Help: Should I Become A Teacher? New Teachers by Joel Wagner - January 9, 2011January 9, 201110 Denise comments:I am in a teaching program, half way through and I just completed my first to "teaching" classes. Â Now I have this hugh feeling I've made a BIG mistake and that teaching isn't what I thought it was or that I'm not cut out for it. Not to mention the outlook for finding a job looks bleak. Seems like the writing is on the wall... Â Problem is I have been a stay at home mom for 13 years and don't know what else I could do? Â I really do not want to finish the program because I feel I am wasting my time, my money and my heart isn't in it anymore. Â I have always wanted to help people
Help A Struggling Teacher Out! Why Teachers Quit by Joel Wagner - April 16, 2009June 30, 201015 I got a comment on one of my articles about quitting teaching last night that touched my heart. I will respond to her more in depth later on today, but I don't have time right now to get back except for briefly. I thought I would use the opportunity to tap the resources of the SYWTT community and throw the question out to the readers for some feedback. She writes in part: I think it is too late for me. In my 2nd year of teaching 5th grade - first year barely made it and this year is worse. I definitely have some helth issues that have just sucked away my creativity this year. I always struggled with lesson plans
Life Lesson 1: Experience Is The Best Teacher Personal by Joel Wagner - August 12, 2008August 5, 20163 This article is the first in a series of "life lessons" exploring some of the things that I have learned over the years. In this one, we explore the concept that experience is the best teacher. Life has with it certain milestones that we reach and we stop briefly to analyze where we are going and where we have been. I recently turned 30 years old and have been thinking quite a bit about a great many topics. I think I will occasionally share some with the readers of So You Want To Teach? as I think they may prove helpful for others. Experience is the best teacher As much as we like to claim otherwise, most of the greatest learning that happens in
07-08: What Didn’t Work Well General by Joel Wagner - June 15, 2008July 1, 20105 As we begin the summer vacation, I am looking back on what went really well this year, what didn’t work so well, and what needs to change for next year. Below are some of the negatives about this year: Lack of social life - While not entirely true, and things have changed for the positively since I began playing in a mariachi in April. But I still notice that I am far away from my family and many of my friends before I moved down here. Even after being in South Texas for four years, I find that my social life is limited to time spent with other band directors, and a small handful of church friends. Maybe that's
Loving My Job; Hating My Work Personal by Joel Wagner - January 18, 2008July 2, 20108 Even if you ignore the majority of this article, check out the last sentence. I am absolutely loving school since coming back from Christmas Break. Even so, I am beginning to get burned out. If you want to know why, go read this. He's still not back yet and it's all but certain that he will not be coming back next week either. Still no clue when I can expect him.I wrote an email to my principal today, some edited excerpts follow: I love teaching and I love rehearsing the bands, but I am very tired. The students suffer as a result. More than anything else, that is what breaks my heart about the whole situation. It’s not that I
Valid Reasons Teachers Quit Why Teachers Quit by Joel Wagner - July 8, 2007July 5, 201034 For another look at quitting teaching, see my article 9 Reasons To Quit Teaching (And 10 Reasons To Stick). One of the most popular search queries that has sent people to my blog lately has been "why do teachers quit?" Doing a quick search of my site tells me that I have a number of articles that reference this idea, but have not yet explored exactly why it is that many teachers choose to quit teaching. This weekend, I will write two articles on that very topic. Today, we'll consider the question Why Do Teachers Quit? and explore some valid reasons they do so. Yesterday, we considered the same question and explored some of the invalid reasons for quitting. Next
Finding Excellent Educators To Emulate General by Joel Wagner - June 5, 2007July 5, 20102 As my fifth year of teaching came to a close, I began thinking back on my teaching career. When I student taught, I had wonderful teachers to work with. I got to conduct a piece on the Christmas concert (in the semester I was supposed to be observing), and even got to fully rehearse one piece for the spring trip. That's not too common these days, from what I have gathered. So in that sense, I have been surrounded by great educators from the beginning. As teachers, we really need to consciously endeavor to surround ourselves with great educators. These can come in various ways, some of which are not what you might expect. The most obvious place Whatever