I went to a teacher job fair organized by my university's career center yesterday. I am not really sure why any of the school districts bothered to come because none have any jobs. One city school system, which only has three schools, will have ONE job opening for a middle school language arts teacher next Fall. Wow. The only light in the tunnel at this event was that a human resources supervisor in the school district I want to work for said she could get me back on the sub resource database. I had been on it last year, but I was never able to sub because of my classes, so I "fell off" the list. At least if I can sub on a regular basis it would help me get to know some people in the district.
There are two more job fairs coming up at other places, but I don't have much hope that anyone will really be hiring—except for maybe Clayton County, and they aren't even state accredited right now. I feel like looking for a teaching job is like looking for a needle in haystack while holding a candle in the wind (to stack up my idioms). I do have other potential opportunities for the Fall (graduate assistantship in the M.A. program), so it's not like I've lost all hope. I've not yet been reduced to feeling as though my life is a "tale told by an idiot . . . signifying nothing."
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Friday, January 22, 2010
No Dice Today
I didn't get the second AVID position either, and there are still more of the same positions open. I am beginning to think that it is because I don't fit the "profile" of a college student, even though I am one.
Another bust. Bada BING-Bada BOOM.
Another bust. Bada BING-Bada BOOM.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Cereal Narratives
Today is Wednesday. I've not heard anything from the middle school that I interviewed at last Friday. The AP said she'd make a decision by the middle of the week. By my reasoning, Wednesday is the middle of the week. If I don't hear something today, I think my chances of getting this position are about as soggy as a bowl of cereal in too much milk. Driving to school today, I realized that other than one job I interviewed for in 2003, I've generally always gotten the jobs for which I have applied, so it's a whiz in my Wheaties every time I don't get these little jobs. I know, I know, jobs are tough for everyone to come by, but still, I am having a hard time swallowing this bowl of bull.
In order to ease into sleep-mode last night, I picked up a copy of Classic and Contemporary Essays on Education (sounds like a snoozer, I realize) and thumbed to a piece by Immanuel Kant. At the top of the excerpt was a brief introduction by the editor on Kant's thoughts about education, which apparently are not widely referenced in the field of Education itself. Kant felt pretty much the same as I wrote about in my post Running with the Devil: children should be taught how to think and reason in order to make what they do have any meaning in society. It's not just enough to earn one's way in the world; the motivation behind the actions of a person are more important than the actual outcome. For example, if one starts a charity, the moral impact of that action on society depends on whether the charity is set up for true humanitarian purposes or for a tax write-off--regardless of how many people may benefit from the charity itself. Thus, I inferred, that an educated citizenry must act out of intelligent reasoning, fully comprehending the impact that actions have on society, rather than simply from some pre-programmed responsibility, guilt, or self-serving accomplishment.
Kant also said that children shouldn't be compared to animals when it comes to education. Oops, my bad--see my post It's a Dog's Life. He said animals are trained, and children must be taught to reason. I must agree with this despite my previous post because to "train" students means to indoctrinate them in some rote process. Heck, you can train a monkey, a dog, or a bird-brain for that matter. Teaching children to reason means to empower them to take control of decisions that affect the world. There must be no "sitting on a cornflake, waiting for the van to come," as John Lennon wrote in "I am the Walrus."
Yeah. Koo, koo, ka-choo.
In order to ease into sleep-mode last night, I picked up a copy of Classic and Contemporary Essays on Education (sounds like a snoozer, I realize) and thumbed to a piece by Immanuel Kant. At the top of the excerpt was a brief introduction by the editor on Kant's thoughts about education, which apparently are not widely referenced in the field of Education itself. Kant felt pretty much the same as I wrote about in my post Running with the Devil: children should be taught how to think and reason in order to make what they do have any meaning in society. It's not just enough to earn one's way in the world; the motivation behind the actions of a person are more important than the actual outcome. For example, if one starts a charity, the moral impact of that action on society depends on whether the charity is set up for true humanitarian purposes or for a tax write-off--regardless of how many people may benefit from the charity itself. Thus, I inferred, that an educated citizenry must act out of intelligent reasoning, fully comprehending the impact that actions have on society, rather than simply from some pre-programmed responsibility, guilt, or self-serving accomplishment.
