Of course, the process was more thought out than a “screw it, let’s do it”, but we ultimately knew that if we didn’t just go for it, it’d never happen. It was a really pivotal time for us because we had just gotten married and felt like the only way we were going to make it over the hurdle of our careers was to make a major change. We were young, no kids, no major responsibilities, no ties to Connecticut (I’m from New York and he’s from New Hampshire).and so we said screw it, let’s take the risk, quit our jobs and move to New York. We both quickly realized that 5 or so years into our careers, neither of us could even picture the long-term. I remember having this discussion about our careers (he was working as a market research analyst at the time), and where we saw ourselves in five years' time. What I was for others wasn’t allowing me to REALLY take care of myself. I was a math teacher, a reading teacher, a writing teacher, a science teacher, a social studies teacher, a health teacher, a surrogate parent (for some), an emotional support system, a behavioral counselor, a social worker, an assessor, a planner, a developer.and so much more. What they don’t see is constant change within the education system new curriculums and standards that weigh heavily on performance the burdens of state testing and the strain that it has on children, which also greatly affects teachers the need to be “on” at every given moment and the many roles you step into all within the overarching title of “teacher”. Others see “spending time with kids”, “leaving work at 3pm each day”, “ summer’s off”. Teacher ‘burnout’ is something that’s often hard to explain to someone outside of the profession. But the burnout started to weigh heavier, the pile of work that came home with me and kept me busy most night’s until just before bedtime stacked higher, and my mental health started to deteriorate. Making the decision to quit teaching and leave a very ‘safe’ career in which I was well-respected by my bosses & colleagues, seemed like an outlandish thought. I can confidently say that I was a great teacher. I still say to this day that the kids were the sole reason I kept pushing through something I knew my heart wasn’t set on every day. I had the organization, the lesson plans and the observations down, but something was missing. By year 3, I was going through the motions, but not loving my job. The medical leave ended and I transitioned into another teacher’s maternity leave, which then transitioned into a full-time position with an opening in 3rd grade, where I spent the remainder of my teaching career. However, a teacher’s unexpected medical leave fell into my lap at one of the schools I had previously applied to, and within 2 weeks, I was thrown to the wolves (24 wide-eyed nine year olds) with a full-time teaching position right out of school. Getting a job right out of grad school in a very competitive field and a very competitive state was not something I planned would come easy.or would even come at all. I attended Quinnipiac University, which had a great education program, and completed my first 4 years of undergrad with a major in Sociology and minors in Psychology and Criminal Justice.įollowing graduation, I transitioned right into grad school to earn my Master’s in Elementary Education. When it came time for college, it was an easy decision. Where I came from & how I landed hereĭuring my sophomore year in high school, I took an early childhood ed elective, and that was the year I decided I wanted to pursue a career in education. Some of you ready to leave, others getting ready to make a major decision about what to do as you finish up college, so I wanted to take some time to talk about my experience in doing a total 180 in my career and finally drumming up the courage to say "I quit teaching" in today’s post. While I’m not personally grappling with any major life changes at the current moment, I’ve chatted with so many of you over the past few weeks who are on the brink of a major move in your career. It seems that so many of us are on the same wavelength lately in that we’re in a season of change. Even many years later, the words "I Quit" sound crazy
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