Buried Alive...

In the snow, that is.

Here in lovely Ohio we have had close to a foot of snow...with more on the way. Roads are terrible, schools have been closed since Tuesday morning (leaving me with no subbing jobs...and I had two this week!), and the trees and power lines are coated in thick ice.

Yay, Winter.

Actually, if you could not already tell, I am not a very big fan of the snow and cold. Which is why I have been seriously considering moving south to teach. One of my good friends is in Charlotte and she loves the area. I have never really been there other than passing through, but from what I can tell it looks fabulous. And I have determined that I need to relocate to a city because living in a rural community is starting to get a little old. Not that I don't love the town where I grew up (and am currently living in), but I just hate that in order to have decent access to anything, I have to drive for at least half an hour. I suppose I am just in need of a change.

Unfortunately, like millions of other Americans right now, boyfriend got laid off from his job. It is so strange to me though, because he works in the technology industry, so I thought his job was more secure. Apparently these days anyone is at risk.

However, boyfriend is toying with the idea that we should move south as well. More job opportunities for both of us.

Ah, we'll see.

Also...I wanted to apologize for my blog being so morose lately. Things have been a little depressing around here...and that has been conveyed in my writing...but I promise that some fun, upbeat posts are just around the corner! *hopefully*

Have a Wonderful Friday!! :)

The Verdict Is In...

Well, I suppose I should let you know what happened since my last post. I went to both job interviews...both went pretty well. On Friday afternoon, I got a call from the job at home (The one closer to where I am living now...the one I wanted more) and they wanted to offer me a job being the lead teacher of a 4-5 preschool classroom. I was so excited. The thought of having my own classroom already was like a dream come true...and then that dream came crashing down when the lady said, "We would be willing to pay you $7.80."

What? Seven dollars and eighty cents?

With a knot in my stomach, I accepted the position.

Three hours later I called back to ask if that $7.80 might include any benefits. Nope. None.

I apologized profusely for the change of heart and told her I could not take the job.

I mean, I just paid thousands and thousands of dollars to become a professional. An educated individual who does not have to work for minimum wage...or even for only fifty cents above it for that matter. I just thought having that diploma in my hand would, and should, qualify me for at least a little more. I mean, I would have to turn in lesson plans on a weekly basis. I would have to attend many after-hours trainings and conferences. While I still feel terrible for not taking the job (because I REALLY wanted it), I almost feel kind of proud for not selling myself so short...literally.

The other job also wanted me to come back for a second interview...but after thinking it over more, I just cannot pass up living for free right now. So, I called the director of that center back (who wanted to pay me $11.00 an hour) and told her I would not be relocating at this time.

So, unfortunately, I am back to square one. I have accepted multiple substitute teaching opportunities for the month of February...even though subbing is my last resort. For now, I will have to just suck it up and go through with it and see if it is really as terrifying as I am imagining.



Let's hope not.

What To Do...

As of today I have two interviews this week...one scheduled for tomorrow and one on Friday. I am glad to have finally heard back from the places where I applied, but now I just feel so torn.

As I mentioned in a previous post, one of these prospects is located about 45 miles from where I am living now with my parents. It is located in a very urban area. If, after the interview, I am offered the position, I would have to move up there and start paying rent. Luckily, my BFF has an open room in her apartment. Rent would be $260 a month plus utilities...plus groceries...plus entertainment money because all of my friends live in the area and I would be spending a lot more time with them.

OR

The other interview will be for a position very close to my parents' house in a much more rural area...where I pay no rent and get free food...in exchange for seeing my friends on an occasional basis.

I suppose I should not feel so torn, because I have not actually been offered either of these jobs yet. I simply have interviews. I guess it is just worrying me to make this decision.

Apparently I need to make a good old-fashioned pro/con list.

I guess it doesn't really matter that much, though, since I plan on findng a job in a public school by the next school year.

I will let you know how the interviews go...and hopefully I'll have something more interesting to post about next time! :)

At Least There's No Bad News...

The most exciting news first:
Today I got a call from the school where I student taught to sub in a few weeks for my kindergartners!!! I am beyond excited! I cannot wait to see their little faces again! I miss them! I will also be subbing in another Kindergarten class later that week as well. Employment, Hooray!

Also, sometime this week rockerbro (my 18-year old brother who is very into music) is going to pick up my diploma for me (since the University is about an hour away and he is there)...and then hunterbro (my 20-year old brother who is very into hunting) is going to bring it home this weekend. Yay!

And in more exciting news:
I was happy to see Barack Obama inaugurated as the 44th president today. I like him. He has brought such a sense of hope to our nation. I just hope that he lives up to all of his promises, and that things actually do start to get a little better. Especially in the world of education. I hope that he and Arne Duncan are ready to come up with something to really help children learn...especially those who are underprivileged. I am interested to see what comes of this and how it will effect my career.