Kant also said that children shouldn't be compared to animals when it comes to education. Oops, my bad--see my post It's a Dog's Life. He said animals are trained, and children must be taught to reason. I must agree with this despite my previous post because to "train" students means to indoctrinate them in some rote process. Heck, you can train a monkey, a dog, or a bird-brain for that matter. Teaching children to reason means to empower them to take control of decisions that affect the world. There must be no "sitting on a cornflake, waiting for the van to come," as John Lennon wrote in "I am the Walrus."
Yeah. Koo, koo, ka-choo.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Running with the Devil
"Race to the Top" (RT3) is Secretary of Education Arne Duncan's program for doling out education bucks to the states. It's a dog race that I believe will led to nothing but a dog pile. I really dislike whining, but the RT3 is nothing more than a continuation of the Bush NCLB doctrine. It's the test and reward vs. test and punishment formula that hasn't worked for the past 10 years. Schools and districts are rewarded or penalized with cash based on student performance on standardized tests. Inevitably, schools that have high test scores already have many resources at their disposal, which is why their students are excelling. Poor-performing schools are usually those that are already underfunded, overworked, understaffed, overcrowded, and underresourced.What do you think the outcome of any "standardized testing" is going to be? The inevitable, of course. The high testing schools with lots of resources get all the accolades and funding, and the low-end schools get the shaft once again--the very schools that need the funds in order to improve. It's a Catch-22. The government calls this madness a way to identify "highly effective teachers." I call it a highly effective way to burn teachers out.
Today is the deadline for states to submit proposals to the Fed for ed-bucks, and there are six "Priorities" or areas that states must commit to developing in order to get the coveted dollars. You can read about it here. Georgia's Gov. "Sonny" Purdue is on board "whole hog" *ahem* to show Big Bro' that he is willing to spin Duncan's rhetoric in Georgia's plan in order to get the RT3 money. One of the big changes Purdue appears to be putting in his proposal is a new teacher compensation plan that relies on teacher efficacy to justify salary increases rather than the amount of education and tenure that a teacher has. I have no problem with this, prima facie. Pay for performance sustains a healthy meritocracy. However, Mr. Slade told me yesterday that he's been informed that teacher salaries will take the following hits 2010-11: (1) an annual three percent salary reduction and (2) additional mandatory unpaid furlough days. Furthermore, teachers will have to manage an teacher:student ratio increase from 32 to 35 students in an effort to eliminate the number of teachers needed as well. I have difficulty understanding how cutting the number of teachers, the so-called monetary compensation of teachers, and then increasing the workload of teachers is going to have any positive impact on the level of efficacy that Duncan/Obama/Perdue are demanding from educators. I might also add that there is a call for the amount of instructional time in the school year to be increased as well, which means longer hours in the classroom for the teachers too.
I recently heard Duncan saying "without the great teachers there is no democracy in America" (paraphrasing), and that's why good teachers are so important. Well, unless you are solely moved by the need to perpetuate democracy in America, a new generation of young people—predominately motivated by materialism—is not going to be very impressed by the possibilities of a career in education. Why would they want to experience near-poverty and incredibly long work hours within a profession that requires the management 35-40 teenagers (for those us in secondary ed.) whose parents generally blame the teacher if their kids graduate from high school only knowing how to bubble in circles on a Scantron answer sheet.
I don't really know what my point is here (I guess I'm venting), but I can tell you that I feel very anxious. I feel the devil in the deal. The Van Halen song, "Running with Devil" seems like a good title song to describe Duncan's "Race to the Top." Research, fact-based educational strategies are great, but it's not that simple. Methods that continue to perpetuate the brainwashing of students into standardized, test-taking robots just doesn't feel like the way to the top of a democratic society. A by-the-numbers evaluation program is what Aldus Huxley described as an army of drones in Brave New World. I'm not suggesting we are at that point yet, but as Huxley pointed out in Brave New World Revisited, "Children, as might be expected, are highly susceptible to propaganda" (67). I see the "herd mentality" in the kids that I teach. They have really been "conditioned" to strive for certain test scores or rankings instead of developing critical thinking skills. Is this not eerily like the stale, generic masses depicted in Huxley's novel? I fear the the devil lies in the formation of a society that places greater value on a methodology of programmed learning rather than a process of thinking and discovery.
