Though I'm high school, I can totally relate to being treated like a commodity by "upper management." The unfeeling assumption that teachers will do whatever they are asked: 60+ hours a week, sacrifice life, health, and family for the sake of their vocation, is unspoken but pervasive. The silent threat: "if you don't like it here, there are other places you can work..." or "we've decided that the kids would be better served if we moved you down to X, Y, or Z" is real and made even more so in this Covid-environment. Unfortunately I made my "deal with the devil" to just suck it up, I'm now am a 30+ year veteran at my site, but I'm tired and worn down, like a bad tooth. It's ironic that the very reason I got into teaching--the kids--is the very thing upper management uses to leverage control. It hurts my heart that when I retire, it will be with a sigh of relief rather than sigh of regret at not having another day with my kids.
Speaking as one of your former students, few things are seen as such a massive threat to those in power as refusing to “play the game” and follow the status quo. The instant I finally decided to stop walking on egg shells and bending over backwards, I was met with hostility and heaps of aggravated shaming. “It seems like you don’t really want to be here” “You just aren’t fitting in anymore” “This is what the real world is like. If you can’t take it now, get out” All of that was bullshit of course, which I learned pretty quickly after graduating. Nothing in the years since graduating and working professionally has compared to the delusional craze that was the norm at our university. Thank you for speaking out and bringing some sense of closure to the pain that continues to pour out of those memories.
A group of us students used to compare things our therapists used to say about how insanely toxic our school is. To this day we all flinch when we get notes out of habit from being torn apart in class no matter what we did. Congratulations to you for getting out of that toxic environment. We support you!
I couldn't agree with you more here...once you decide to not play the game that hostility and shaming is just like the flood gates have opened. It breaks my heart how many students have shared their experience with me over the last few years but especially over the last week since I posted this video publicity. I'm just so sorry that happened to you. If you ever need to talk or vent please feel free to reach out. Sending you all the support and thank you for commenting and sharing. I appreciate you!
I totally agree with your assessment. It is very frustrating when someone doesn't respect your opinion and is demeaning. It's such a wonderful thing to know that you have made this switch for you and no one else. As one of your student I am proud to have met you!
Absolutely! Agree with you so much here. I am proud to have worked with you too. You are such a wonderful artist and human and I am honored to have been part of your journey.
It's a small world indeed. Hope you are doing well and finding a plan that works for you so you can focus more teaching and less on all that other toxic work culture.
Thank you so much for sharing. I feel like education for many right now is not a positive environment, which makes me really sad. Too many educators are taken for granted.
I totally agree with you here. I know so many that have retired early, resigned or just left because they have been treated so poorly especially the past couple years. Let's not even get started with underpaid. It makes me so sad. We love our job but sometimes you just have to take care of yourself and do what's right for you. Sending you all positive support and hugs for this Fall!
Yes it does! and thank you so much for watching. I know we all have different lives and situations so this was just my way of sharing my experience in an effort for others to know that they aren't alone. I sure appreciate your comment and support.
Wow, Ashlee, thank you so much for sharing your story! It is so important for people to realize that this problem is becoming all too common in the 21st Century and that it's NOT ok and there are options--especially for smart, creative people with skills, like you. :) I have had a 30-year career at the same institution and it has largely been good. Nevertheless, the workload and expectations have steadily increased over the years to the point where I knew it was time for a change. Fortunately for me, retirement is an option and will happen as of May 2022. Like you, however, I have made plans for Chapter 2, which will still include the teaching and performing that remain my passions. Your life-after success story gives us all hope!
First off, thank you for all that you have done for your students throughout your career. And congrats on your soon coming retirement. How exciting that you will get to move into that next chapter of your life! Being able to teach and perform is the true dream. Most of us have to take a break from performing because that full time teaching job just takes up so much time and energy that nothing is left at the end of the day. I'm so thankful for your support and can not wait to hear all about this next chapter in your life! When do we get to see you perform?!!! 😀
I'm retiring in Dec. I waited to move on until I was vested. I've landed online teaching work at several community colleges. Everyone at my school is working on HLC accreditation. Non stop. forever. I've had enough. Can't teach and do administrative chores. Impossible. My time, health, and contentment are priority.
No worries at all, I completely understand. You can always feel free to send me an email. Wishing you all the best this year and sending you all the support!
First- Congratulations on your move and putting you first!!!! Second- Thankyou soooo much for your help. This last year was interesting with all that was going on and the switch to Canvas on my end was daunting. Had I not found your videos I am unable to even consider what would have been of my new found teaching career. You definitely are a huge blessing. Good luck with your endeavors!!!
Thank you so much for this supportive comment! and you are so welcome for all the help on Canvas! I know that switch was overwhelming but I bet you are a wiz at Canvas now. Are you still online or back face to face?
Thank you so much for sharing! I think it is so important to share our stories like these so others know the difference because it happens in every industry! Bravo!!!
