Career Change to K-12 Ed

[mama2a]

I'm considering a drastic career change from my cushy public health job which is challenging to find new public health related part time and full time jobs (I just feel stuck). I have my masters degree but nothing education related. The district I want to consider is urban and depending on neighborhood the school can be very diverse or not at all and come with its own set of challenges. The district has a program where I can work in a non-licensure job and they'd help reimburse tuition if I went to school to get my BA in education (if I decide I want to be a teacher).

I have this desire to work with children and to want to make a difference, but I recognize that being a teacher can be a thankless job. I like that I can work part-time, be on my feet (I hate sitting in my desk job), and be more involved with kids and families from a variety of backgrounds different from my own. For those of you that work in education either as a teacher or non-teaching licensure job I would love to hear about your experiences. If you work in K-12 education either in special ed or mainstream can you tell me what you like about your job, what you don't and any tips as I mull this over?

[rere26]

I went the opposite direction, from high school teacher to public health. What drove me from teaching was the lack of support from that particular administration and the fact that I spent a lot of time talking to parents about why their little darling deserved a demerit.

In reality, I just wasn't good at it. There are some that made teaching look as natural as breathing. Every day was a struggle for me and I'd have to brace myself. If you feel the pull to teach, I'd say go for it, you are on the right track. I felt more of the pull of the subject, not the pull to actually teach kids.

[CoverGirl82]

I don't have direct personal experience, but my mom was a parapro (teacher's aide) in an elementary school and loved it. She actually has a M. Ed. and a teaching license, but chose to be a parapro after going back to work after my sister and I started school. She loved working directly with students (1x1 or small groups), not having to deal with parents, not working every night doing lesson plans or grading papers, and still have school holiday off. She didn't work in the summer, so she didn't get paid, so that would be a consideration, unless there would be an option to work summer school.

More recently, an acquaintance left a regular teaching job to work as a parapro and also preferred that job to being a teacher.

[supertrooper1]

My DH would not recommend going into education. He teaches 3rd grade and is stressed with all of the requirements but no time to fulfill those requirements. He spends several hours one day on the weekend planning, plus grading and planning in the evenings. He is constantly stressed.

But the hours are great for having kids. He is always off when DS will be off from school. Having every holiday and a couple months in the summer off is a great benefit. I often work holidays and a lot of OT, so it works for us.

[Deleted]

I also left teaching. There are so many hoops to jump through, and then once you get through them all, I too felt a complete lack of administrative support. I was in urban inner school system that was way too large and a dysfunctional union, and most likely there was some fraud on both the state and city level.

I think if I were to do it over again, I would have done something more like school nurse, speech therapy, or counselor in the school. I am not cut out for the classroom all day long. I think I was a good teacher, but standing up and talking for 6 hours a day is very exhausting. Or even an adjunct professor, but I definitely would need less classes. I do teach classes now, but they are pretty infrequent, but still in the educational field. I'm more in management now and literacy.

[twinmomma]

I agree with supertrooper1 - teaching is not going to be an easy field. I'm not sure how you'd manage to work part time if you're an actual classroom teacher. Your hours in the classroom itself might be part time, but expect a lot of work at home, especially in your first few years as you start from scratch on lessons and planning. My DH teaches high school and consistently works for a couple hours a night on grading and planning, plus weekend time. Now that he's in the theater teacher role, it's amped up even more.

Are you considering a classroom teacher role, or something else?

[mama2a]

Feb 6, 2017 10:19:22 GMT -5 twinmomma said:

I agree with supertrooper1 - teaching is not going to be an easy field. I'm not sure how you'd manage to work part time if you're an actual classroom teacher. Your hours in the classroom itself might be part time, but expect a lot of work at home, especially in your first few years as you start from scratch on lessons and planning. My DH teaches high school and consistently works for a couple hours a night on grading and planning, plus weekend time. Now that he's in the theater teacher role, it's amped up even more.

Are you considering a classroom teacher role, or something else?

Yeah I am seeing a lot of part-time for the para-professional jobs but not for teachers which doesn't surprise me. I'm not sure yet if I'd want to be a teacher and would start out as a para and just see where my interests are.

Judging by the posts here it sounds like teachers are overworked.

[twinmomma]

Feb 6, 2017 10:39:56 GMT -5 mama2a said:

Feb 6, 2017 10:19:22 GMT -5 twinmomma said:

I agree with supertrooper1 - teaching is not going to be an easy field. I'm not sure how you'd manage to work part time if you're an actual classroom teacher. Your hours in the classroom itself might be part time, but expect a lot of work at home, especially in your first few years as you start from scratch on lessons and planning. My DH teaches high school and consistently works for a couple hours a night on grading and planning, plus weekend time. Now that he's in the theater teacher role, it's amped up even more.

Are you considering a classroom teacher role, or something else?

Yeah I am seeing a lot of part-time for the para-professional jobs but not for teachers which doesn't surprise me. I'm not sure yet if I'd want to be a teacher and would start out as a para and just see where my interests are.

Judging by the posts here it sounds like teachers are overworked.

haha Yes! Definitely an understatement!