Today is the deadline for states to submit proposals to the Fed for ed-bucks, and there are six "Priorities" or areas that states must commit to developing in order to get the coveted dollars. You can read about it here. Georgia's Gov. "Sonny" Purdue is on board "whole hog" *ahem* to show Big Bro' that he is willing to spin Duncan's rhetoric in Georgia's plan in order to get the RT3 money. One of the big changes Purdue appears to be putting in his proposal is a new teacher compensation plan that relies on teacher efficacy to justify salary increases rather than the amount of education and tenure that a teacher has. I have no problem with this, prima facie. Pay for performance sustains a healthy meritocracy. However, Mr. Slade told me yesterday that he's been informed that teacher salaries will take the following hits 2010-11: (1) an annual three percent salary reduction and (2) additional mandatory unpaid furlough days. Furthermore, teachers will have to manage an teacher:student ratio increase from 32 to 35 students in an effort to eliminate the number of teachers needed as well. I have difficulty understanding how cutting the number of teachers, the so-called monetary compensation of teachers, and then increasing the workload of teachers is going to have any positive impact on the level of efficacy that Duncan/Obama/Perdue are demanding from educators. I might also add that there is a call for the amount of instructional time in the school year to be increased as well, which means longer hours in the classroom for the teachers too.
I recently heard Duncan saying "without the great teachers there is no democracy in America" (paraphrasing), and that's why good teachers are so important. Well, unless you are solely moved by the need to perpetuate democracy in America, a new generation of young people—predominately motivated by materialism—is not going to be very impressed by the possibilities of a career in education. Why would they want to experience near-poverty and incredibly long work hours within a profession that requires the management 35-40 teenagers (for those us in secondary ed.) whose parents generally blame the teacher if their kids graduate from high school only knowing how to bubble in circles on a Scantron answer sheet.
I don't really know what my point is here (I guess I'm venting), but I can tell you that I feel very anxious. I feel the devil in the deal. The Van Halen song, "Running with Devil" seems like a good title song to describe Duncan's "Race to the Top." Research, fact-based educational strategies are great, but it's not that simple. Methods that continue to perpetuate the brainwashing of students into standardized, test-taking robots just doesn't feel like the way to the top of a democratic society. A by-the-numbers evaluation program is what Aldus Huxley described as an army of drones in Brave New World. I'm not suggesting we are at that point yet, but as Huxley pointed out in Brave New World Revisited, "Children, as might be expected, are highly susceptible to propaganda" (67). I see the "herd mentality" in the kids that I teach. They have really been "conditioned" to strive for certain test scores or rankings instead of developing critical thinking skills. Is this not eerily like the stale, generic masses depicted in Huxley's novel? I fear the the devil lies in the formation of a society that places greater value on a methodology of programmed learning rather than a process of thinking and discovery.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
What's It All About, Alfie?
In the movie Alfie (1966), starring Michael Caine, Alfie says, "In every doomed relationship, there comes what I like to call 'The uh-oh moment.' When a certain little something happens, and you know you've just witnessed the beginning of the end. And suddenly you stop and you think, 'Uh-oh, iceberg ahead.' "
Yesterday I had my interview for another AVID position. It seemed to go well, just like the last time, and the AP told me she would be making a decision by mid-next week. I felt very comfortable with the school and with her. I also met the AVID teacher I would be helping out. He seemed like a dynamic guy, a fun to work with sort. Then again, it was like deja vu from the last AVID interview.
When I was finished with the interview at about 11 a.m., I went to the next county over to my son's middle school to help out in the Media Center. The Specialist has given me a little project to work on. I am compiling resources and references on Georgia authors for an 8th grade language arts unit. I ran back home at 2:45 so I could be at the house when my daughter got off the elementary school bus at 3 p.m., and I printed out a hard copy of my application for the AP (assistant principal) who interviewed me for the AVID position. The AP didn't have one printed out when I got to the school in the morning, and it was "my bad" that I didn't take one with me to the interview. Even though the AP said she would have one of the admins print out a copy of my information, I took the copy I printed over to the school—along with a thank-you note—to give to the AP.
