Teachers Resigning Like Crazy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not in Fairfax, so feel free to disregard my post if you'd like.
I am in the Chicago area. I am sped certified and no joke, I'm getting emails and texts every single day, multiple times a day, asking me to interview for one of the thousands of sped positions that are open. I already have a job in gen ed. I think we're seeing the collapse of special ed and at some point, either the government is going to have to take over sped or it is going to have to be completely outsourced to private companies. Already, private companies are hiring "contract teachers" for these positions (paying them more, but they typically don't get a pension then).

SPED as a career is in a weird place. It's the kind of job that really shouldn't command a high amount of education. Certainly not an MS. I truly think the licensure can be achieved through an Associate's level education. That would help solve some of the problems with qualified people.

HAHAHAHA....I'm hoping this is sarcasm.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s rough. Teachers are at their breaking point. To those of you blaming the school board, you can go fly a kite. This is happening all over the country. It’s not an FCPS thing. Colleagues went to a job fair at UVA last week. There were school districts from Texas there vying for the handful of teacher candidates.

—an overwhelmed principal

You pretend you are overwhelmed but it’s you that’s the problem. The solution is simple: run orderly schools where there are consequences for unruly behavior. Ban cellphones on campus. Trust me, you will have better teacher retention.

For 170k I'm not going to work myself to the bone. I'll do what is within my reach and fits my work schedule but beyond that it is what it is. You can feel free to campaign for the implementation of those policies you mentioned or you can apply for a job and try to "run orderly schools" yourself.

This is where everyone is in education. You can only do so much in a day-we are not indentured servants we go home and have families. I applaud this principal and I know many teachers who are starting to say no to the ridiculous demands for such little pay. It is what is is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Over 600 positions for just ES as of 7/17. Terrifying. There are literally no resumes, either. [/quote wrote:


Is there a breakdown for this? General education, special education, etc.

Less than 300 are actual teacher vacancies. 150 are general education teachers and 140 are sped teachers. The other vacancies are instructional assts and monitors. The 600+ number is really skewed because of the monitors. Elementary schools were staffed with them to help with planning time coverage.

This is incorrect.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s ironic how the left was all about how “it takes a village” to raise kids but, after they decided to shut down the village for an extended period, concluded it was appropriate to constantly attack parents for not properly socializing their kids.

It’s also not surprising that some parents then decided to return the favor by criticizing school employees for lowered standards when it comes to both academic expectations and behavioral norms. It wasn’t parents who decided that discipline should be tossed aside in favor of “restorative justice” and the like - that came from the educational establishment.

In the end, the festering distrust serves no one because we have a common interest in the next generation becoming functioning, law-abiding adults, notwithstanding some of the disruptions to their development due to Covid. It’s quite disappointing to see many of the comments on this thread, which betray a lack of both perspective and empathy.

Oh look it's the covid brigade-I don't want to parent my kids it's all on the schools-BUT I also want to tell the schools how to do EVERYTHING lol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not in Fairfax, so feel free to disregard my post if you'd like.
I am in the Chicago area. I am sped certified and no joke, I'm getting emails and texts every single day, multiple times a day, asking me to interview for one of the thousands of sped positions that are open. I already have a job in gen ed. I think we're seeing the collapse of special ed and at some point, either the government is going to have to take over sped or it is going to have to be completely outsourced to private companies. Already, private companies are hiring "contract teachers" for these positions (paying them more, but they typically don't get a pension then).

I work for FCPS and I recently transferred to another teaching position. There was some mix-up with HR and I had to update some information in the online portal. In the 24 hours between the time that I created an online account and was then officially hired for the teaching position, approximately 15 principals contacted me via email, phone, or text. And I hadn’t even applied to any of there schools. It’s crazy out there!

This happened to me last year. I had 30 principals contact me in 5 days. Some told me that if my school didn't work out I could come to theirs next year. They had only seen my resume. Interesting times...and yes I'm SPED.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not in Fairfax, so feel free to disregard my post if you'd like.
I am in the Chicago area. I am sped certified and no joke, I'm getting emails and texts every single day, multiple times a day, asking me to interview for one of the thousands of sped positions that are open. I already have a job in gen ed. I think we're seeing the collapse of special ed and at some point, either the government is going to have to take over sped or it is going to have to be completely outsourced to private companies. Already, private companies are hiring "contract teachers" for these positions (paying them more, but they typically don't get a pension then).

