Okay, friends, I am going to get a little personal with this blog post. I’ve been pondering on what I should write about for, well the past semester, and Ben stole my idea. I’ve been reading the blog posts by everyone else and they are all great but I wanted to take another approach. For those of you who do not know me very well, I had two options to take this year- either move to Vancouver for pharmacy school (UBC) or stay in Victoria and be well on my way to becoming a teacher. It was a very tough decision on my end. I had three options- UBC, UVic, or work at Thrifty’s for the rest of my life (realistically speaking, what was I thinking while getting a biology degree??).
I really struggled after being accepted to both. I was always making pro’s and con’s about each profession and noticed that the biggest pro on my pharmacy list was the money. The biggest con- I had been job shadowing for two years and had started hating the actual job. It was actually during a trip to visit my aunt in Calgary when she asked me, “If every job paid the same… not just jobs that you actually make money, even the ones that you don’t, like a stay-at-home parent…what would you want to do?” It was at this moment when I looked at her and without any hesitation said, “Teacher.” There I had it- no matter what financial benefits a job provides, it should be something one is truly passionate about. So, after that trip, I came home, sent a letter giving up my seat, and started to enjoy my summer!
However, now that I am in the program and have more knowledge in the area, it is evident that we are in the midst of negotiations and there doesn’t seem to be enough money to go around. It got me wondering; if teaching paid a lower wage than it currently does (approx $200/day for a TOC, I believe), would I still be a teacher? I would like to say I would, especially if there was more money going into the classroom and benefiting the students. How do you guys feel? Are you on the same boat as me?Any thoughts? Time to reflect, friends!
My inspiration for this blog post came from this article that was in the Vancouver Sun today, just an update on what's going on...
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/teachers+employers+still+closer+agreement/5756101/story.html
Taking away time from my blog reflection but....
ReplyDeleteI have always, since the age of young been told by my father that you need education to get anywhere in life. Without it, you are useless. I have learned this term that he was wrong, but he was not trying to be right, rather instil a sense of betterment in my life more than working at a movie theatre.
In early 2005 I was actually rejected from the Theatre program, and two months later, while I was in the midst of picking out courses to take in the fall for a potential Bio / Anthro degree, I received a call stating that there was a seat available in the Theatre program due to a drop out. I knew the cost difference in jobs after the end of the program - I mean, if you are not the best of the best, what do you do with a Theatre degree vs the multiple options of a science degree?
I still decided on taking that place. I said to hell with financial security, I want to do what I enjoy. And please do not get me wrong, I am not trying to say that teaching is a last resort for some degrees, if anything I am positive I could do other things with my Theatre degree, but I remember being five years old and being asked what I wanted to be when I grew up. Without hesitation I said "teacher!" so this has been in the works for years with me. This is what I WANT to do.
With all that back story, I have been in shitty, high paying salary jobs, and fun, low paying shifts jobs, and what I have come to realize in my own situations and those I have seen with my father, it is not the money that is important. It is enjoying what you are doing. What good is it to be paid 100 000 a year, but dread getting out of bed in the morning? Where is the enjoyment of everyday life in that context? I would much rather make 30 000 a year and love going to work. Love interacting with others. Love my life.
To make it personal, my partner has seen me in a job I loved, and a job I hated, and the arguments we had over trivial stuff because I was unhappy in my job was monumental. It has made us stronger, but I assure you, if it were to happen again, either I would have to change jobs or find a new partner.
With teaching I know it is a desire I am more than excited to do full time. I am volunteering right now as a side teacher just so that I can be immersed in it while learning it, and it has gotten me through some stressful times this term. I have been able to use my Wednesday’s teaching as an outlet. I take my stress and turn it into energy so that the students are engaged with what I am talking about, and the activities we are doing.
Money is certainly not everything to me.
Thanks for sharing TJ! I had no idea you had that choice to make, kudos to you- it must have been a tough decision. Sometimes I get so discourged with this profession. I am constantly being told that it is impossible to get a teaching job, and just as impossible to get on the TOC list. It has taken some teachers 5 years to get a job! 5 years! Thats crazy! I haven't spend 8 years in school only to wait another 5 years to get a full time job. But sadly, that is the reality for those of us not willing to move back to Telkwa to get a job. However, I have known, since high school how difficult it is to get a job, and yet, here I am. While it would be great to be financially secure (and that seems like an impossibility at this point), I will take the risk to do something that I enjoy as a career.
ReplyDeleteI also came about deciding to go into the teaching program after a little soul ‘surfing’ and taking time to see what is out there in the world. After being disgruntled with the purely academic approach of an undergrad engineering degree, I switched 180 degrees and started from scratch to do my own private vocational route in the mining world. 5 short years later, I was running projects overseas and had very generous job offers that would have leap-started a very prosperous life-long career. Like Tajinder, I walked. Away from the money, very true, but most importantly away from the principles and lifestyle that type of career path is associated with.
ReplyDeleteWhat is it in life makes you happy? This is different for all of us but most importantly I think we all can relate to these last two points. For some of us this has been found after some life experience, for others this has always been a belief they have held. What I am trying to point out here is that we are not in it for the money. But I am sure that throughout your career, if you truly demonstrate a passion for this career, it will show in your work and your livelihood will be secure for a career in Education. Sure the money may not be what you feel you deserve for your efforts, but because education is a fundamental cornerstone of the success of our country’s life quality, you can be ensured that you will be taken care of.
That being said you may have to get out of your comfort zone and confortable habits and be prepared to adapt to future reform of the system, however progressive that may be.
Good point! It makes me wonder about the stability of the teachers’ pension funds too. Will the government target this next as way to deal with the economic crisis. Personally, teaching is something I enjoy. I enjoy working with kids and seeing them succeed. I find it rewarding when I see a student finally understands a concept. It’s like Eureka! and it finally clicks in there brain. But what baffles my mind is that the teachers strike has been going on since March of this year and they two parties have met 55 times in the span of 9 months to negotiate. This shows how much priority is been given to this issue. Another article was mentioning that the government does not want to intervene (this was a comment from Education Minister George Abbott). He said he has no plans to get involved and want the both sides to continue bargaining. This situation is really like a dog chasing its tail. I won’t be surprised if in March 2012, both parties still haven’t come to an agreement. Back to your question, would I still teach. My answer would be yes because I’ve enjoyed teaching in the past both at university and private schools. But I feel like it’s going to take a lot of work and time before we see any kind of change really.
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