The Trials and Errors In Relocating

I’m back after a long period of changes and excitement. The wedding was gorgeous and my husband and I had a wonderful honeymoon. When we returned to my hometown in Ohio, the worry began because we weren’t sure how we were going to pull off moving 900 miles south to completely different surroundings. We stayed with some family for two weeks but in a week and a half we had secured a wonderful apartment in which to live and I got a job as a teacher at a local high school. I had to cancel my reassignment to the bookstore in Tampa because it was too far a drive for me to justify spending the gas. But I also knew I had come to Florida with a career in education in mind.

Needless to say, I was thrilled at how success I was after just arriving in Florida. The websites had told me how desperate Florida was for teachers, but I had no idea that when I walked into my first interview for a teaching position, I would be hired on the spot! I am someone who has no experience in front of the classroom. I only have tutoring experience and that was where I had made my mistake. Here I was, proud of pulling in my first salary with all these responsibilities on my shoulder, but I didn’t stop to assess whether I would be cut out for the type of job I had accepted.
My first day was enough to let me know I needed more training. First of all, managing a classroom of teenagers is difficult, even when the kids are in the advanced classes. Second, I was coming into the school year ten days late and third, I had five classes of remedial reading students who had only me as their last chance at passing the FCAT and getting their diploma. Therefore, they were understandably frustrated with the school system and with themselves and since they are young, they lash out their frustrations at each other and their educator. I was terribly nervous and hurt at their behavior because I had gone into the classroom believing they would be willing to listen and better themselves so that they could get their high school diploma. My severe misjudgement left me unprepared to deal with the students because of my lack of training in classroom management and also my lack of practical teaching skills. Although I felt angered and wounded at the students’ comments about me and my personal life, they did so because they sensed my lack of experience and therefore did not want to take me seriously.
Sadly, I informed the principal that I was not experienced enough to instruct these kids in the manner they deserved. I was very depressed at leaving a good salary and the prestige of being a professional teacher behind. Yet, it was a good learning experience for me. I realized that I need to take on instructional assistant jobs and attend classroom management after school courses first before I can be fully prepared to take on a classroom full of young people who need a lot of discipline and direction. Another reason why this was a tough learning experience was because I took on the job because I felt we needed income as soon as possible instead of focusing on the experience and know-how the job demanded of me. Thankfully, my husband has secured a manager position at a local store that will bring in enough income for us until I can find my niche in the educational world. I am interviewing for instructional aide jobs and signing up for classroom management classes offered by the school district and although I won’t receive as much money as a teacher, the experience and peace of mind will be well worth it.