Are you a former K-12 teacher?

[HeidiKC]

Very curious about this! I am surprised at how many former teachers homeschool. I am kind of guessing (but don't know why) that former teachers are less likely to use the Classical method, so maybe there'd be less than average here on the boards. I have no idea why I guess this!

 

Anyway, just curious what percentage of people on the board have previously taught.

 

Also, if you did teach - was it your teaching experience that made you decide to homeschool?

Edited May 26, 2010 by HeidiKC

[Guest Cheryl in SoCal]

I'm not a former teacher (I'm a former RN) but guess the same as you. I guess that former teachers are less likely to teach classically because they were schooled in basically the opposite method.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Hmm. I taught in both a public and a private school. It didn't let me choose both.

[Deb in NZ]

I chose "I taught in private school" but I have taught in public school as well.

[Rosie_0801]

My hubby was a teacher, not I. I'm pretty sure if he was in charge of our kids' education, it would be a maths text book, RPGs and a heck of a lot of documentaries on the telly. Definitely not classical :D

 

Rosie

[sbgrace]

I taught PS for 10 years in grades 6-12.

 

I knew from teaching that kids form their vision of themselves as learners in the early elementary grades. That doesn't bode well for kids not "cut out" for the way school is typically done in early elementary. This includes those who weren't ready developmentally and needed maturity time, those who learn in a non-sequential way, those with learning disabilities, etc. One of my children would do worse than flounder in a classroom and I knew homeschool was a near necessity for him educationally. I now think it's better for both my kids and our family. But I do feel my teaching experiences influenced my decision to homeschool initially.

 

As far as classical vs. other styles of homeschooling in teachers I don't know! I suspect certain personality types are more likely be draw to classical schooling. If I'm correct about my supposition, that personality type isn't typically found in k-12 education. I think this personality aspect would be more of an influence in curriculum choices than teacher training. My experience in teacher training had little to nothing to do with the way I taught in my classroom or my views about education. I have a Master's degree as well as BS in education and almost none of it meant a thing in my classroom. I think most teachers are sort of born teachers. It's more of an art than learned skill.

Edited May 26, 2010 by sbgrace

[Ali in OR]

I taught high school math in an excellent public school. There was nothing in my teacher training that would preclude a classical approach to education. Maybe that is different for elementary teachers. Teaching is very much a calling for me. It is just who I am. I love learning and love to make what I know interesting and understandable to others. I think that love of learning/teaching that made me want to be a teacher also makes me want to teach my own kids. Best job in the world. I am drawn to a classical approach because that is how I would have liked to have been taught.

[1bassoon]

I taught music K-5 for 5 years, and am from a family of ps teachers. Dh has taught in public, private, you name it for many years.

 

Yes, it is a factor in our homeschooling. We are much more interested in advocating for the positive benefits to our family, rather than just a reaction to the negatives we see in the system. But the negatives are still there.

 

My own experience - I would see these kindergarteners come into school in September, joyful, happy, innocent. And by May. . . . something had changed. It was like the light had gone out of their eyes. I can't explain it, but I experienced it.

 

I didn't want my own kids to lose that "light", that joy, of their childhood.

[ladydusk]

I never taught, but have my degree. I find that Classical Education philosophy makes so much more sense than Dewey.

[FaithManor]

Pre-children, I substitute taught in private schools.

 

After children, I taught music and science in a K-8 parochial school for three years. That was the gap in homeschooling our dd. Since then, I have not taught anywhere else.

 

Faith

[ecj98]

I taught fifth grade in 2 different classical schools. We can't afford to send C to either of them, so we homeschool.

[kmacnchs]

Hmm. I taught in both a public and a private school. It didn't let me choose both.

 

me too!

 

I taught Spanish and ESOL in public school and I taught 5th grade in a private school. The reason we originally wanted to hs was b/c we LOVE where we live (COUNTRY) but the schools here are HORRIFIC!!! Forget learning CVC words in K. Their goal is that by the end of K, the kids should know their alphabet (not necessarily the sounds) and how to count to 10 (but not necessarily recognize the #s). Now that dd1 just turned 4 this past Sunday, is reading on a 4th grade level and finishing up 1st grade math, I'm not sure there's a choice!

[MaMa2005]

I taught public school for 20 years. The majority of those years were in middle school teaching special education - primarily those children with severe emotional/behavior disorders and severe learning disabilities.

 

I am retired on disability - got hit on the head while teaching at school - and thus, am now a SAHM.