I like this picture. For some reason it reminds me of something you would have seen on a Nickelodeon or MTV news special in the 90's. Especially the way they are all sitting. You know. Just the prez and his dudes rappin' with some kids in an inner-city school. (picture taken from a site called daylife.com through google images)

Some good news:
Have you ever been to The Apple? It is a site that I tend to visit on a daily basis. They have all kinds of stuff for teachers...news stories, job info, quizzes...all kinds of interesting stuff.

And in mediocre news:
I have not heard anything from the preschool position I sent my resume for. I am still hopeful, since I only applied less than a week ago. I guess I was just hoping to hear back right away. At least, for now, I have to substitute jobs lined up.

Ah, the life of the unemployed.

A Potential Preschool Teacher in an After-College Crisis

In the midst of all this substitute-teaching anticipation, I have been constantly searching the Internet for job prospects. To my surprise, there are quite a few places in my area in need of people with degrees in ECE to teach preschool. So, since I have a desperate need to be in the classroom, I have applied for a few. One of which would require me to relocate to my best friend's apartment (where one room has conveniently just opened up) about 45 miles from where I live now. The only downside to that would be that I'd have to start paying rent...which I do not do now (thanks mom & dad!) However, I would be living with my BFF, so maybe I should just go for it.

Speaking of paying rent, for Christmas my grandmother (who is one of my favorite people ever) got me this book:


It's a guide to how to deal with life after college. I picked it up to begin reading it last night and I am still astonished by how right-on it is with my life right now. I am really going through my after-college crisis right now. It feels good to know that most people feel this way after college. Beore picking this book up, I seriously thought I was the only one! I am not too far into the book yet, but so far it seems very helpful. Who would have thought that something my grandma randomly (it was probably just on a display somewhere) picked up at Borders could actually be relevant and useful???

I'm On "The List"

I ventured out into the snow and cold today to visit the ESC and get everything for substitute teaching lined up. I had planned to be there for awhile, filling out paperwork and whatnot. To my surprise, however, I was not even there for 5 minutes. I walked in, told the lady I had just graduated, handed her all my background checks and letter of completion...she had me fill out a very brief form, basically just to attain my name and phone number and for me to select which districts I would sub in...and then told me she would add me to "the list".

That's It?

That's it.

I thought that since my license won't actually be valid until July 1 that I would have to get a sub license until then or something...I don't know. It just seemed too easy.

I hope this is all right...and that I can start soon...
If you teach in Ohio and know anything about this...let me know!!

It's Official...

I have finally recieved my letter of completion from the University...so now I can start subbing! I actually got a few calls last week from the school where I student taught, wanting me to sub but unfortunately since I don't have my license yet and at that time had no proof that I had actually graduated, I had to turn the offers down. But since that lovely little (I'm not kidding, it is incredibly brief) letter came this weekend, I am heading straight to the county's ESC tomorrow to get started on all the paperwork.

Yay.

NO Child Left Behind? Are You Sure?

This may be a little controversial, but...

In a final policy speech by President George W. Bush, he addressed the nation's education policies and urged his "firm" belief in the NCLB act. When I heard about this, I found myself outraged that he could honestly stand in front of a crowd of people and say that this plan was working.
OK, OK...maybe some test scores have improved. Great. I am all for anything that will truly help improve education. Do those test scores really reflect our students' actual learning though? Or are they just able to retain the information needed to pass a test?

"Bush also defended the controversial testing standards included in the program, saying:

'The key to measuring is to test. And by the way, I've heard every excuse in the book why we should not test -- oh, there's too many tests; you teach the test; testing is intrusive; testing is not the role of government. How can you possibly determine whether a child can read at grade level if you don't test? And for those who claim we're teaching the test, uh-uh. We're teaching a child to read so he or she can pass the test.'"

...what?? I can't even comment on that.

"The president also hailed No Child Left Behind's school choice options:

'By the way, school choice was only open to rich people up until No Child Left Behind. It's hard for a lot of parents to be able to afford to go to any other kind of school but their neighborhood school. Now, under this system, if your public school is failing, you'll have the option of transferring to another public school or charter school. And it's -- I view that as liberation. I view that as empowerment.'"

I view that as ridiculous.
Aren't these schools failing because they do not have the funding to retain quality teachers or obtain effective resources...and they don't have that funding because they fail the tests?

In my mind, NCLB is a very vicious cycle that actually leaves many children behind.
How sad.

I am interested to see what is yet to come for our nation...

If you'd like to read more about this speech or view the video, check out ABC News (where I got the quotes and info)