The first post (and the first day of the rest of my life)

Today I did not wake up to an alarm going off.  I did not need caffeine, I did not sleepily stumble to the bathroom, and I did not try to finish work left over from the night before.  Instead, I made myself two eggs on some English muffins and spent some time playing with my dogs.  This is my first morning of freedom.

Until yesterday, I was an employee of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS for short).  I worked at a local high school teaching Biology, Human Anatomy and Physiology, and AP Environmental Science.  I was at that high school for two years (1 semester as a student teacher, 3 as a "real" teacher).  There were parts of my job that I loved, but there were more parts that I hated.

Here is a list of some of the things I hated:

• Waking up at 4:00 AM each day
• Arriving at work at 6:30 AM each day
• Leaving work at 5:00-6:00 PM each day
• Only getting paid for the hours of 6:45 AM - 2:10 PM
• Being forced to give up my planning period on a regular basis to cover another class (almost never a science class) because the teacher had either quit and left in the middle of the year or was too lazy to get a substitute (I'm looking at you, English department)
• Working on some Saturdays for the Extended Day program (not optional)
• Paying for most of my supplies out-of-pocket
• Having to teach to the test (Biology EOC)
• Not having enough time for fun labs that could spark a love of science because I am too busy teaching to the test
• Not receiving any training for the AP course I was teaching until a month into the school year
• Snarky remarks from other teachers (non-science, of course) about how lucky I am as a first-year teacher to have an AP course (I got it because NO ONE in the science department wanted it)
• Rude or mean students
• Inconsistent enforcement of the rules (the students know exactly which administrator to go to for little to no consequences)
• Being made to feel like I am a bad teacher for writing a referral (I only had to write 2 all year)
• Parents who think their child should just be given a good grade for showing up
• Parents who think their child should pass my class after missing over a month of school with no valid reason and no attempt to make up the missed time
• Parents who don't care at all ("He's your problem when he's at school." <-- actual quote)
• Still being held accountable for the EOC scores of students who miss the entire semester because they were in prison/having a baby/ran away from home and decide to show up for the last 3 days of the semester (because even if I haven't actually taught the student, they are an accurate reflection of my teaching)
• Teaching "common core standards" to students who can barely read or write
• Grading English papers that supposedly were seen by an English teacher that don't have a single comma, period, or paragraph indentation
• Being told not to grade these English papers (for the student's senior project, by the way) on grammar, spelling, or sentence structure
• Having students fail those papers anyway, despite the EXTREMELY lenient grading
• A guidance department that is completely inept
• School boards and governments that are so far removed from what I deal with each day giving me more and more tasks that serve absolutely no purpose
• The lack of money

Here is a list of some of the things I loved:

• The teachers I got to work with each day (the Biology PLC was the BEST)
• Summer vacation and holidays off
• Grossing my students out with YouTube videos of bodily functions
• Discussing and debating bioethics and biotechnology with my students
• The look on a student's face when they finally understand a concept
• The look on a student's face when they dissect a fetal pig for the first time (a great combination of disgust and awe)
• Listening to students talk to each other during group work (and sometimes jumping into the conversation)
• Being told I am the coolest teacher ever because I play video games/watch Doctor Who/know first aid/like Duke over UNC
• The shocked look on a student's face when they realize I know what "adult" topic they are talking about using slang
• How impressed my students get with how long my hair is (and the fact that it isn't weave)
• Being told that I am someone's favorite teacher
• Being told that I am the reason someone is majoring in Biology or some medical related field
• Feeling like a rock star when I am seen outside of class
• Students who come back to see me after they have graduated and tell me how my class totally helps them in college
• Students who cried when I announced that I would not be returning next year
• Students who said that they had already signed up for another one of my classes and were upset they wouldn't get to have me again
• Knowing that I actually made a difference in so many lives (hopefully a good difference)

Looking at these lists makes me incredibly sad.  I am an awesome teacher.  Yes, I am still learning the ropes and figuring out classroom management, but I know my content, I am passionate about learning, and I love my students.  I had a lot of good experiences at my school.  I love teaching.  The sad reality is that I (and teachers like me) have been driven away by a variety of factors.  Most of these factors could be easily fixed, and I feel that if just half of them were removed, I would be staying.

My parents are teachers.  The most influential people in my life were teachers.  I don't mind the small paycheck, as long as I get enough to live off of.  I don't mind people thinking my job is easy or trivial, as long as I don't get treated like crap.  I don't even mind having large classes, as long as I get support when I need it and enough materials to teach them.  

In the end, I looked ahead and asked myself, "Can I do this for another 30 years?"  The answer was "No."  Why should I waste any more of my life at this job if it is not what I truly want to do?  The only logical conclusion was to quit.  Which brings me to this morning... my first morning of freedom.  What comes next?  My husband and I will probably try to start a family.  I might go finish up my masters.  And someday, I might return to teaching.  It will not be in a public school in North Carolina.  I might teach again in another state, or at a private school, or a community college, etc.  I have been used and abused by this state, and I will not be returning to teaching in a public school here until there are some drastic changes.

Well, that's the first blog post.  Hopefully, more will come.