 

When we adopted DS in 2007, we never thought about putting in public school. Home school was always what we wanted to do.

 

DH is a high school business teacher waiting to retire in 2 years. :hurray:

[snickelfritz]

I couldn't pick two choices. I taught Algebra at a public middle school and I taught science/nature studies at a private elementary school. I voted private, since I taught there longer.

[T'smom]

I am a former teacher. I taught 5th/6th grade science for 2 years and then a self-contained 6th grade for a year.

The reason I became a teacher is because I am passionate about education. Passionate. The reason I'm going to homeschool? Because I am passionate about education. Seriously passionate. It's the only thing I'm really, really passionate about (which could explain why I'm on a homeschooling message board when my oldest is only 2 1/2!)

Throughout high school and the first half of college I was adamant that I was not going to become a teacher. But it is in my blood. In fact, I'm a 4th generation teacher- the only one not to graduate from the same college. My sister obtained her education degree from the same college that my mom, grandmother, and even great-grandmother obtained theirs. Obviously I knew that public schools were seriously flawed before I got into teaching but I couldn't have made a difference at all if I hadn't gone into education (what if I'd never married/had kids? I would've spent my life trying to make a difference in my student's lives) I miss teaching, but while I (did I mention this?) am passionate about education in general- it pales in comparison to how I feel about my own kids' education.

I saw the Well-Trained Mind sitting on the shelves at the library for a long time before I picked it up (only when I needed something to read and had read everything else). I had a preconceived notion that Classical homeschoolers were too, I don't know...intense? It wasn't what I expected it to be- it was very much along the lines of what I already planned to do (with the exception of Latin- which I'm now planning to include). I thought it was a method that would kill the love of learning, the exploration, the FUN! I was thrilled to learn this was not the case.

I know this is more info that you probably wanted, but your post seemed to indicate that the only thing in the brain of a person who has a degree in education was put there by the the teacher program. That is so NOT the case.

[Classical Country Mama]

I taught high school English and have always had a passion for teaching, even from childhood. Now that I have my own children and work from home (doing something completely different), I can't imagine handing that privilege and pleasure off to others.

 

My choice to homeschool isn't because I'm against public or private schools--but also because I'm a snob who thinks I can do better! :tongue_smilie:

[AHASRADA]

I taught French and Spanish in middle and high school for a little while before my 1st dc was born. I learned a couple of things in that time:

 

1. My teaching degree taught me more about classroom management than how to teach, more theoretical than practical. I was on my own to figure out how to plan and conduct lessons.

 

2. Many kids in a classroom are either bored, lost, or have no interest in learning, and the quiet ones who are actually trying to learn are distracted by the others. Teaching "to the middle" does a disservice to everyone, and the behavior issues detract a great deal from teaching time.

 

4. By high school, everyone (teachers & students) have become proficient at working "the system" and "playing the game". The focus on true learning has been blurred if not lost.

 

3. The intellectually inspiring, rewarding process of teaching and learning that I love about being a teacher was stifled by the institution of school. The joy was buried under bureaucracy, the light-bulb moments few and far between.

 

Therefore, I made a conscious decision to give up trying to teach other people's kids, some of whom had become uncontrollable even by their own parents, and cultivate a joy of learning "from scratch" on a smaller scale, with my own kids.

 

I now tutor other kids one-on-one after school, and this is very rewarding as well. The majority of the approaches, methods and activities I use with my tutoring students, I learned and developed through homeschooling.

[Ester Maria]

Does university count? :D

I was a guest lecturer a couple of times in high schools as well, but did not teach regularly. I did (still do on occasion) give private lessons to people of all ages and educational backgrounds, though, so I definitely had experience both with teaching a large group of people and with one-on-one work before I started homeschooling.

[Remudamom]

I taught in a private Montessori, then subbed in PS. I would have probably applied for a PS job, but I FINALLY got pregnant and stayed at home from then on.

[alpidarkomama]

I found the assumption odd! :)

 

To me, homeschooling and teaching in a classroom are completely different things. Teacher training is really 75% classroom management training... homeschooling is more like a Great Conversation. I think classical education would actually appeal to a great many former educators. (I taught pre-K to 5th grade music in schools from age 21-35 and ran my own music school too...)

