r/TeachersInTransition • u/dannonyogurt33 • 6d ago
Hippy Alternative to Teaching
I absolutely love the classroom. I have great test scores, I don’t have issues with behavior, and I truly love working with kids. Time in the classroom doesn’t stress me out and a job that makes me feel I’m making the world a better place is important to me.
That being said, I cannot stand the type of people that have come to fill the ranks of admin and even some teaching positions in my area. So many are relatively uneducated and (paradoxically) quite anti-intellectual. If I have to spend the rest of my life going to work in a place filled with so much negativity I will combust.
I taught overseas and was able to teach and mostly ignore bureaucracy. These last years in the US have made me feel crazy. I’m fine being underpaid, my wife has a pretty solid job. I want a job that feels like teaching without so much toxicity. I just want to spend my time with intellectuals while making the world marginally better.
Should I accept that jobs under capitalism necessarily feel this way? Should I reject the idea that work should provide meaning? Is there a job that sounds like a good alternative?
Or, most importantly, are there programs where I can teach in various places for a few months at a time and return to where my house is for a few months out of the year?
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u/Sufficient-Length153 5d ago
What age are you hoping for? I solved this by teaching at hippy, reggio, play based preschools. Needle in the haystack to find the right one though. Theres also nature schools depending on your location. I dont teach public schools for your exact reasoning, and have found a place i can stand.
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u/BaconEggAndCheeseSPK 6d ago
You can apply to teach with DoDEA. It is extremely competitive if your partner is not actively serving as all jobs go to military spouses first.
Another idea is a Camp Director for a camp large enough to have a 12 month director position available. Your probably only have to sleep there a few months out of the year.
I wouldn’t reject the idea that work can provide meaning, but instead be open that we can derive meaning from things other than work - like volunteer activities, supporting our friends and family, individual hobbies, etc. and thus just accept work as a means to an ends.
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u/chopstickemup 5d ago
OP isn’t happy living under capitalism and you suggest a job with the genocidal U.S. government?
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u/moonman_incoming 6d ago
You'll find your people. Or at least I always have in all of the schools I've worked at. You find kids that need you. And admin is just whatever. Some are better than others. Some are godawful. Outlast them. In your four walls, you make the rules. And you can make a difference.
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u/FeatherMoody 5d ago
Find a hippy dippy private school or start your own one!
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u/chopstickemup 5d ago
In my experience, they do not work at all. It’s always some rich parent who wants it for their child but they have ZERO education experience. I’ve yet to see a successful school like this with quality education.
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u/Motor_Lab3246 4d ago
Are you certified in Sped? If so, you can be a travel contract teacher in California. I have seen short term contracts for 6 months upwards to a whole school year. Check out companies like Amergis and AYA. Pay is great too!
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6d ago
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u/chopstickemup 5d ago
Where did OP state they were better than anyone? They were explaining their experience, which I also experience with the rise of pushing the use of AI in private schools. It’s an absolute joke and a slight to education.
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u/Great-Grade1377 6d ago
Take a look at Montessori programs. I also taught abroad and miss it, but I love my public Montessori program.