Why I Will Never Go Back to Education

We all know someone who loves and works in education right? You look at them and think about the time off and still getting paid. The spring break week and not missing a bit of money during that time off. Also, the summer months are off, and spending time with family. It all sounds wonderful until you are no longer on the outside looking in. This is a little or a lot about why I will choose to never go back into education.

I live in a district that's very large compared to the one I grew up in. We are ranked in the state of Texas as one of the largest districts in the state. We were also ranked on the Forbes list as a top employer. But how did we get here? I'm not sure how many schools we have in total but I know that I pass at least 5 on my way to a local grocery store. We moved to this area a little over a year ago because my husband was offered a job in the surrounding area. I was tired of being a stay-at-home mom, so I decided to get into working with the little kids again. The ones that you can shape and mold for when they are no longer in elementary school. I don't have any certifications that would have it where I qualified for anything other than being a Paraprofessional, which was perfectly fine. I wanted something that kept me out of the house and off of Amazon all day long.

The district decided to bring staff back at the start of August and the kids would be back around mid-August. The entire almost 2 weeks of staff development days should have been filled with more than just classroom decorating. However, that's all we did. I was elbow-deep in lamination and cutting out more things than I can remember. Meanwhile, the lead teacher in the room was spending time setting up quick meetings with the parents before the year started. Most of the kids were returning students from last year, so they were aware of what behaviors to expect. Did I mention this was a special education class called Life Skills? Mainly the students are ones diagnosed with autism, Intellectual disabilities, and more. No big deal because I have a kid that has a 504 plan/IEP to make it through daily classes. He's in GenEd but he does have support in every class.

I often asked about the returning students to allow myself a heads up on what to expect but I was often told things like "Oh they are so stinkin' cute" or "Oh that one is a sassy one." Those things tell me nothing about the child coming in. So when the students returned within the following weeks, it was a little insane on what we were expected to do. It was 3 adults to about 15 kids in the room at one time. We were outnumbered, to say the least. The pay didn't match up to the level of work we would be required to do. Let's just say it was slightly over minimum wage but I also understood why the others with the same job as myself worked a second job.

Day 1: The kids started coming in around 7:30 that morning. I greeted as many as I could before the chaos started. One student is AU and Nonverbal but screaming when she wanted to communicate was all she knew. Then we had another cluster of kids. All verbal and all busybodies. It was like the little munchkins were allergic to the words sit down, please. As the time went on that morning, we ended up having to start with around 13 kids at one time. A few had never been in any type of school setting or even therapy for that matter so they were attached to who they felt safe with, which just so happened to be me. I sat quietly with about 3 kids. 2 on my lap and one on the bench next to me and tried to ease their fears the best I knew how. The teacher was very strict on sticking to a schedule but those babies just needed to feel safe in a classroom of strangers for a few moments before you tried to make them do projects and put the bags in the lockers outside. My heart was falling apart because it felt rushed and it was only day one.

We worked to keep the tiny humans in one place while attempting to stick to this insane schedule. At the end of day one, I sat back at my desk before picking up all of the toys and wondered if I was being punked. It can't be this bad every day. I took a deep breath and said it was only day one. Tomorrow will be better. Tried to remain positive at that moment. I finished up my duties for the day and headed to my car to drive home. The next day had to be better.

Day 2: It started worse than day one. The lead teacher was busy getting her kids off to classes instead of being in her room to help get our students in. The other aide in the room was seasoned so she would walk off to get her ice water in 2 Stanley cups while leaving me in the room with no help with getting the others in and settled down. After about 2 hours of getting everyone to relax, the lead teacher invited the admins in to see how well our little pod was doing. She then proceeded to take credit for it being all of her work and dedication. Meanwhile, my edges were gone and I was 2 minutes from taking off my wig and lashes. It was wild I promise. At that moment, I knew that it was going to be an issue within the team effort in the room.

Day 3: I took the day off. I needed them to see what it was like when one person wasn't there. We have a group chat where we reach out to other people in Special Education for help with transitions or help with even diaper changes. On that day, I saw 23 requests for help. 23. Not including the ones who stopped someone in the hallway to ask for assistance. I thought at that moment that maybe that would allow them a moment to reflect and maybe appreciate the work of one para. However, that's what I get for thinking. To slightly recap how I reached out and called off on that 3rd day. I messaged the group and let them know that I wouldn't be in. This was in the group chat. I reached out to the principal and requested my sub for the day. The other seasoned para in the room thought that she could make a rude comment about me calling out but she failed to just simply send her thoughts and regards to a different chat. Instead, she said how she felt or thought in the group chat. If you are going to take the time to talk trash, at least be somewhat professional about it right?

I mentioned to several other para employees that if the district wants to retain employees and not have them leave before the winter break, they have to increase the pay. It's not enough for what we do. Teachers are making 60k a year if not more with incentives and bonuses. Meanwhile, we are making 18k a year but doing more work than the teacher ever does. On that 4th day, I quit. I emailed the district with my reason behind me leaving and let them know that I will also not return as a sub in the district.