Comments on I Want to Teach Forever: 52 Teachers, 52 Lessons #4: Sometimes Quitting Is ...

I'm a newbie teacher, i don't have teachin...

2009-10-26T12:19:55.989-05:00

I'm a newbie teacher, i don't have teaching certificate nor interested in the first place. I took this job to pay up my Bus. Admin college fees, so how do i enjoy it? or can i used the word enjoy? the answer is simple and right, No i don't.

I like kids, but now i change my perception on them. I respect teacher's more, and by another 2 months or so i am quitting for a better life, and my own sanity. So for all the teachers out there, that still want to stick.. go ahead, but remember there are others work too.

I've switched schools multiple times, and I'm stil...

2009-02-20T18:46:00.000-06:00

I've switched schools multiple times, and I'm still not really satisfied, which brings me to the conclusion that the problem is me. I want to believe that short of starting my own school, things will never be the way I want them, so I shouldn't stress about it. On the other hand, I feel like that desire for something better is a big part of why I still keep trying.

I think of quitting sometimes, but because that word does carry such a strong negative connotation for me, I would feel really guilty about leaving. I can't imagine many other professions that would make you feel so bad for walking away, even if you weren't happy.

I like to reflect on what is or isn't working in m...

2009-02-18T06:07:00.000-06:00

I like to reflect on what is or isn't working in my classroom. Sometimes I have to step back to modify or adjust what I am doing. I don't consider that quitting but I guess some people would. In my mind quitting is a negative word. I would rather think of myself as focusing my attentions elsewhere to be more productive. This helps me stay positive.

A different school, and a switch from middle to hi...

2009-02-05T23:09:00.000-06:00

A different school, and a switch from middle to high school, made a huge difference for me. I liked middle school, but I've found that I'm much better at working with high school kids--and in fact, my training in middle school may make me a better high school teacher. (I work hard at classroom culture, and I have a very good rapport with almost all of my kids, something that I see as a very middle-school-teacherish thing, but not as common in the often-I'm-just-here-to-teach-content world of high school ed.)

I also find, in my 8th year of teaching English, that I constantly have to adjust what I do for different groups of kids. My sixth-period this year is very bright and very energetic, so I've had to do more group work than I do in my fifth-period, which is equally bright but a bit less kinesthetic. We tend to have better class-and-teacher discussions in fifth period, but that doesn't work as well in sixth-period--and I've found that I have more success when I put the kids in groups, have them talk to each other, and then debrief with the whole group.