Thanks for your support 💜 and you are so right it does happen in every industry. Sometimes it feels like you’re alone when you go through something like this so I’m just hoping it offers support to people who experience similar environments.
I like your plan! 💜 I think I wanted a break from teaching in higher ed full time to just re evaluate if it's the right job for me right now. I'm a couple of years out now and have been applying for positions in my field but getting a job in higher ed is tough. Especially right now.
Where to begin? I am so very grateful to find this video. I came here expecting to find a tutorial for converting Canvas Classic Quizzes to New Quizzes; I have relied on your tutorials because they are like tinctures of information: distilled, succinct, and readily digestible. I have so much to say about college work culture but need to gather my thoughts first. I have the summer to decide whether to stay or exit. Refrain: I am grateful to find this video. I would actually like to offer you a depth astrological reading if you would like that. I would say my readings are deep and layered and influenced by Carl Jung. I offer this to you whether you want to have a conversation to tell me what you think about the particulars of my teaching situation or not. You have been so helpful to me through your Canvas videos. I actually returned to teaching after a two-decade hiatus, and it has been both good and bad... a wild ride.
@@brucermarino wow you are like a jack of all trades! The great part about small schools like that though is you get the opportunity to teach multiple topics rather than just the same one or two courses over and over. I prefer that actually.
So your exit plan was to become an adjunct, teach privately, and become a TH-camr? I really wouldn't call segueing from a tenure track job, albeit a bad one, to adjuncting a "plan." You went from a salary and guaranteed number of classes, plus health insurance, and a 401k, to who knows if we'll have any classes next term, enrollments can be fussy, health insurance? Ha! A 401k? Surely you jest ... but we really do appreciate what you do for us.
Thank you for your appreciation and thank you for watching and supporting my content. I'm doing really well with my plan actually. TH-cam has allowed me to connect with people all over the world which has led to many other job opportunities that I had never imagined. I get to make my own schedule and work with new people all over the world every single day. Best of all, I get to help educators like yourself and make money doing it. Wishing you the best the Fall.
Sending you all the support if you are going through a toxic workspace situation right now.
I've pretty much reached my breaking point. I told them I'm resigning if this bullying happens one more time! I've had it! I'm not doing this anymore!
Sending you all the support.
Though I'm high school, I can totally relate to being treated like a commodity by "upper management." The unfeeling assumption that teachers will do whatever they are asked: 60+ hours a week, sacrifice life, health, and family for the sake of their vocation, is unspoken but pervasive. The silent threat: "if you don't like it here, there are other places you can work..." or "we've decided that the kids would be better served if we moved you down to X, Y, or Z" is real and made even more so in this Covid-environment. Unfortunately I made my "deal with the devil" to just suck it up, I'm now am a 30+ year veteran at my site, but I'm tired and worn down, like a bad tooth. It's ironic that the very reason I got into teaching--the kids--is the very thing upper management uses to leverage control. It hurts my heart that when I retire, it will be with a sigh of relief rather than sigh of regret at not having another day with my kids.
Speaking as one of your former students, few things are seen as such a massive threat to those in power as refusing to “play the game” and follow the status quo. The instant I finally decided to stop walking on egg shells and bending over backwards, I was met with hostility and heaps of aggravated shaming.
“It seems like you don’t really want to be here”
“You just aren’t fitting in anymore”
“This is what the real world is like. If you can’t take it now, get out”
All of that was bullshit of course, which I learned pretty quickly after graduating. Nothing in the years since graduating and working professionally has compared to the delusional craze that was the norm at our university.
Thank you for speaking out and bringing some sense of closure to the pain that continues to pour out of those memories.
A group of us students used to compare things our therapists used to say about how insanely toxic our school is. To this day we all flinch when we get notes out of habit from being torn apart in class no matter what we did. Congratulations to you for getting out of that toxic environment. We support you!
I couldn't agree with you more here...once you decide to not play the game that hostility and shaming is just like the flood gates have opened. It breaks my heart how many students have shared their experience with me over the last few years but especially over the last week since I posted this video publicity. I'm just so sorry that happened to you. If you ever need to talk or vent please feel free to reach out. Sending you all the support and thank you for commenting and sharing. I appreciate you!
I totally agree with your assessment. It is very frustrating when someone doesn't respect your opinion and is demeaning. It's such a wonderful thing to know that you have made this switch for you and no one else. As one of your student I am proud to have met you!
Absolutely! Agree with you so much here. I am proud to have worked with you too. You are such a wonderful artist and human and I am honored to have been part of your journey.
I think we worked in the same district. Thank you for sharing your story. I can relate.
It's a small world indeed. Hope you are doing well and finding a plan that works for you so you can focus more teaching and less on all that other toxic work culture.
Thank you so much for sharing. I feel like education for many right now is not a positive environment, which makes me really sad. Too many educators are taken for granted.