It was a good thing that I went ahead and printed the application out because the AVID position for that particular school did not show as open position when I went into the HR dbase. I asked the admin about it, and she said they had previously hired someone for the job but "it didn't work out." So, because the position had been removed with the first hire, so did the evidence of my applying for the position. I suppose it was a good thing I decided to run back over there in the afternoon for two reasons: (1) to find out that I was going to have to reapply for the position in the HR system, and (2) it was a convenient way to hand off a thank-you note to the AP, even though the admin had printed a copy of my information already. The admin said that she was going to ask HR to repost the position and for me to reapply for it. I checked earlier today, and the position is reposted, so I applied for it again. I should probably send a follow-up email to both ladies to thank them and let them know that I have taken care of the reapplication.
All this effort and angina over a $10 an hour job.
There is a teacher job fair next week, for whatever that's worth, and I guess I will go to it. I don't really know how many jobs will be available because the hits just keep on comin'. The state has to cut an additional 3% from the education budget this year, and the general joblessness increased again in December by another 85,000 jobs in Georgia. To add insult to injury, I've been reading other teacher blogs, and all I generally read about is the hell that exists inside school classrooms. So, when I look at all the hard work I have put into getting my certification, and the hard work I'm doing now just to find some measely way into the school system, it is somewhat disheartening to read about all the hard work that's years yet to come—and with no thanks or decent salary to boot! It makes me wonder if I'm doomed from the beginning. I certainly hope I'm not floating along on the HMS Titantic only to discover some "Uh-oh" moment—"Iceberg ahead!"
"Never hesitate." It's a rule one of my driver's ed instructors told me. Once you press the gas to go, it's usually best to make the commitment to MOVE because stopping midstream is usually what causes the big crash. My anxiety of late has allowed doubts and doom to form into the inevitable twinge, "Have I done the right thing?" However, to borrow another line from Alfie, "It seems to me the problems you worry yourself sick about never seem to materialize. It's the ones that catch you unexpectedly on a Wednesday afternoon that knock you sideways." So, I suppose that means . . . I should just keep pressing the gas, but watch out for icebergs, too?
Sure. That's what it's all about, Alfie. Makes perfect sense.
Yesterday I had my interview for another AVID position. It seemed to go well, just like the last time, and the AP told me she would be making a decision by mid-next week. I felt very comfortable with the school and with her. I also met the AVID teacher I would be helping out. He seemed like a dynamic guy, a fun to work with sort. Then again, it was like deja vu from the last AVID interview.
When I was finished with the interview at about 11 a.m., I went to the next county over to my son's middle school to help out in the Media Center. The Specialist has given me a little project to work on. I am compiling resources and references on Georgia authors for an 8th grade language arts unit. I ran back home at 2:45 so I could be at the house when my daughter got off the elementary school bus at 3 p.m., and I printed out a hard copy of my application for the AP (assistant principal) who interviewed me for the AVID position. The AP didn't have one printed out when I got to the school in the morning, and it was "my bad" that I didn't take one with me to the interview. Even though the AP said she would have one of the admins print out a copy of my information, I took the copy I printed over to the school—along with a thank-you note—to give to the AP.
It was a good thing that I went ahead and printed the application out because the AVID position for that particular school did not show as open position when I went into the HR dbase. I asked the admin about it, and she said they had previously hired someone for the job but "it didn't work out." So, because the position had been removed with the first hire, so did the evidence of my applying for the position. I suppose it was a good thing I decided to run back over there in the afternoon for two reasons: (1) to find out that I was going to have to reapply for the position in the HR system, and (2) it was a convenient way to hand off a thank-you note to the AP, even though the admin had printed a copy of my information already. The admin said that she was going to ask HR to repost the position and for me to reapply for it. I checked earlier today, and the position is reposted, so I applied for it again. I should probably send a follow-up email to both ladies to thank them and let them know that I have taken care of the reapplication.
