When What You Do Seems Like it Doesn't Matter

I have been an educator for six years. I started in 2016 as an 8th grade math teacher in Fort Lauderdale, FL. I loved my first year as a teacher. I mean really loved it! I was at a school where a huge population of the students were black or Haitian. I really clicked with the Haitians because I was born in Haiti. I got to speak the language with them and build relationship. I had it in my head that I can do this for the rest of my life. Fast forward to 2020 and everything changed. I moved to Charlotte, NC and I am at a school that I wanted to quit so badly. Then the pandemic hit like nothing before and for the first time I contemplated "is being a teacher the right career choice for me?" I remember when we had to go virtual and I thought to myself "it shouldn't be that hard". Boy was I wrong! The lack of accountability from students and parents made it hard to do my job. So many days I wanted to quit because not only was teaching online hard, but I got to witness others bad mouthing teachers because we were able to work from home. I guess what people did not see or understand was the trial teaching online was. Let me share some with you:

1. Attendance was low: This part was hard because there would be days where only five students showed up of a roster of 26. Although we marked the students absent, there was no accountability for them to show up. I had a student who never showed up once to online class, and they received a certificate of completion. I mean what?! I shook my head and kept it going. Additionally, we were required to call parents that never answered their phone or call back. We had to keep a log of when we called and if we made contact. I was so frustrated because part of me was like "if the parents and students don't care, why am I stressing?"

2. No work turned in: I thought I would rip my hair out because trying to get students to turn in their work during the pandemic was like trying to get a lazy person to go to the gym. It just wasn't happening. I would reach out to parents, but that didn't work. What made it worse was that when putting in grades we couldn't "fail" them. I believe the students got wind we couldn't fail them, therefore they never came to class nor did they do their work.

3. Hurtful words: During the pandemic the county would have board meetings and as I watched the meetings I would also glance at the comments from people and I was thrown off a lot by what people were saying. "Why teachers complaining, they get to work from home." "Teachers are just lazy. They are not even teaching." It was just comments after comments about how much teachers need to stop complaining because we got it so good.

4. Lack of respect: If there is a career that doesn't much respect it is education, especially teachers. From students cursing teachers out to parents blaming their child's failure on teachers, to administrations piling on work after work; it was hard. I think I ended the day with a headache each time. Being in front of the computer dealing with students who didn't or wouldn't engage was difficult. The biggest disrespect is how much teachers have to beg for increase pay. I currently live in North Carolina which I think is a rich state with the amount of taxes they lay on us. However, it took them two years to give teachers a 2.5% raise. When I did the math it was only a $70 increase. Again all I could do is shake my head.

I am at a crossroad because more and more as time goes by I realize I don't want to be in the classroom anymore. The education system is in a turmoil. Teachers are quitting, students are becoming more and more disengaged, and it feels like there is no real direction in which education is going. Sometimes I wonder what is the Secretary of Education doing because we are struggling. I am looking for the day where being a teacher becomes a career that people will begin to respect again.

Be Blessed.