First Year of Teaching Reflections
My first year as a teacher had so very many ups and downs, both personally and professionally. I thought as part of my reflection process this summer, I would look back at this past year in both capacities in addition to my attempt to write about the different books I am reading.
Last summer, the job search was so stressful. I have my bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies and had earned my teaching credential in Early Childhood Education. I also had added the Reading Endorsement to my license in hopes that it would make me more marketable. Especially due to the high need for literacy specialists. However, as the summer progressed I had not received any calls back. I was becoming an anxious mess and was applying for jobs almost every day.
I want to clarify, at that point, I was only willing to apply for public school jobs. I am passionate about public education and the pay was a major incentive. I was in my first year of marriage and money was tight. I wanted to be able to contribute more to my household. In my area, both private and charter schools pay significantly less than the public schools. In my heart, I knew that I was passionate about urban education, but I also knew that it may not be feasible. I had applied to the district and hadn't heard back. At that point, public schools were more important than urban education.
At the beginning of August, I began to get some phone calls for interviews. I interviewed for a long term sub position and a position in a district close to my home. It was a kindergarten position in a district close to my home. It quickly became my dream position. However, it was not in the cards that I would get this position.
I broke down and began to apply to substitute teaching positions. I began interviewing through a company does much of the placement of substitute teachers in my area. While interviewing with them, I was asked if I would ever consider teaching at a charter school. This was something that I had sworn I would never consider. However, I told this agency that I would definitely consider it, as I figured it would be great practice for my interviewing skills. The agency said that they had a school who was in need of an elementary teacher. I jumped on the interview.
It was a really long interview and unlike any other one that I had been in before. The principal used my resume to simply guide a conversation, asking me questions but not in an intimidating way. He talked about the beliefs of the school as well as their philosophy of teaching and teachers. I left the interview with a really good feeling. It almost felt like it was being described as a family, a school community. This was what I was looking for. It felt like the best fit. I also walked out of the interview with an offer. I asked for the weekend to consider the offer and to discuss it with my then-husband.
However, the next day I got a call to a school in the district I really wanted to work in. Not far from where this charter school was. I didn't get a good feeling, the second that I walked in the door. It was a standard interview with some questions that I was not expecting. I knew that it was in a rough neighborhood, but for the interviewing committee to immediately open up about the school's problems was an issue for me. More importantly, I believe in a no yelling approach to teaching (it doesn't always happen but I pride myself in maintaining that bout 90 percent of the time), I believe in logical consequences, and I believe that a teacher's number one job is to create a classroom community. That the relationships that teachers form are perhaps the most integral part of teaching. I explained this during my interview and I wish that I had a picture of the panel's face. They told me that this approach doesn't work with their kids and that they had serious concerns about my management abilities. Then they started asking me about how I would manage junior high students. It was at this point, that I knew that this job wasn't for me. I began to pray that God would give me guidance on how to handle this. Luckily, I think they determined I wasn't a good fit for this role.
I ended up accepting the position at the charter school. Which is where my journey this past year, truly began.
Last summer, the job search was so stressful. I have my bachelor's degree in Liberal Studies and had earned my teaching credential in Early Childhood Education. I also had added the Reading Endorsement to my license in hopes that it would make me more marketable. Especially due to the high need for literacy specialists. However, as the summer progressed I had not received any calls back. I was becoming an anxious mess and was applying for jobs almost every day.
I want to clarify, at that point, I was only willing to apply for public school jobs. I am passionate about public education and the pay was a major incentive. I was in my first year of marriage and money was tight. I wanted to be able to contribute more to my household. In my area, both private and charter schools pay significantly less than the public schools. In my heart, I knew that I was passionate about urban education, but I also knew that it may not be feasible. I had applied to the district and hadn't heard back. At that point, public schools were more important than urban education.
At the beginning of August, I began to get some phone calls for interviews. I interviewed for a long term sub position and a position in a district close to my home. It was a kindergarten position in a district close to my home. It quickly became my dream position. However, it was not in the cards that I would get this position.
I broke down and began to apply to substitute teaching positions. I began interviewing through a company does much of the placement of substitute teachers in my area. While interviewing with them, I was asked if I would ever consider teaching at a charter school. This was something that I had sworn I would never consider. However, I told this agency that I would definitely consider it, as I figured it would be great practice for my interviewing skills. The agency said that they had a school who was in need of an elementary teacher. I jumped on the interview.
It was a really long interview and unlike any other one that I had been in before. The principal used my resume to simply guide a conversation, asking me questions but not in an intimidating way. He talked about the beliefs of the school as well as their philosophy of teaching and teachers. I left the interview with a really good feeling. It almost felt like it was being described as a family, a school community. This was what I was looking for. It felt like the best fit. I also walked out of the interview with an offer. I asked for the weekend to consider the offer and to discuss it with my then-husband.
However, the next day I got a call to a school in the district I really wanted to work in. Not far from where this charter school was. I didn't get a good feeling, the second that I walked in the door. It was a standard interview with some questions that I was not expecting. I knew that it was in a rough neighborhood, but for the interviewing committee to immediately open up about the school's problems was an issue for me. More importantly, I believe in a no yelling approach to teaching (it doesn't always happen but I pride myself in maintaining that bout 90 percent of the time), I believe in logical consequences, and I believe that a teacher's number one job is to create a classroom community. That the relationships that teachers form are perhaps the most integral part of teaching. I explained this during my interview and I wish that I had a picture of the panel's face. They told me that this approach doesn't work with their kids and that they had serious concerns about my management abilities. Then they started asking me about how I would manage junior high students. It was at this point, that I knew that this job wasn't for me. I began to pray that God would give me guidance on how to handle this. Luckily, I think they determined I wasn't a good fit for this role.
I ended up accepting the position at the charter school. Which is where my journey this past year, truly began.
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