1 00:00:04,480 --> 00:00:10,119 Welcome to the Teachers Need Teachers podcast, where we help new and beginning teachers 2 00:00:10,199 --> 00:00:16,000 navigate through those crazy first years of teaching so you can maintain your sanity and 3 00:00:16,399 --> 00:00:27,559 personal life. Here's your host, him Lapree. Welcome to the Teachers Need 4 00:00:27,559 --> 00:00:32,119 Teachers Podcasts. The podcast or teachers who don't want to just survive teaching but 5 00:00:32,320 --> 00:00:38,200 actually thrive. I'm not gonna lie. Teaching can suck between toxic administrators, 6 00:00:38,320 --> 00:00:45,439 growing and unreasonable workloads, angry parents, rude and disrespectful students, and legislators 7 00:00:45,439 --> 00:00:49,560 trying to micromanage what we do. It's no wonder that so many teachers plan 8 00:00:49,679 --> 00:00:53,280 on quitting after the school year if they haven't quit already. Now, maybe 9 00:00:53,359 --> 00:00:56,679 you're in this situation too, or you want to quit, But what if 10 00:00:56,759 --> 00:01:00,719 you don't want to quit teaching, but you just want things to get better. 11 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:03,120 Like what if you're not ready to quit, but you're fed up with 12 00:01:03,120 --> 00:01:07,040 your current situation. I mean, I bet for a lot of you you 13 00:01:07,120 --> 00:01:11,000 actually do like teaching, but you're hating it right now because of what's going 14 00:01:11,040 --> 00:01:14,400 on in your classroom. In this episode, I'm going to be covering five 15 00:01:14,480 --> 00:01:19,439 alternatives to leaving teaching that can actually help you like or dare I say, 16 00:01:19,599 --> 00:01:23,359 love teaching. If you want to stay and you just need a change in 17 00:01:23,400 --> 00:01:27,920 your current situation, here are some of your options now. The first option 18 00:01:29,159 --> 00:01:34,680 is to switch grade levels, switch subjects, or just switch schools now. 19 00:01:34,719 --> 00:01:38,959 Sometimes a change of scenery can make a huge difference. I switch schools after 20 00:01:40,159 --> 00:01:42,280 being at the same school for more than ten years, and I can tell 21 00:01:42,280 --> 00:01:46,920 you that it made a huge difference. I also switch subjects. I went 22 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:52,359 from teaching band to teaching English, and that really reinvigorated my love for teaching. 23 00:01:52,439 --> 00:01:57,640 In both situations, I had gotten somewhat bored and just overall tired of 24 00:01:57,680 --> 00:02:00,359 what I was teaching and the situation that I was in. So making that 25 00:02:00,400 --> 00:02:05,040 switch just really made it so that I had this new love and energy for 26 00:02:05,200 --> 00:02:09,080 teaching. And especially if you're in a situation where your admin or just your 27 00:02:09,120 --> 00:02:15,039 school in general it's toxic and everything is really negative, you can actually switch 28 00:02:15,120 --> 00:02:19,479 schools and you can find that it's like a whole new teaching world. It's 29 00:02:19,520 --> 00:02:23,560 a breadth of fresh air. The students are different, the admins supportive, 30 00:02:23,680 --> 00:02:27,479 your colleagues are supportive and happy with their jobs, and it makes you wonder 31 00:02:27,759 --> 00:02:30,280 why did they say it that other job for so long. I remember before 32 00:02:30,319 --> 00:02:35,479 I switched schools, I was really hoping that I could help improve the situation, 33 00:02:35,599 --> 00:02:38,120 I could help make a change there, until I realized that a lot 34 00:02:38,159 --> 00:02:42,080 of it was really out of my hands. A lot of it had to 35 00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:45,840 do with the way that the administrators ran the school, and of course they 36 00:02:45,840 --> 00:02:50,400 didn't necessarily want to listen to reason, and so me switching made it to 37 00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:53,879 where I could focus on things that I could control, and that just made 38 00:02:53,879 --> 00:02:57,120 me a lot happier, more satisfied with my job. Now. You might 39 00:02:57,159 --> 00:03:00,719 be worried about not knowing what you're doing when you switch new grade level, 40 00:03:00,800 --> 00:03:04,599 maybe you're going from like sixth grade to second grade, or you're switching like 41 00:03:04,719 --> 00:03:08,319 from music to English, but it's actually one of the reasons why it can 42 00:03:08,439 --> 00:03:13,120 be so reinvigorating, because you're going to be trying new things. You're going 43 00:03:13,199 --> 00:03:16,520 to be exploring that grade or that subject with the fresh eyes that you had 44 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:20,639 when you first started out teaching, and you might find that you actually like 45 00:03:20,759 --> 00:03:24,000 that grade so much better. I mean, the personalities of the students at 46 00:03:24,039 --> 00:03:29,759 every single grade and actually every single subject is like night and day, and 47 00:03:29,800 --> 00:03:32,199 so doing that could really make a huge difference, and you might find that 48 00:03:32,240 --> 00:03:38,039 you prefer what you switch to more than where you came from. The second 49 00:03:38,039 --> 00:03:43,879 option is other part time teaching or alternatives to teaching. So this could mean 50 