All this effort and angina over a $10 an hour job.
There is a teacher job fair next week, for whatever that's worth, and I guess I will go to it. I don't really know how many jobs will be available because the hits just keep on comin'. The state has to cut an additional 3% from the education budget this year, and the general joblessness increased again in December by another 85,000 jobs in Georgia. To add insult to injury, I've been reading other teacher blogs, and all I generally read about is the hell that exists inside school classrooms. So, when I look at all the hard work I have put into getting my certification, and the hard work I'm doing now just to find some measely way into the school system, it is somewhat disheartening to read about all the hard work that's years yet to come—and with no thanks or decent salary to boot! It makes me wonder if I'm doomed from the beginning. I certainly hope I'm not floating along on the HMS Titantic only to discover some "Uh-oh" moment—"Iceberg ahead!"
"Never hesitate." It's a rule one of my driver's ed instructors told me. Once you press the gas to go, it's usually best to make the commitment to MOVE because stopping midstream is usually what causes the big crash. My anxiety of late has allowed doubts and doom to form into the inevitable twinge, "Have I done the right thing?" However, to borrow another line from Alfie, "It seems to me the problems you worry yourself sick about never seem to materialize. It's the ones that catch you unexpectedly on a Wednesday afternoon that knock you sideways." So, I suppose that means . . . I should just keep pressing the gas, but watch out for icebergs, too?
Sure. That's what it's all about, Alfie. Makes perfect sense.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Play It Again, Sam
I'm off to an interview for another AVID position. It is at a school that is much closer to me than the last school. From what I've read about the AVID program, I don't think all the schools in the county are actually implementing it the same way, so we'll see how this school is doing it. I'm interviewing with the assistant principal. One good thing that comes from interviewing for these little jobs in the schools is that it gives me an opportunity to practice my interviewing skills within an educational environment. I'm quickly learning that while business is business, the business of education is its own beastie.
Beasties or not, I must try to remember this: maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but as time goes by, I will get a job, and hopefully it will be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Beasties or not, I must try to remember this: maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but as time goes by, I will get a job, and hopefully it will be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Media Minion
I go to my son's media center tomorrow, Wednesday, to work in the library. However, I think I'm going to have to switch days because I have classes on Wednesday afternoon and it isn't really going to be good for me to try to do too much on one day. Plus, I'll probably need to be doing some work for my class on Wednesdays too. I guess I'll see if I can switch to Fridays instead. The volunteer media center thing is about the only hold I have on any school district, and since I'm an expendable little minion, I hope the Friday switch will be OK for the Media Specialist at the school too.
Monday, January 11, 2010
A Map out of the Gap?
I started back to classes at the U. today. I also went by Dr. Glade's office and spoke with her a few minutes. I told her about the eleven AVID facilitator/tutor positions and told her I interviewed for a spot but didn't get any offers. She said, "Well! That's depressing." (No kidding.) What's more, she was quite surprised when I told her that I offered to help with the AVID program as a free volunteer, and that the woman never even responded to my email. "What's wrong with these people?" she mused. What is wrong with them? Or, should the question really be, what is wrong with me?
So, I starting thinking later about what I could do to give all us teacher-types with no jobs something to do that might, in the end, be something sustainable and even *gasp* beneficial to the local schools and communities. There is a lot that teachers-in-training can do to help support stressed school systems. I wonder why school districts don't partner more often with university education programs to formulate a "win-win" for both the pre-service teachers and the districts. What probably would need to happen is that the universities would have to partner with participating schools and monitor volunteers that are screened for the program. There is a lot of liability, though, and a lot that could go wrong, so the volunteers would need to be the best of the best education students. The colledge students that participate would have to get recommendations from their professors or from some other reputable source. Hmmm. It might be interesting to research this a little and see if there are any other universities that do this kind of thing.
I remain flummoxed about the whole current job situation in general, and I feel as though I need to think more creatively about how I can not only help myself but also others in a similar situation. I'm feeling a LOT of anxiety lately, and I'm not sure if I'm creating my own or feeding off general socio-economic uneasiness. One thing's for sure though, it seems to me that there is a yawning disconnect between school systems and university education programs. I'm just trying to figure out a way to fill in some gaps that will pay-off in the end.