SPED as a career is in a weird place. It's the kind of job that really shouldn't command a high amount of education. Certainly not an MS. I truly think the licensure can be achieved through an Associate's level education. That would help solve some of the problems with qualified people.

No. Sped teachers need MORE education, not less. The amount of methods, types of interventions, techniques and more they have to know is insane.

SPED teacher also desperately need more time and someone to do all the admin tasks so they can actually work with the kids who need the most. It's bad parents don't want to hear it but the SPED system is truly broken.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a SPED teacher. It's basically two jobs but you're only paid for one. The first job is the actual teaching, and everything that goes along with that such as classroom management, lesson planning, grading, and CT meetings. The second job is all the paperwork, data collection, IEP meetings, re-eval meetings, eligibility meetings, progress reports, IEP writing, drafting goals, back and forth with parents, and collaboration with other SPED and gen ed teachers.

Reducing the "training" to two years is probably not possible if you're still expected to deliver grade level content, and it wouldn't necessarily attract more people to the field because you're still paid the same as a gen ed teacher.

This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn’t help that central office keeps poaching teachers for BS positions this late in the game. Spots that admins had assumed were filled are now vacant a couple weeks before teachers return because Willow Oaks can hire teachers at any time.

This shouldn't be allowed. Their transfer window should be exactly the same as the window for school based jobs.

Well they will probably be forced back into the classrooms until teachers are hired.

True, although I have yet to see anyone from Gatehouse dispatched to my school or any of my kids’ schools, ever. None of my teacher friends have seen it either. I know it does happen but I wonder how common it is.

They typically abuse the IA positions and have them "sub" before puling from Gatehouse. But who cares parents have their "babysitters" one way or another

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It would be nice if we got rid of all the testing and started actually teaching things again. Today I found a box of buttons and remembered when I was in elementary school and we'd be asked to bring in random things for social studies crafts. I don't know the last time my kid did anything creative in school.

Maybe art class?

My 3DC (2 FCPS grads) all complained about their ES art classes - for several years they had Art on a Cart where the art teacher rolled a cart into the classroom due to lack of space/no art room. Projects were rushed and heavily instructed; one entire special time would be instruction or background and the day next would be actual creation.

I can’t think of more than one project my DCs created in art.

And, as a FCPS alum of long ago, I recall the excitement of collecting odd items from home for art projects! Bring in 5 buttons! Bring in a lid from a hairspray bottle, Sweetheart brand soap, an orange, old magazines, etc. We

These homemade projects done in class are gone, too. No time.

Oh Lord, but you can’t ask kids to “collect” things from home and bring them in or the parents pitch a fit. “OMG I don’t have tiiiiiime! I’m so busy and important! Ugh! MeNtAl LoAd!!!”

LOL. Plus calling anyone, let alone a parent, is taboo. You have to text/email them to make an appointment about anything.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s ironic how the left was all about how “it takes a village” to raise kids but, after they decided to shut down the village for an extended period, concluded it was appropriate to constantly attack parents for not properly socializing their kids.

It’s also not surprising that some parents then decided to return the favor by criticizing school employees for lowered standards when it comes to both academic expectations and behavioral norms. It wasn’t parents who decided that discipline should be tossed aside in favor of “restorative justice” and the like - that came from the educational establishment.

In the end, the festering distrust serves no one because we have a common interest in the next generation becoming functioning, law-abiding adults, notwithstanding some of the disruptions to their development due to Covid. It’s quite disappointing to see many of the comments on this thread, which betray a lack of both perspective and empathy.

You're right! It was the left who started the pandemic!