00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:47,000 that you could do tutoring or some kind of online education. There are a 51 00:03:47,000 --> 00:03:51,639 lot of options for that, or maybe you do like an adult school class 52 00:03:51,639 --> 00:03:53,639 if you have some skills that you could teach there, and that can make 53 00:03:53,680 --> 00:03:58,400 it where you're not so bored with the everyday stuff of teaching. And I 54 00:03:58,439 --> 00:04:01,759 know that you know teaching is hard and the thought of doing more teaching could 55 00:04:01,800 --> 00:04:06,800 be frustrating, but you might have fun actually doing these alternative options, such 56 00:04:06,879 --> 00:04:11,560 as online teaching. So there are things like out school, or you could 57 00:04:11,560 --> 00:04:15,480 teach English online and it's different probably from what you're currently doing. Or you 58 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:19,720 could supplement what you're already doing and just make things really fun and that can 59 00:04:19,800 --> 00:04:24,319 make it so that when you are in the classroom it's not just the same 60 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:28,800 things over and over again. You could also try being a school counselor or 61 00:04:28,839 --> 00:04:33,360 some kind of educational consultant, a curriculum writer, basically something in the education 62 00:04:33,639 --> 00:04:38,160 field, but you're doing a different type of jobs, so you can do 63 00:04:38,199 --> 00:04:41,240 that instead of being a teacher, or you can do that in addition to 64 00:04:41,319 --> 00:04:44,319 being a teacher. I know that there are a lot of teachers online that 65 00:04:44,480 --> 00:04:48,360 are educational consultants, and they're there to help other teachers. They create courses 66 00:04:48,399 --> 00:04:53,399 and they create content online to help teachers kind of get out of a rut 67 00:04:53,519 --> 00:04:58,839 or to address specific concern So that could be something that could really reinvigorate your 68 00:04:58,879 --> 00:05:02,120 love for teaching because you're helping other teachers too, or as a school counselor 69 00:05:02,199 --> 00:05:05,920 that can also be really fulfilling to help students in terms of helping them with 70 00:05:05,959 --> 00:05:10,040 their personal problems or if you're in high school, also helping them figure out 71 00:05:10,040 --> 00:05:12,720 what they want to do with their future. In addition, you could also 72 00:05:12,959 --> 00:05:16,040 explore leadership roles, So maybe you want to consider doing some kind of a 73 00:05:16,160 --> 00:05:19,680 leadership role in your school or at the district level. So this could be 74 00:05:19,759 --> 00:05:25,600 a curriculum coordinator, the department head, and instructional coach. Maybe you want 75 00:05:25,600 --> 00:05:29,959 to get your administrative credential because you want to take on more leadership roles, 76 00:05:30,040 --> 00:05:32,920 or there's just something else in your school or in your district that you can 77 00:05:32,959 --> 00:05:38,240 do that's still an education, but you're helping in a different way. So 78 00:05:38,319 --> 00:05:43,399 maybe you work with special programs, or maybe work with school funding like federal 79 00:05:43,439 --> 00:05:46,920 funding, and you help distribute those funds or help figure out where to best 80 00:05:46,920 --> 00:05:49,519 spend that kind of money. I know lots of teachers who move into those 81 00:05:49,560 --> 00:05:54,560 types of leadership roles and they end up really loving that instead of being in 82 00:05:54,560 --> 00:05:59,199 the classroom. But they're not necessarily just teaching the education field altogether. If 83 00:05:59,199 --> 00:06:01,639 you would becoming an administrator, depending on your district, at least in my 84 00:06:01,720 --> 00:06:04,759 district, you have to get extra education to do that, you have to 85 00:06:04,759 --> 00:06:09,879 get an actual administrative credential. But I know on a lot of school districts 86 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:14,560 is actually pretty easy to move up if you've demonstrated some kind of leadership role 87 00:06:14,680 --> 00:06:17,480 before, or you've just shown leadership qualities. So that's something that you can 88 00:06:17,519 --> 00:06:23,439 start looking at and working towards so that you can once again reinvigorate your love 89 00:06:23,480 --> 00:06:26,920 for the field of education. That's something that I really like to do, 90 00:06:27,160 --> 00:06:31,000 which is the fourth option, is to explore professional development. Now, a 91 00:06:31,079 --> 00:06:38,160 lot of school mandated PD or professional development can be really really born, like 92 00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:42,920 really boring, But when you can pick the professional development that you know fits 93 00:06:43,000 --> 00:06:45,800 your needs, what you need to learn right now. It can actually be 94 00:06:46,040 --> 00:06:49,800 really invigorating. I remember I went to this conference that was here in San 95 00:06:49,839 --> 00:06:54,240 Diego, and it was a huge conference and there were a lot of people 96 00:06:54,279 --> 00:06:59,279 there. I learned so much about educational technology and it really helped me solidify 97 00:06:59,360 --> 00:07:02,560 the fact that I wanted to really embed technology into my teaching, and it 98 00:07:02,600 --> 00:07:09,199 introduced me to new ways of doing that. I've also attended subject specific conferences, 99 00:07:09,199 --> 00:07:13,040 like for English or for band when I taught band, and again just 100 00:07:13,079 --> 00:07:16,480 seeing other teachers and what they're doing in discussing ways to improve my teaching. 