So, I starting thinking later about what I could do to give all us teacher-types with no jobs something to do that might, in the end, be something sustainable and even *gasp* beneficial to the local schools and communities. There is a lot that teachers-in-training can do to help support stressed school systems. I wonder why school districts don't partner more often with university education programs to formulate a "win-win" for both the pre-service teachers and the districts. What probably would need to happen is that the universities would have to partner with participating schools and monitor volunteers that are screened for the program. There is a lot of liability, though, and a lot that could go wrong, so the volunteers would need to be the best of the best education students. The colledge students that participate would have to get recommendations from their professors or from some other reputable source. Hmmm. It might be interesting to research this a little and see if there are any other universities that do this kind of thing.
I remain flummoxed about the whole current job situation in general, and I feel as though I need to think more creatively about how I can not only help myself but also others in a similar situation. I'm feeling a LOT of anxiety lately, and I'm not sure if I'm creating my own or feeding off general socio-economic uneasiness. One thing's for sure though, it seems to me that there is a yawning disconnect between school systems and university education programs. I'm just trying to figure out a way to fill in some gaps that will pay-off in the end.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Flaked Out
I've been thinking over the last week of many things that I might write about on my blog, and still the doldrums have hit me in the motivation department. I'm sure it has to do with the "blahs" that have taken hold of me since the big student teaching let down.
Honestly, the big student teaching let down began with Elphaba herself, because all the anticipation that I had about getting going in the real world of teaching came to a screeching hault with her. Even though things worked out after I was moved to another school for my student teaching, there are a number of things that are working against any feelings of positivity. First, of course, there is the whole student teaching debacle; second, there is the current job market (the fact that there are are no teaching jobs . . . or jobs in general); third, there is the recent rejection for a tutoring job, which just really baffles me, and finally, there is the financial situation--Georgia Student Finances "Hope Promise" wants me to start paying back my loan, even though I don't have a job yet or have yet to graduate.
So, this Spring semester I have signed up for two rather demanding English classes that start next week, and I hope that they will keep my mind from unraveling too much. I also have one last education class, which is the reason for my graduation in Spring in the first place. It's the inclusive education class (special, differentiated, mainstreaming, whatever you want to call it) that I put off til the last, and it's all on-line. My Senior World Lit class (which is not required for my graduation) is a hybrid on-line/face-to-face class. Dr. Botelho's Theory-based Lit class (also not required for my graduation), is going to be Feminist Theory, which is not my favorite critical lens, but he's an interesting professor, so hopefully I will gain an appreciation for gender-based criticism if nothing else.
Perhaps another issue that has led to my numbified state is that it has been freezing cold this week. Not a day has gone past this week where temperatures were over 32 degrees. It snowed Thursday, and schools were ultimately closed Friday. The funny thing is, even by Georgia standards, the schools closings were over-reactionary and unnecessary. All the weathermen talked up the great snow-fall event like it was a sure thing. As I was lying in bed the other night, the snowfall situation reminded me a little bit of my own situation. All the so-called experts predicted that it was gonna be a big snow for the southeast, just like all the experts at KSU told us the school districts were "crying" for English teachers. But in the final analysis, nothing much showed up--no snow showed up this week, and no jobs showed up for us recent and upcoming grads. I have some ideas about some things that I might do in the meantime that I will write about soon, but basically, both the snow and the teaching jobs both sort of just "flaked out."
Honestly, the big student teaching let down began with Elphaba herself, because all the anticipation that I had about getting going in the real world of teaching came to a screeching hault with her. Even though things worked out after I was moved to another school for my student teaching, there are a number of things that are working against any feelings of positivity. First, of course, there is the whole student teaching debacle; second, there is the current job market (the fact that there are are no teaching jobs . . . or jobs in general); third, there is the recent rejection for a tutoring job, which just really baffles me, and finally, there is the financial situation--Georgia Student Finances "Hope Promise" wants me to start paying back my loan, even though I don't have a job yet or have yet to graduate.
