Stone Soup by Jan Eliot for June 25, 2013

Pretty good incentive…

Teacher’s dont have free summers. You are either back in school to further your own education so you can earn more or you’re working another job to keep income flowing in.

Right on the nose, Jay. I heard that horsebleep for years, about how much time I always had off, how little I did, teaching defined the term ‘sinecure’, etc. The irony is that few people can actually teach. It is a gift, not a given. I saw so many people who left the job after a semester, in one case after two miserable months, many more who didn’t go past one or two years. Yeah, right—let’s see some of those critics do the job.

I wonder why……….

I very much wanted to be a teacher, but was stopped by my having a sleep disorder (a narcolepsy variant). I would have been the teacher every slacker kid would have wanted because I’d have fallen asleep most every day and they’d get to goof off. =[

On my husband’s application to the local school system, he had to write an essay about education and his perspective, etc. He asked me for help and I told him to write about why he wanted to be a teacher. He said to get the summers off. Now he knows better…..

So true, if I could only ge a chance to do it over – boy would things be different!

My mother was a social worker. Every time the subject came up, she would recommend that I follow in her footsteps. And every time, I would make gagging noises. I wound up as a medical speech pathologist, which, in earlier days had many of the same earmarks with speech thrown in….when I retired, I took on the job of chairman of the caring committee for our church. I can still hear her laughing if I get too close to her grave.

The horror stories I’ve heard also deal with the principals and other staff AND the PARENTS! Their sweet little prince/princess would NEVER do what you caught them red handed doing so the teacher must be out to get them.

While I was realistic about my 4 kiddo’s behaviour, there was a couple of teachers who did not have the teaching ‘gift’ and were inept and while not out to ‘get them’ made my child’s life in their class miserable. The first time I went into the principle and asked for my child to be switched into another class (gr. 4). This was the first she had heard about the issue—son not wanting to go to school, teacher called us about his chronic lateness & hubby, worried he was being ambushed by other kids, asked if there was some reason why he didn’t want to go to school. The teacher immediately got really defensive and challenged his question, which made us suspicious of the teacher. Asked our kid and yep, the teacher wasn’t being nice to him. Rude actually. Parent/teacher/principal meeting sorted it out and teacher, having been ‘busted’ began acknowledging the existence and effort of our child.

Education is a SALES position. Unfortunately only 3% of the population possesses that talent. All said, it is a position of “Stand and deliver”, and LOVING doing it.

………………… if they’re allowed in.

My sister sub’ed in an urban area and it was hell. Not all the kids were bad but the ones that were bad were unbelievable. The stories she told me…OY! And the parents were just as bad and there was no disipline, teachers and principles hands were tied. The bad kids ran the schools. Go fig….

My wife’s a teacher. You spend the first few days absolutely collapsed after your year of 3-4 hour nights sleep, then start planning for next year.

Sorry she didn’t listen to you Evie.

@lightenup Kids need tutors too

hard work Sept to June and then no pay until Sept rolls around again.

Uh oh, it’s a mama rant on the loose.

“a great career for a woman” ?!?!?!?!?!?!? Sexist, much?

Well, I’m not saying teachers have all summer off, but they do have more holidays off than most jobs, such as Winter Break and Spring Break, Martin Luther King Day and all. I think it is a good job for those who love teaching and want to be home more with their own children whether they are women or men.

Personally, my career as a college instructor in Japan was very satisfying and I was almost always home about the same time as my children.

Well she’s certainly liberal enough!

i was a child care worker, a teacher (if it wasn’t for the parents and adminstration..teaching was great. now i am in construction and still babysitting..yippee ky yea