101 00:07:16,680 --> 00:07:20,240 It really really helped. And while I didn't implement everything from it, it 102 00:07:20,360 --> 00:07:25,279 really made it so that I was able to love teaching again because I was 103 00:07:25,319 --> 00:07:29,160 so inspired by it. So you can ask your administrator or your district cowvert 104 00:07:29,160 --> 00:07:32,040 works where you're at, if there's any funding for maybe additional classes, some 105 00:07:32,160 --> 00:07:35,240 one off classes. Those can be awesome as well, or like I said, 106 00:07:35,240 --> 00:07:41,560 attending a conference or just any other professional development opportunities. And if there 107 00:07:41,639 --> 00:07:46,319 isn't funding from your school or your district to further your professional development, you 108 00:07:46,319 --> 00:07:50,000 can also look into something like donors Shoes dot org and I actually made a 109 00:07:50,040 --> 00:07:53,759 podcast episode about that, so I'm going to go ahead and link that in 110 00:07:53,879 --> 00:07:57,879 the description in terms of how to get started on donors Shoes and get it 111 00:07:58,040 --> 00:08:03,079 successfully funded. So just look are opportunities that can once again help you just 112 00:08:03,160 --> 00:08:07,439 become really inspired and invigorated, and it's something that you get to choose. 113 00:08:07,439 --> 00:08:09,720 That's what's really important. Is that something that maybe you think that you need 114 00:08:09,759 --> 00:08:13,800 more help with, or just something that will make you excited so you can 115 00:08:13,839 --> 00:08:16,360 get more ideas to help you with your teaching. And my final tip is 116 00:08:16,399 --> 00:08:22,639 to take a sabbatical. So some districts offer sabbaticals or a leave of absence 117 00:08:22,639 --> 00:08:26,240 for teachers. So this is basically where you're going to take a set amount 118 00:08:26,240 --> 00:08:30,399 of time off and you're not going to be getting paid. I'm not really 119 00:08:30,439 --> 00:08:33,240 sure how it works in terms of health insurance or benefits like that, but 120 00:08:33,360 --> 00:08:37,840 you're not getting paid during this time and so that could just be some much 121 00:08:37,879 --> 00:08:39,919 needed time for you to take off from teaching. But when you take a 122 00:08:39,960 --> 00:08:45,639 sabbatical instead of quitting, you get to hold on to your position so that 123 00:08:45,720 --> 00:08:48,840 when you're ready to come back, it's still there now. Again, depending 124 00:08:48,879 --> 00:08:52,559 on your district, some districts don't let you take sabbaticals, or if you 125 00:08:52,600 --> 00:08:54,440 take one, you don't get to go back to your exact same school or 126 00:08:54,559 --> 00:08:58,600 grade level, things like that. I know that in my district you can 127 00:08:58,639 --> 00:09:03,240 take a sabbatical for a year at a time, and then you get to 128 00:09:03,279 --> 00:09:05,799 come back to your same position at your same school. But find out what 129 00:09:05,840 --> 00:09:09,279 the rules are in your district and if that's an option, and if you 130 00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:13,600 can, maybe you just need some time away from teaching, but not all 131 00:09:13,639 --> 00:09:18,440 together quit. You can use that time to reset and pursue some other opportunities 132 00:09:18,440 --> 00:09:20,639 so that when you are ready to come back, you've had some time away, 133 00:09:20,759 --> 00:09:24,480 maybe miss teaching while you're gone, and it's going to make you love 134 00:09:24,559 --> 00:09:30,399 the profession again. Now, leaving teaching is obviously a big decision, and 135 00:09:30,440 --> 00:09:33,360 it's a very very personal one. And if you're leaving, I completely understand 136 00:09:33,440 --> 00:09:37,600 because I know that some of your situations are just god awful, They're just 137 00:09:39,080 --> 00:09:43,080 terrible. I would probably leave too, But it doesn't mean that you have 138 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:48,240 to leave teaching altogether. You can just find other alternatives to just quitting. 139 00:09:48,679 --> 00:09:52,440 So what do you guys think do you think that you could possibly explore any 140 00:09:52,440 --> 00:09:56,000 of these options? Let me know. Send me an email at Kim at 141 00:09:56,080 --> 00:09:58,759 Teachers Need Teachers dot com and I'd love to hear what your situation is. 142 00:10:00,000 --> 00:10:03,360 Even if you are definitely leaving or if you're considering leaving, please reach out 143 00:10:03,360 --> 00:10:05,360 to me and let me know and let's just talk about it. Thanks for 144 00:10:05,440 --> 00:10:07,879 hanging out with me this week. You guys, I will see you next 145 00:10:07,919 --> 00:10:13,720 time. Thanks for listening to the Teachers Need Teachers podcast. Love this episode. 146 00:10:15,080 --> 00:10:18,720 Head over to Apple Podcast or Google Play to subscribe, rate and leave 147 00:10:18,759 --> 00:10:20,240 a review.