I totally agree with you here. I know so many that have retired early, resigned or just left because they have been treated so poorly especially the past couple years. Let's not even get started with underpaid. It makes me so sad. We love our job but sometimes you just have to take care of yourself and do what's right for you. Sending you all positive support and hugs for this Fall!
Excellent video. Thank you for sharing your experience. An exit plan makes a difference. You are a very strong person.
Yes it does! and thank you so much for watching. I know we all have different lives and situations so this was just my way of sharing my experience in an effort for others to know that they aren't alone. I sure appreciate your comment and support.
Wow, Ashlee, thank you so much for sharing your story! It is so important for people to realize that this problem is becoming all too common in the 21st Century and that it's NOT ok and there are options--especially for smart, creative people with skills, like you. :) I have had a 30-year career at the same institution and it has largely been good. Nevertheless, the workload and expectations have steadily increased over the years to the point where I knew it was time for a change. Fortunately for me, retirement is an option and will happen as of May 2022. Like you, however, I have made plans for Chapter 2, which will still include the teaching and performing that remain my passions. Your life-after success story gives us all hope!
First off, thank you for all that you have done for your students throughout your career. And congrats on your soon coming retirement. How exciting that you will get to move into that next chapter of your life! Being able to teach and perform is the true dream. Most of us have to take a break from performing because that full time teaching job just takes up so much time and energy that nothing is left at the end of the day. I'm so thankful for your support and can not wait to hear all about this next chapter in your life! When do we get to see you perform?!!! 😀
Thanks for sharing your strategy and your story
I appreciate you taking the time to watch it.
I'm retiring in Dec. I waited to move on until I was vested. I've landed online teaching work at several community colleges. Everyone at my school is working on HLC accreditation. Non stop. forever. I've had enough. Can't teach and do administrative chores. Impossible. My time, health, and contentment are priority.
Thanks again for the video, I got nervous and deleted my comment. Thanks for your reply.
No worries at all, I completely understand. You can always feel free to send me an email. Wishing you all the best this year and sending you all the support!
First- Congratulations on your move and putting you first!!!!
Second- Thankyou soooo much for your help. This last year was interesting with all that was going on and the switch to Canvas on my end was daunting. Had I not found your videos I am unable to even consider what would have been of my new found teaching career. You definitely are a huge blessing. Good luck with your endeavors!!!
Thank you so much for this supportive comment! and you are so welcome for all the help on Canvas! I know that switch was overwhelming but I bet you are a wiz at Canvas now. Are you still online or back face to face?
Thank you so much for sharing! I think it is so important to share our stories like these so others know the difference because it happens in every industry! Bravo!!!
Thanks for your support 💜 and you are so right it does happen in every industry. Sometimes it feels like you’re alone when you go through something like this so I’m just hoping it offers support to people who experience similar environments.
❤️ Props to you to being able to make an exit plan. I just interviewed until I got a job somewhere else and gave my two week notice.
I like your plan! 💜 I think I wanted a break from teaching in higher ed full time to just re evaluate if it's the right job for me right now. I'm a couple of years out now and have been applying for positions in my field but getting a job in higher ed is tough. Especially right now.
Where to begin? I am so very grateful to find this video. I came here expecting to find a tutorial for converting Canvas Classic Quizzes to New Quizzes; I have relied on your tutorials because they are like tinctures of information: distilled, succinct, and readily digestible. I have so much to say about college work culture but need to gather my thoughts first. I have the summer to decide whether to stay or exit. Refrain: I am grateful to find this video. I would actually like to offer you a depth astrological reading if you would like that. I would say my readings are deep and layered and influenced by Carl Jung. I offer this to you whether you want to have a conversation to tell me what you think about the particulars of my teaching situation or not. You have been so helpful to me through your Canvas videos. I actually returned to teaching after a two-decade hiatus, and it has been both good and bad... a wild ride.
Well done from a new Canvas user!
Thank you! and welcome to Canvas 🤓 What do you teach?
@@VirtualTeachingPro Philosophy and theology and a bunch of other courses (art history, audio design...) as is the way in smaller schools :)
@@brucermarino wow you are like a jack of all trades! The great part about small schools like that though is you get the opportunity to teach multiple topics rather than just the same one or two courses over and over. I prefer that actually.
Run...
Yep, no longer there :)
So your exit plan was to become an adjunct, teach privately, and become a TH-camr? I really wouldn't call segueing from a tenure track job, albeit a bad one, to adjuncting a "plan." You went from a salary and guaranteed number of classes, plus health insurance, and a 401k, to who knows if we'll have any classes next term, enrollments can be fussy, health insurance? Ha! A 401k? Surely you jest ... but we really do appreciate what you do for us.
Thank you for your appreciation and thank you for watching and supporting my content. I'm doing really well with my plan actually. TH-cam has allowed me to connect with people all over the world which has led to many other job opportunities that I had never imagined. I get to make my own schedule and work with new people all over the world every single day. Best of all, I get to help educators like yourself and make money doing it. Wishing you the best the Fall.