Teaching
Mar. 5th, 2010 @ 4:53 pm
Found under website, work
I’ve been getting a lot of questions about my teaching position and thought it might be nice to answer them. I think I have answered everyone’s questions individually so this may be a bit of a repeat for some of you.
In case you don’t already know, I graduated last May with my teaching degree. I did my degree in elementary education so I am qualified to teach from grades primary to grade 9. I am not trained to teach music or French but I did get taught physical education even though I haven’t actually taught that subject yet. I also teach all the regular elementary subjects which consist of Math, English, Science, Social Studies, and Creative Arts (I may have missed some).
So far in my teaching career (haha) I have only taught up to grade 5. I had some experience with spending time with some grade 6’s and 9’s and don’t really feel the want to teach those grades because they have an attitude at that age lol. I’ve also had bad luck keeping control of the grade primary’s as well. I am a quiet person and have a hard time controlling classes that are very chatty and active. I have had the most luck with grade 4’s and think that I would most enjoy teaching that grade.
So far I have only been working as a substitute teacher. Some of you call that a supply teacher. I’m the one that fills in when the regular teacher is unable to teach that day. Full time teaching jobs in the elementary schools are hard to find right now in the province that I live in, unless you are trained in music or French. But with that being said, I can’t really say that I’ve been trying too hard to find a full-time teaching job right now. My boyfriend is currently finishing up a master’s degree in Materials Engineering and is looking for a job. There are no jobs in my province (that he wants) for the type of Engineer that he is. So that means that I will be moving in the next few months (if we’re lucky) so I wouldn’t really be able to teach full time anyway until I know where I’m going to be living.
There is another reason I haven’t been looking too hard for a full-time teaching job…I’m not sure it’s actually a job I want to do forever. It has been a rough journey for me to get where I am. After my first semester (of four) of the teaching degree I told my family I wanted to drop out. I was having doubts about my ability to teach and it was a lot more work that I had realized. No one ever tells you about all the lesson planning and marking and work that goes into being a teacher. My family and friends talked me into finishing the degree and I thought maybe it would be a good idea because at least I would have something that I could do. I get discouraged when I walk into a classroom and cannot keep the class under control. It makes me feel like a bad teacher and that this is not a job I am actually capable of doing. Substituting isn’t as bad as full-time teaching because at the end of the day you don’t have to think about anything else. You can just go home and relax. If I was a full-time teacher I would have to go home and prepare lessons for the next days or weeks of school. I would be always busy and stressed out trying to find things the students are actually going to do.
So right now I go to teach wherever they need a teacher. A lot of the time I could end up going to a few different schools in one week. So far since I graduated almost a year ago I have taught at 7 different schools. It doesn’t sound like that many I guess, but considering I’ve only worked 23 teaching days ever it might seem a little more substantial.
Something that makes my job a little harder than for other people is that I don’t own a vehicle. I take the bus everywhere I need to go. But that’s one of the things I enjoy about going to different schools. Everyday is like a new adventure. I’m always nervous that I’m going to miss the stop I need to get off of but I’m also proud of myself once I make it there. I have also learned a lot about the city that I live in because of the bus. I have been to more parts of the area I live in the last year than I ever have in my life.
So there you have it, my experiences so far with the teaching world. If there is anything else you are interested in knowing, please feel free to ask. I have added a new plug-in so that I can reply to comments that you leave on my website. If I reply to yours can someone let me know if it sends you an email or anything so that you know I replied? I want to make sure it’s working correctly.
