Insight Appreciated Regarding Leaving the Classroom in Favor of a Related Career

Hi All,

I'm a high school biology teacher with six years experience. There are days that I still love my job, but those days are becoming less frequent, mostly due to the changeup in central office administration in my district that has lead to the responsibilities of our state-tested subject teachers (like biology) being increased drastically as we are being held to increasingly unrealistic expectations (100% pass rate of ELL/ExEd/Minority students by 2021). Don't get me wrong, it's a noble goal, but the way in which our leaders have chosen to enforce/lead us to this goal and others like it has created a fearful, draining, and toxic work environment. I know six years is far less than many teachers, but it's enough to judge when something that someone is asking you to do is "wrong" (i.e. using race as a reason to send a student to tutoring despite academic performance).

It's only January, and this year has been eye opening in terms of where my district is headed. I don't like it. I could switch to teaching in the neighboring district, but I'm not sure how satisfying that would be either for other reasons. I've also been considering switching to a related career like an Assessment Coordinator, Librarian, or Instructional Technology Support, but I am not sure which way to lean. I'd love it if people who came out of the classroom into a related field could share a bit about their switch, what it took, and how they like it. I feel guilty for wanting out of the classroom, but the negativity is affecting my time and emotional well-being at home, too. I would love not to take so much of my job home with me, whether it be emotionally or even just the physical constant grading. Thank you to anyone who offers insight!

Submitted January 05, 2020 at 03:04PM by newleaf15 https://ift.tt/2QO7HK7