Parents who actually parent and who take responsibility for their children's behavior and continuing education have zero animosity towards school staff or programs the school set up, such as restorative justice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not in Fairfax, so feel free to disregard my post if you'd like.
I am in the Chicago area. I am sped certified and no joke, I'm getting emails and texts every single day, multiple times a day, asking me to interview for one of the thousands of sped positions that are open. I already have a job in gen ed. I think we're seeing the collapse of special ed and at some point, either the government is going to have to take over sped or it is going to have to be completely outsourced to private companies. Already, private companies are hiring "contract teachers" for these positions (paying them more, but they typically don't get a pension then).

SPED as a career is in a weird place. It's the kind of job that really shouldn't command a high amount of education. Certainly not an MS. I truly think the licensure can be achieved through an Associate's level education. That would help solve some of the problems with qualified people.

HAHAHAHA....I'm hoping this is sarcasm.

Courses for mainstream education have both reputation and evidence showing that they are broadly worthless, the one exception being student teaching. Are enough of the SPED courses sufficiently better that it would be worthwhile to fill out a whole degree, remembering that this cuts two years off a working life, at great expense?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not in Fairfax, so feel free to disregard my post if you'd like.
I am in the Chicago area. I am sped certified and no joke, I'm getting emails and texts every single day, multiple times a day, asking me to interview for one of the thousands of sped positions that are open. I already have a job in gen ed. I think we're seeing the collapse of special ed and at some point, either the government is going to have to take over sped or it is going to have to be completely outsourced to private companies. Already, private companies are hiring "contract teachers" for these positions (paying them more, but they typically don't get a pension then).

SPED as a career is in a weird place. It's the kind of job that really shouldn't command a high amount of education. Certainly not an MS. I truly think the licensure can be achieved through an Associate's level education. That would help solve some of the problems with qualified people.

HAHAHAHA....I'm hoping this is sarcasm.

Courses for mainstream education have both reputation and evidence showing that they are broadly worthless, the one exception being student teaching. Are enough of the SPED courses sufficiently better that it would be worthwhile to fill out a whole degree, remembering that this cuts two years off a working life, at great expense?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not in Fairfax, so feel free to disregard my post if you'd like.
I am in the Chicago area. I am sped certified and no joke, I'm getting emails and texts every single day, multiple times a day, asking me to interview for one of the thousands of sped positions that are open. I already have a job in gen ed. I think we're seeing the collapse of special ed and at some point, either the government is going to have to take over sped or it is going to have to be completely outsourced to private companies. Already, private companies are hiring "contract teachers" for these positions (paying them more, but they typically don't get a pension then).

SPED as a career is in a weird place. It's the kind of job that really shouldn't command a high amount of education. Certainly not an MS. I truly think the licensure can be achieved through an Associate's level education. That would help solve some of the problems with qualified people.

HAHAHAHA....I'm hoping this is sarcasm.

As stated earlier, UVA's SPED Bachelor's degree begins in the third year, and entire fourth year is 80% classroom placement, 20% coursework. Is that not basically a two-year program? Did they really need to take the first two full years of standard college gen-eds? Just like nurses can do quick licensure programs without taking a bunch of gen-eds, so can prospective SPED teachers skip to the real classes and get into field placement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s ironic how the left was all about how “it takes a village” to raise kids but, after they decided to shut down the village for an extended period, concluded it was appropriate to constantly attack parents for not properly socializing their kids.

It’s also not surprising that some parents then decided to return the favor by criticizing school employees for lowered standards when it comes to both academic expectations and behavioral norms. It wasn’t parents who decided that discipline should be tossed aside in favor of “restorative justice” and the like - that came from the educational establishment.

In the end, the festering distrust serves no one because we have a common interest in the next generation becoming functioning, law-abiding adults, notwithstanding some of the disruptions to their development due to Covid. It’s quite disappointing to see many of the comments on this thread, which betray a lack of both perspective and empathy.

You're right! It was the left who started the pandemic!

Parents who actually parent and who take responsibility for their children's behavior and continuing education have zero animosity towards school staff or programs the school set up, such as restorative justice.

DP. Defending restorative justice? Why?

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know the number of openings, or converted the list into a spreadsheet, https://careers.fcps.edu/vl/vacancy.htm?