a talented teacher who really doesn’t care (which wouldn’t be too big a problem if he was good), but also calls in sick half the year.

And, congratulations on your novel. I clicked on your webpage. The book looks good. I never went to spacecamp, but I did go to summer camp and later work at summer camp.

I came up with my analogy reading a New York Times article about laid-off professionals going into teaching as a fall-back career. There were over 200 reader comments, and many were from teachers who are offended by people who go into teaching as a fallback career.

I think this ties into the whole debate over teacher certification. I side more with the Relax the Barriers approach to let talented professionals enter teaching without first going through burdensome certification requirements. (I also happen to be someone who began teaching in a private school after grad school and only later took education classes for certification) Sometimes I think teachers favor certification because they are offended by the idea of people becoming teachers after giving up on some other dream first. (Again, that would be me :-). I played college baseball and planned (hoped?) to play in the Majors, and fell back on teaching after getting a Masters Degree in a humanities field.

Teaching is an awesome profession. I love it. I grew to love it. But there will always be people in every job who are there as a backup option. Whether it is teaching, or practicing law, or practicing medicine, there will always be some people in the field who fell back after missing out on their first dream. That’s life.

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]]> By: Tom Anselmhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-4737 Tom Anselm Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:26:02 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-4737 Sean, as a Cardinal Fan, I absolutely loved the JD Drew reference. Perfect! I would like to think I fall into that category to some degree when it comes to teaching. If I were being graded by the Big Evaluator in the Sky as to my "Difference Making Ability" based on the quality of my lesson plans or my room decor rather than the kid who 5 years after he was in my class who comes up to me as he is working at KMart and tells me he was glad he was in my class, then I would have never been asked back for another year. But thank G. I am able to make it through the "stuff" of the trade and get into the essence, at least on most cases. And I just happen to be a teacher who loves his job AND has published a novel. Nice comments, Sean. Tom Anselm Sean, as a Cardinal Fan, I absolutely loved the JD Drew reference. Perfect!
I would like to think I fall into that category to some degree when it comes to teaching. If I were being graded by the Big Evaluator in the Sky as to my “Difference Making Ability” based on the quality of my lesson plans or my room decor rather than the kid who 5 years after he was in my class who comes up to me as he is working at KMart and tells me he was glad he was in my class, then I would have never been asked back for another year. But thank G. I am able to make it through the “stuff” of the trade and get into the essence, at least on most cases. And I just happen to be a teacher who loves his job AND has published a novel.
Nice comments, Sean.
Tom Anselm

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]]> By: Seanhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-4709 Sean Tue, 21 Apr 2009 02:46:51 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-4709 Boo-hoo. Wah-wah. Some people enter teaching as a fallback option; Gasp! These horrible teaching heretics didn’t grow up dreaming of becoming teachers.

Honestly, I don’t care what a teacher’s motivation is. I only want to know one thing: Is he/she effective?

This is what I will call the J.D. Drew Corollary. For those who don’t know, J.D. Drew plays baseball for the Red Sox. If God were to create the perfect player, with a beautiful swing, powerful arm, and great fielding ability, he’d mold J.D. Drew out of clay.

J.D. Drew is an enigma, though, since he doesn’t seem to care about baseball or try hard. Why isn’t he on the bench or shipped off to the minors? Playing half-heartedly, he is still better than 75 percent of the other players. Production counts.

The most important thing is effectiveness. I’d rather have the career changer or the person who throws together haphazard lesson plans, yet is effective, than the person who dreamed of becoming a teacher from his/her first day in kindgergarten, but just doesn’t have the teaching gene.

Let’s stop worrying about who likes teaching the most/who wanted to be a teacher from Day 1. I don’t care if a teacher absolutely loves her job or is biding her time until she can get that novel published/get that job in finance. All I care about is that she’s a good teacher.

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]]> By: Joelhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-4450 Joel Thu, 16 Apr 2009 13:45:29 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-4450 Wow. Thanks for the perspective from across the pond, Sarah. I think you're right about this thing being on a large scale. We gotta remember that most of the world is in a perpetual recession. Wow. Thanks for the perspective from across the pond, Sarah. I think you’re right about this thing being on a large scale. We gotta remember that most of the world is in a perpetual recession.

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]]> By: Sarah Ebnerhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-4346 Sarah Ebner Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:22:43 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-4346 This is fascinating from the point of view of someone involved in the educational blogosphere, but not a teacher. Here in the UK one teaching union has just demanded a 10 percent payrise (in the middle of a recession..) while I recently posted a piece by a student complaining how difficult it is to be graduating when there are no jobs around. I think the issues are the same all over the world. This is fascinating from the point of view of someone involved in the educational blogosphere, but not a teacher. Here in the UK one teaching union has just demanded a 10 percent payrise (in the middle of a recession..) while I recently posted a piece by a student complaining how difficult it is to be graduating when there are no jobs around. I think the issues are the same all over the world.

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]]> By: Joelhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-3793 Joel Wed, 01 Apr 2009 01:26:57 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-3793 Is $90 a month really going to be the difference between moving and not moving? Is $90 a month really going to be the difference between moving and not moving?

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]]> By: The Podhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-3790 The Pod Tue, 31 Mar 2009 16:32:14 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-3790 In Georgia, furloughs are being considered for teachers. These furloughs will cost me a little over $1000. Because of this, I am now not relocating. I had planned to move to the other end of the state. I'm concerned that with this reduction in salary, I won't be able to afford the move. In Georgia, furloughs are being considered for teachers. These furloughs will cost me a little over $1000. Because of this, I am now not relocating. I had planned to move to the other end of the state. I’m concerned that with this reduction in salary, I won’t be able to afford the move.

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]]> By: Joelhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-3782 Joel Mon, 30 Mar 2009 21:59:35 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-3782 Lucas, I think that class size has a lot to do with what age group and even what class we're talking about. I wouldn't dream of walking into a classroom with 30 five-year-olds. At the same time, I have no problem going into a classroom with 60 middle school band students. I wonder how they can justify one band director per 150 students in some schools and yet they have to add a seventh coach for the 45-person football team. Maybe that's just a Texas thing... Lucas, I think that class size has a lot to do with what age group and even what class we’re talking about. I wouldn’t dream of walking into a classroom with 30 five-year-olds. At the same time, I have no problem going into a classroom with 60 middle school band students.

I wonder how they can justify one band director per 150 students in some schools and yet they have to add a seventh coach for the 45-person football team. Maybe that’s just a Texas thing…

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]]> By: Joelhttp://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/recession-2009-and-its-impact-on-teaching/#comment-3781 Joel Mon, 30 Mar 2009 21:56:22 +0000 http://www.soyouwanttoteach.com/?p=935#comment-3781 Thanks, Betty. The substitute pecking order wasn't really something I had even considered in this conversation! Thanks, Betty. The substitute pecking order wasn’t really something I had even considered in this conversation!

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