Edited May 26, 2010 by alpidarkomama

[Aubrey]

No, I'd decided to hs before deciding to teach. Which really made me a bad fit for teaching. :001_huh:

[babysparkler]

I taught in a public elementary school for two years before I became pregnant and we decided that I would be a SAHM. We started our kids in the Public School System in Kindergarten & First Grade. I really had a lot of faith in the system until my own kids were there, then I realized how much more I could give them at home that the PS couldn't (and wouldn't). I really had a hard time watching someone else teach my children when I knew I could do better.

 

I don't know about the rest of the teachers here, but my college training included a significant amount of homeschool, private school, & voucher "bashing," so it took me a couple of years to overcome that brainwashing ;) and pull my kids from the PS to homeschool. Now, I wish I would have just started off homeschooling and saved myself the frustration.

 

There was nothing in my teacher training that would preclude a classical approach to education. Maybe that is different for elementary teachers. Teaching is very much a calling for me. It is just who I am. I love learning and love to make what I know interesting and understandable to others. I think that love of learning/teaching that made me want to be a teacher also makes me want to teach my own kids. Best job in the world. I am drawn to a classical approach because that is how I would have liked to have been taught.

 

Ditto.

Edited May 26, 2010 by babysparkler

[NicA]

I did my student teaching in a ps, but then got married and moved so I never ended up having my own class. When I had kids and thought about sending them to school, I knew I couldn't. I even taught in two very good schools in a wealthy community, but it still seemed like very little was actually taught after dealing with discipline issues, etc.

[Daisy]

My husband is a ps teacher and is actively involved in choosing our classical curriculum, though I introduced him to it. LOL.

 

I substitute taught in private school, but my degree is in theology, not education.

 

Not sure how I should answer the poll. ;)

[MyLittleWonders]

I taught public elementary school; dh teaches public high school. We both are on-again/off-again community college instructors (we've both been "off-again" since our youngest was born, and with an impending surprise due before Christmas, we'll be "off-again" longer than I was thinking). That said, I think in some ways teaching in a public school has helped me to be a classical homeschooler. What I was doing (what we were expected to do) in ps does not get the job done. We started off with ds#1 as classical in K, but then floundered around for first and half of second as he was quite resistant to any instruction, but rededicated ourselves to classical half-way through 2nd grade and have not looked back. Dh is 100% on board with classical education - it speaks to what we believe educationally.

[Dmmetler]

Deleting because it's redundant with my later response-hadn't realized I'd actually submitted it.

Edited May 26, 2010 by Dmmetler2

[KrissiK]

I taught jr. high in a Christian school.

[Dmmetler]

I taught K-8 music, Head Start, 1st grade, and 3rd grade, all in public schools, and currently teach two music education classes a week at the university level.

 

I'm not surprised at the number of classical homeschooling teachers/former teachers. If you're a PS teacher, you're homeschooling because you feel it's not going to work for your DC, but you're also unlikely to go completely child-directed because that's so contrary to your training and experience. And you're usually going to be HSing because you find the school experience lacking and have confidence that you can use disparate materials, and that a box set from one publisher probably isn't going to do it. Put those together, and you'll likely at least consider classical.

 

Another thing to consider is that teachers are used to professional networking-both in person and online. Even though you're on your own in the classroom, you're used to having people to bounce ideas and concerns off of. So I'd also expect a high percentage of teachers who start HSing to look for such a community somewhere-and this is a really, really good one.

[delaney]

3 years un 4th and 3 in 1st as well as some Head Start and owning a private daycare.

[Sandy in Indy]

I taught middle school language arts for 5 years before leaving to be a full-time mom. When school time came around, I knew I didn't want my dd in the ps system. We sent her to our church's school (which was excellent). Later, the school dwindled and homeschooling became the best option for our family. I would NEVER send my kids to ps school. My dd or bf will homeschool our youngest if something happens to me before he graduates. (already arranged...)

[Old Dominion Heather]

I taught for three years before my oldest son was born, 4th, 5th and then 7th grade science and math. I enjoyed teaching but was frustrated because of all the kids who were falling through the cracks. I knew I would never send a kid to the PS in our county. It just was not a good environment.

 

I do use a Classical method, primarily because I firmly believe that all students would benifit from that method and curriculum and that mine definitely do!

[Crimson Wife]

I read a statistic one time that 25% of homeschoolers are former schoolteachers. I forget exactly which survey that came from, though.

 

My FIL, MIL, and SIL are/were teachers. I was really worried about telling them we planned to HS but my MIL surprised me by actually recommending it to me before she knew that's what we were planning. They've been very supportive.

