Reply to MCPS faces Teacher shortage next year

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][b]Some MCPS schools, including my DC's, seem to have too many teachers[/b]. It's sounding like the schools with the good principals don't have as many staffing issues?

Also, many former MCPS students have gone elsewhere due to the in-person school closures.

So would be curious which schools are the ones with all these unfilled positions.[/quote]

Why does it seem that way to you?[/quote]

Classrooms with only about 11 or so students[/quote]

That seems really low, even for a Title 1 school[/quote]

I'd be curious what grade- our Focus school was very imbalanced this year.  Kindergarten classes all had 20+ students but some of the 1st-3nd grade classes were <15.[/quote]

I've worked in a focus school a few years and seen it happen a few times. Usually the year started out balanced but a disproportionate number of kids left or transferred and then that teacher usually is the designated person to get new students transferring in. In another case there were kids with very high behavioral needs so it made sense to make that class smaller.

In my school we needed more kindergarten students but couldn't find a qualified kindergarten teacher. In some cases the applicants had multiple offers and chose schools closer to home[/quote]

Teachers picking schools close to home is a big problem. There is a lack of affordable housing for moco workers including teachers. So if teachers can make the same salary in Germantown with a shorter commute, they will.[/quote]

Most Germantown schools will also have smaller class sizes, because they have a higher FARMS rate.[/quote]

I think the applicant chose a job in either Ann Arundel or Howard county [/quote]

I teach in Germantown and enjoy the reverse commute from Bethesda.  I have wonderful co-workers but most elementary schools in Germantown are far from easy.  There's a ton of poverty, trauma, etc. [/quote]

I've worked in both Bethesda and Germantown (and others). The culture of the Bethesda schools is insane, really, really hard to stomach, while the culture in a place like Germantown is normal. That makes a BIG difference in someone's day, and explains why schools in upper class areas have a harder time attracting and keeping teachers and paras. They're miserable places to work.[/quote]

I’ve also worked in both, though more recently in Germantown. Both areas have their issues and both are having trouble retaining teachers. In Bethesda, the parent demands can just be too much. The daily emails and constant judgement is hard to stomach (just read DCUM for examples). In Germantown, I rarely have any interaction with parents. In fact, I am often struggling just to get calls returned. However, the student behavior is out of this world. School is expected to fix all of society’s issues which is impossible. The daily disrespect from the students is horrible.

So teachers are dealing with very different issues, but both are challenging and both are driving teachers away from teaching. I believe Rockville might be ideal, but who knows? All I know is that I used to love teaching and now hate it.[/quote]

Hoping next year will be better. Kids really are decompressing from being isolated during COVID.[/quote]

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