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mpchebe t1_ix7rvsa wrote

What other districts are you considering? If they offer a benefit in how close they are to your home, you should probably go there instead.

I teach at a magnet school and was Teacher of The Year in my school last year. This district can be great, if you get the right supervisor and Principal, but that is very rare. Most admins are absolutely ridiculous with their mandates (most are simply parroting demands from downtown admins), and I would say 80-90% of my colleagues throughout the District are experiencing extreme burnout. Burnout happens due to the never-ending list of new and ongoing asks from administration, and the nearly complete lack of autonomy brought about due to the punitive framework for evaluation and how it is used as a cudgel in the District. If you like to work for free after school, Newark can offer you that experience in unlimited quantity. If you want to get paid for your work beyond the school day, you should probably be ready for a fight.

When contract negotiations finish up in a year or so, then maybe Newark will move in a good direction. Until then, and likely even after that, most other nearby districts would be a much better experience despite the lower salaries.

Edit: If you want to know about a specific school, let me know.

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Satanic_Doge t1_ix7stvl wrote

> Most admins are absolutely ridiculous with their mandates (most are simply parroting demands from downtown admins), and I would say 80-90% of my colleagues throughout the District are experiencing extreme burnout. Burnout happens due to the never-ending list of new and ongoing asks from administration, and the nearly complete lack of autonomy brought about due to the punitive framework for evaluation and how it is used as a cudgel in the District.

Oh so it's not just us?

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mpchebe t1_ix7t823 wrote

About 8-10 years ago, NPS decided to try to copy the corporate-style admin process and expectations from Uncommon Schools and Teach For America. Things have been even worse since then. That was made possible by then-Superintendent Cami Anderson, herself a heavy advocate for charters, TFA, and privatization.

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Satanic_Doge t1_ix7tk51 wrote

Oh yeah I'm in one of these schools. It's fucking awful, and the school I'm in very well may not exist next year if everyone keeps quitting at the rate that they are. We've lost at least 4 teachers and 2 office staff since August, and I expect more to quit before winter break. We're on our 5th art teacher so far this year alone.

We also exploit Americorps Fellows like no other.

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VroomRutabaga t1_ix7wjjv wrote

Don’t go to Great Oaks, they lost 4 teachers within 4 months and they filter out students. I’ve witnessed multiple times the principal pressure parents that their kid can be in mainstream with “supports” without proper SPED class like what their IEP says bc they didn’t have a SPED teacher.

Also don’t go to Lafayette street School, it’s corrupt starting with the principal and their vice principals. They don’t follow through their 504 and took funding away from a reading specialist. There were multiple 6th-8th graders that cannot read on their grade level. Multiple teachers have sounded the alarm but they are often threatened with bad performance evaluations. It’s really sad.

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goldfinch1313 OP t1_ix8ahsm wrote

Thank you for your response! I’m actually open to moving depending on which job I take. I have six real districts now: Hopewell Valley, Highland Park, Montgomery, Southern Regional, Newark, and Lacey Township.

So I’m all over the place. It sounds like a lot of what Newark is dealing with in regards to admin demands eating into time is happening in a lot of places. My student teaching district is having this issue. I appreciate the advice! It is definitely something to keep in mind!

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LordStirling83 t1_ix8kmn1 wrote

Those are some nice sounding districts, everything from well-off rural to solid middle class to urban poor. I think it's great that you want to teach to a disadvantages population...but I would definitely have to think it over given your other offers.

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Satanic_Doge t1_ix8uylb wrote

Which teacher school are you in? I saw you were doing social studies and special ed?

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ryanov t1_ixxjvy4 wrote

I'm not a teacher, but I'm a member of AFT and have a lot of teacher friends that I talk to about teaching... what you're saying really sounds like just... teaching, at least in the US. I hear it about all sorts of districts (I don't actually even know anyone who teaches here; it's pretty much all suburbs).

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mpchebe t1_ixyllod wrote

That you think it's normal is exactly the problem. Teaching in Newark is not normal; rather, it's becoming normal. That's why there are 3-10 posts a day in r/teaching about the entire profession coming down. If you were a teacher in Newark, you would know how fast burnout sets in and how few newer teachers initially recognize the symptoms. Obviously, respect for teachers is at an all time high with non teachers telling us all about our job...

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ryanov t1_iyey6ud wrote

I don't think you understood the intent of my comment. I'm not telling you that that's how teaching should be, or that it's OK. I'm just saying what you're saying that is wrong with teaching in Newark sounds like teaching in a widespread way in the US, not just in Newark. I have no doubt that it's even harder in Newark, but I've heard same complaints from people all over the place.

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