 

My own parents, by contrast, were very opposed at first even though they had thought so poorly of the government-run school in the town they lived that they helped found a private school. I had thought they, of all people, would understand why we decided to HS. But no, they were all brainwashed with the whole "socialization has to happen within a classroom" myth. :glare:

[Tabrett]

I have taught music in public elementary and middle schools. Although I didn't teach the "academics", I just don't like the public school curriculum choices and the "herding" of students. If your child doesn't understand something, they "herd" them on and miss the skill. If you child needs remedial help, they end up in classrooms of kids with behavior problems. Where I live children who need extra help are pulled out of classes like music and art to go the the remedial classes! Most of the kids pulled out for remedial help NEED to go to the nonacademic classes. That is normally where their giftedness lay. I believe a child's gifts are more important in life than just the 3 R's. Schools don't care what your child's gifts are; just if they excel at the state mandates.

[Jen in PA]

Hmm. I taught in both a public and a private school. It didn't let me choose both.

 

Same problem here.

[Heidi @ Mt Hope]

I chose no, but my dh previously taught in public schools. He hated teaching (bad school situations and it wasn't the right job for his personality). He is 100% supportive in our homeschooling decision because of his interest in education and the things he witnessed in his teaching experience. I do all of the research, planning, and implementing, though. He must trust me. :)

[Guest]

I said I never taught in a school, but that's only half way true. I didn't teach K-12, but I was a preschool teacher, so technically it was in a school.

[Murmer]

I am a ps teacher for 3 more weeks....I have taught for 6 years now 3 in second and first grade and 3 as a reading specialist. I am choosing homeschool because I have seen what ps is like and I hate the politics of it all. As I have looked at homeschooling theories I find I love the classical approach because it is what I want my children to learn. I don't agree with everything at is in the wtm but do agree with 90% which is more than I agree with the current ops curriculums. I figure I can have the best of both worlds, teach majority classical education and supplement in the bits that I felt were effective in ps...mostly what I learned in my specific reading training (which was not university teacher Ed stuff but a nz based literacy program).

[HeidiKC]

Why didn't I consider those of you having taught in private AND public! Whoops! Sorry about that!

[HeidiKC]

your post seemed to indicate that the only thing in the brain of a person who has a degree in education was put there by the the teacher program. That is so NOT the case.

 

Oh, no! I'm sorry you misunderstood! I guess I was thinking more along the lines of what one of the first posters said - I was guessing that maybe certain types of people go into teaching and maybe those types would be drawn to a different homeschooling style. I'm thinking maybe more unit studies, or I don't even know what. I don't mean it as bad or good, just different. And I certainly didn't mean to imply that teachers only know what they learned in a teaching program and are completely shaped by that!

 

Anyway, I obviously have NO idea what type of homeschooling style former teachers might use (wouldn't that be interesting to know?!), just guessing. I probably shouldn't have even thrown that out there! I was just wondering the other day what percentage of homeschooling parents were former teachers, and thought of posting the poll. But of course it might not accurately reflect the general homeschooling population, and that is the reason I was thinking out loud that maybe more of the homeschooling teachers are using a different method.

[AMDG]

I have taught reading intervention in public schools before, and right after having children. I do not teach anymore. I am a Classical Education LOVER.

 

Both DH and having gone through K-12 in the public school, and then a more Humanities-based, liberal arts university, I think we felt "jipped" about our lack of classical education. We wanted more for our children, specifically the ability to reason, use logic, and to read literature on a high level. These were not skills we acquired until college and after using self-study.

 

I always wanted to be a teacher, and I love reading, phonics and tutoring, thus the intervention specialty. Now I teach my kids, and I'm happy with that. I'm thankful that the public school is in place, but at this point in my life, I'm not sure if I could stomach the politics of it. Perhaps again once my children are grown and gone.

[Orthodox6]

Never taught K-12. Does college level count ? :)

[hoosiermom]

I taught math in a public high school for 16 years--LOVED the job, hated the politics. I was always a very good student and noticed early on that while some teachers have knowledge of a subject, they are unable or unwilling to explain their subject to their students. I was miserable as a public school student!! Homeschooling would have been a god-send for me but was unheard of in our area at the time, so I immersed myself in every book I could find.

