White teachers fleeing black schools

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Originally posted by RedefinedDiva
I have had my fill of teaching. I LOVE teaching, but it stressing me at an early age. The bottom line is the kids today are NOWHERE near like we were in our day. I am a youngster (23 years old) and it has only been 10 years since I have been in elementary school. Why is it that some of the kids that I went to elem. school with now have their own kids at that school? Kids today are careless, undedicated, and have NO interest in learning.

For example, today one of my students told me that there is no use in me even trying to teach her math because she doesn't see the point and she will never learn it. I told her that she should not DARE say something like that because if she doesn't learn, then I'm not really a teacher. She rebutted by saying that I should not think like that because I am a great teacher, but SHE has decided that she doen't want to learn. Does that make sense? I have tried everything to get these kids interested in their eduactions and futures. They are so used to doing nothing in their days before being admitted into the program that for me to work their brains is overload. Some try, most reject the work.

I get SO frustrated that I want to cry, but I refuse to let them see me break down. I lecture and give speeches to the point that I almost come to tears some days because I am SO dedicated to education and learning. Life is so hard already. These kids come from some of the WORST backgrounds ever. I know that a good eduaction is what it will take to get them out of the horrible situations that they come from. Now, they are thrown into these programs and by now, they are conditions to not want or expect anything out of life. With me being SO goal-oriented, it kills me to see kids so dejected about their own lives.

Most people would just give up on them, and sometimes, I just say forget it. I give them tons of busy work and do my own thing. But I can't turn my back on them. I am trying not to, but we (teachers) get NO support. When kids fail test, it our fault. When kids don't pass classes, it's our fault. When kids can't read, it's our fault. Teachers carry everyone's burden, but we can't get a break. People wouldn't believe how many teachers live paycheck to paycheck. Some teachers have to work a second job after dealing with the madness at school all day. Money from the government is spent on highways, cruise ships, bombs, and all other things, but teachers get nothing.

And people wonder why there are extreme techer shortages....

RefinedDiva you should be commended. I've worked with teachers whose students don't phase them one way or the other. As long as they are getting paid they are fine, and they aren't afraid to say that to the children. I worked with 3rd graders all summer and it was a great experience. I could tell that a lot of them came from problem homes or from parents who didn't care about education, but it seemed like most of my students had their own mind. They weren't babies like 2nd graders and they didn't have "issues & attitudes" like 4th graders. The experience made me consider teaching as a career. I've heard so many horror stories and tales about teachers who feel more drained than they do rewarded, I sometimes question if I have a future in this line of work. I'd like to hear others experiences though, the positive and the negative. From my experience I don't agree with the segregation. I've had great white teachers as well as black. One of my best African American History teachers was a white man, at a predominately white school. I wouldn't know my own history if not for him. On the flip side, I've had scared black teachers. Black teachers who don't care if we learn and would rather have us copy definitions from the dictionary because she doesn't want to teach (PMS). On the flip side, the only ineffective white teachers I've ever had was in highschool, an extremely mixed school. Those were the ones who didn't care. Not all, but a lot.