I worked as a paraprofessional when I was in college and really enjoyed it. It's a great way to make a difference and support kids who really need it. But, you may be with kids who are definitely a lot of work and it can be exhausting. I know in our district, paras don't get great healthcare benefits like the teachers do. But they make a decent hourly rate for what the job is. It is a school year only role here, but there are usually plenty of summer school opportunities around if you want to work year round. 

[mama2a]

Feb 6, 2017 10:48:21 GMT -5 twinmomma said:

Feb 6, 2017 10:39:56 GMT -5 mama2a said:

Yeah I am seeing a lot of part-time for the para-professional jobs but not for teachers which doesn't surprise me. I'm not sure yet if I'd want to be a teacher and would start out as a para and just see where my interests are.

Judging by the posts here it sounds like teachers are overworked.

haha Yes! Definitely an understatement!

I worked as a paraprofessional when I was in college and really enjoyed it. It's a great way to make a difference and support kids who really need it. But, you may be with kids who are definitely a lot of work and it can be exhausting. I know in our district, paras don't get great healthcare benefits like the teachers do. But they make a decent hourly rate for what the job is. It is a school year only role here, but there are usually plenty of summer school opportunities around if you want to work year round. 

What specifically did you do as a para professional? Are you assisting the teacher in their classroom in terms of making sure kids are paying attention, help them with assignments, etc? From the way you wrote your post it sounds like the classrooms with para profesisonals are the ones with kids that are more challenging?

[twinmomma]

mama2a , It probably varies, but in my experience, paras are generally a one on one aid with a special ed student who needs extra support. Or, they're in the special ed classroom helping all the students in a more general way. But either way, I've always known it as a special education role, so it's with students who are more challenging and need extra support for one reason or another. I worked a lot with students with autism.

[sunbutter]

I am not in that field but have volunteered in public school classrooms. If you have not already, I would get into and exposed to the classroom. I've known several people who have made the leap without really knowing what they were signing up for.

[rere26]

After I retire from my current profession, I would like to go back and be an aid. I'm not sure if it is the same as a para professional. I was an aid with kids with emotional behavior disabilities in college. I loved it. I helped the kids with their work, do the bulletin board, and if there was a big issue, it was handled by the classroom teacher. I was part time also. None of the responsibility and paperwork as the lead teacher.

[greenmonkey1]

Former HS teacher who left the field and works in higher education now. Ultimately I left because I burnt out. I am a regular education teacher who taught a predominant load of regular education classes geared towards students with special needs.

Typically speaking, paraprofessionals will be found either assigned to a specific student with more challenging needs or a classroom with overarching challenging needs. Some para-professionals in my state are also LPNs and are assigned to students with physical disability needs (feeding tubes, colostomy bags, etc) that need regular monitoring. I taught many students with ASD (autism spectrum disorder), cognitive disabilities, learning disabilities, emotional/behavioral needs, and a variety of other diagnoses. My students and my aides were awesome. Ultimately, as other people have mentioned, it was the lack of administrative support that did me in.

I would 100% recommend shadowing/observing in a K-12 school to experience the daily expectations of a teacher and/or para-pro. Both are very rewarding professions, but have challenges like any job. If you want to pm me about my experience with teaching or para-pros, please feel free.

Have you looked at your local social services offices for PT positions working with families? I live near a major metro area and there are lots of non-profits and social service agencies looking for people to help with their caseload. A career counselor can help you tap into those resources.

[Deleted]

A lot of people are suggesting para pros, and I think that is great. However, I do want to mention that they don't make a lot of money. Neither do teachers, but a para pro is usually in the $11-$15 an hour range mostly depending on COL. So definitely check into the money side.

Also another suggestion is physical therapist assistant- typically make about $20 an hour and need an associates degree.

[rere26]

Feb 7, 2017 16:41:54 GMT -5 @clarypax said:

A lot of people are suggesting para pros, and I think that is great. However, I do want to mention that they don't make a lot of money. Neither do teachers, but a para pro is usually in the $11-$15 an hour range mostly depending on COL. So definitely check into the money side.

Also another suggestion is physical therapist assistant- typically make about $20 an hour and need an associates degree.

That's why I have to wait until I retire from my current career. I would go back in a heartbeat, but I can't afford it right now.

[mama2a]

Feb 7, 2017 16:41:54 GMT -5 @clarypax said:

A lot of people are suggesting para pros, and I think that is great. However, I do want to mention that they don't make a lot of money. Neither do teachers, but a para pro is usually in the $11-$15 an hour range mostly depending on COL. So definitely check into the money side.

Also another suggestion is physical therapist assistant- typically make about $20 an hour and need an associates degree.

Off to Google physical therapist assistant! The para pro special ed assistants here make about $20/hour. So yeah--that's a paycut for me and I'm not sure if our family budget can afford it since it depends on how many hours I work. The district has a program to provide tuition reimbursement if you work for the school and want to get your teaching degree simultaneously. It's a nice thought but of course I'll want to get exposed to the classroom first to see how I like it.

[Deleted]

yeah it might be $25 an hour now depending on area. My friend made $20 an hour 15 years ago in LCOL area for physical therapy assistant.  You would have to take and be good at things like anatomy class.