So, this Spring semester I have signed up for two rather demanding English classes that start next week, and I hope that they will keep my mind from unraveling too much. I also have one last education class, which is the reason for my graduation in Spring in the first place. It's the inclusive education class (special, differentiated, mainstreaming, whatever you want to call it) that I put off til the last, and it's all on-line. My Senior World Lit class (which is not required for my graduation) is a hybrid on-line/face-to-face class. Dr. Botelho's Theory-based Lit class (also not required for my graduation), is going to be Feminist Theory, which is not my favorite critical lens, but he's an interesting professor, so hopefully I will gain an appreciation for gender-based criticism if nothing else.
Perhaps another issue that has led to my numbified state is that it has been freezing cold this week. Not a day has gone past this week where temperatures were over 32 degrees. It snowed Thursday, and schools were ultimately closed Friday. The funny thing is, even by Georgia standards, the schools closings were over-reactionary and unnecessary. All the weathermen talked up the great snow-fall event like it was a sure thing. As I was lying in bed the other night, the snowfall situation reminded me a little bit of my own situation. All the so-called experts predicted that it was gonna be a big snow for the southeast, just like all the experts at KSU told us the school districts were "crying" for English teachers. But in the final analysis, nothing much showed up--no snow showed up this week, and no jobs showed up for us recent and upcoming grads. I have some ideas about some things that I might do in the meantime that I will write about soon, but basically, both the snow and the teaching jobs both sort of just "flaked out."
Friday, January 8, 2010
The Cold Shoulder
This week has a been a real downer. Ever since I found out I got dumped for the tutor job I've been in a funk. I feel anxiety creeping in and all that ickiness that makes for second guessing oneself, and it's not a good thing. Plus, it's been as a cold as a a witch's arse this week, and that never adds any comfort to the situation.
I start back to school next week—thank the gods. Maybe that will keep me from focusing so much on what's not going right. I'm just sort of at odd ends with myself. My friend and mentor Karly says that it's normal for me to feel at loose ends with myself since I am not student teaching anymore, and it is a good sign that I really do want to teach. I'm exiting this stage of stability as a student into a more tumultuous time. It doesn't help that I heard that 85,000 people lost their jobs in the month of December 2009. What a depressing outlook on the situation.
I start back to school next week—thank the gods. Maybe that will keep me from focusing so much on what's not going right. I'm just sort of at odd ends with myself. My friend and mentor Karly says that it's normal for me to feel at loose ends with myself since I am not student teaching anymore, and it is a good sign that I really do want to teach. I'm exiting this stage of stability as a student into a more tumultuous time. It doesn't help that I heard that 85,000 people lost their jobs in the month of December 2009. What a depressing outlook on the situation.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Off on the Left Foot
I found out today that I did NOT get the job as a 16-hour a week tutor. As much as I hate to admit it, it really bummed me out to be rejected for a job that doesn't even require a college degree. I'm going to tell myself I didn't get the job because I was overqualified, which I am. However, I can't help but still feel gobsmacked that I actually didn't get the offer.
I heard yesterday on NPR that there is no expected overall net job growth until 2015. That means that I could be 49 years old before things are rockin' again. Now, in the meantime I am going to be in grad school, but it still means that I'll be 47 (at the earliest) when I am finished with a master's degree. Most of the people who have graduated in the past year are doing the same thing—going to grad school and living off student loans. Going in to this second career as a teacher, I was thinking I would be 45 when I got a job, which gave me a good 20 years to teach. At the rate things are going, it's not looking good for that to happen.
*Sigh* I suppose I must put the right foot forward and stay positive.
I heard yesterday on NPR that there is no expected overall net job growth until 2015. That means that I could be 49 years old before things are rockin' again. Now, in the meantime I am going to be in grad school, but it still means that I'll be 47 (at the earliest) when I am finished with a master's degree. Most of the people who have graduated in the past year are doing the same thing—going to grad school and living off student loans. Going in to this second career as a teacher, I was thinking I would be 45 when I got a job, which gave me a good 20 years to teach. At the rate things are going, it's not looking good for that to happen.
*Sigh* I suppose I must put the right foot forward and stay positive.
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