 

Despite my frustration w/ the system, I decided to become a teacher and was determined to be a good one. Teaching is in my blood--it is seriously like oxygen to me. I only quit (when dd was in kindergarten) because of health issues. We left dd in ps until 4th grade, when she began begging to be hs'ed. We discussed it for about a year and decided it was the right choice for us. I couldn't bear to see her love for learning be slowly extinguished by ps, and I was confident that I could do better.

 

Hs'ing has absolutely been the right choice for us. Dd will be in 9th grade and tells everyone who asks that she is NEVER going back to ps.

 

I tutor students after school, but still miss my job at times. However, we joined a co-op this past year and I get to teach two math classes next year!!

 

I'm curious, for those of you who have been teachers--how do your former colleagues view hs'ing?? I think we're seen as a bit of an oddity in our community. Some of dd's former teachers have told me privately that we made the right choice in hs'ing (altho they don't want anyone to know they said that!). Others ask why we would pull a straight A student out of ps--obviously the ps was doing its job. My fellow faculty members from the high school where I taught were like family for 16 years. But hs'ing is a taboo subject w/ them--they'll be glad to talk about everything but that! It's like they view me as a traitor to the system.

[Lightly Salted]

I taught music at a small Christian school for 2 years. My children went to preschool/kindergarten there, and yes, it was that experience that cemented for me the desire to homeschool. I had actually researched in preparation to homeschool while we lived overseas, but once we moved back to the US, that flew out the window when we found a nice little Christian school. We loved the school but it was frustrating that there was no differentiation in the classroom (a class of 8, no less!) and we didn't want to skip grades, so we chose to come home and I'm SO glad we did! :)

[sbgrace]

 

I'm curious, for those of you who have been teachers--how do your former colleagues view hs'ing?? I think we're seen as a bit of an oddity in our community. Some of dd's former teachers have told me privately that we made the right choice in hs'ing (altho they don't want anyone to know they said that!). Others ask why we would pull a straight A student out of ps--obviously the ps was doing its job. My fellow faculty members from the high school where I taught were like family for 16 years. But hs'ing is a taboo subject w/ them--they'll be glad to talk about everything but that! It's like they view me as a traitor to the system.

 

I still socially see my colleagues. If they fill anything negative toward homeschooling it's not obvious to me and I think I would know. We do talk about homeschooling (and school talk too). I think most teachers understand why a person might decide to homeschool? I guess I'm surprised anyone would see you as a "traitor" because you homeschool.

[MorganClassicalPrep]

Nope, never taught.

 

I am actually in school right now to be a college professor, and considered getting my secondary ed degree along the way. However, I realized that some of the reasons I want to homeschool my daughter would apply to me as a teacher and decided to pass on that. :D

 

I love kids and have actually worked as a nanny for many years, I'd like to focus on my own children now, and have no interest in correcting the horrible behavior of other people's families!

[HerdingCats]

Just curious, what do you all mean by "politics". Is this politics among the kids or some kind of faculty thing? I am not an ex-teacher, so enlighten me please.

[Lolly]

Actually, I have taught in both public and private. Poll wouldn't let me choose both. :)

 

Teaching did not convince me to homeschool. A pediatric nurse actually did that! However, when we pulled her, dd's 1st grade teacher let me know in no uncertain terms that it was what she would do if she had kids today.

[Crimson Wife]

Just curious, what do you all mean by "politics". Is this politics among the kids or some kind of faculty thing? I am not an ex-teacher, so enlighten me please.

 

My MIL transferred to a different school in the district because the newly appointed principal at the first one she taught was playing politics with assignments. Because the number of kids in a particular grade can vary from year to year, there aren't always the same number of teachers assigned to that grade. So some years there may be four 2nd grade teachers and other years three or five. The principal is in charge of figuring out who taught which grade. Usually this is done based on experience with teaching the particular grade or the one above/below it. But this new principal did it based on whom she liked or didn't like. So my MIL, who usually taught 3rd grade (and occasionally 2nd or 4th) was going to be demoted to kindergarten. MIL decided that she didn't want to work with someone who would play politics like that, so she transferred.

[Murmer]

Just curious, what do you all mean by "politics". Is this politics among the kids or some kind of faculty thing? I am not an ex-teacher, so enlighten me please.

 

For me there are a number of politics involved in public education. First the national scene with nclb and federal laws regarding funding ect, then there is state politics determining how to fund schools, laws regarding what can and can't be taught. Then there is district/school board side where peopole who have never worked in a classroom dictate what you can and cannot do or what you should be doing. Then there is inter school politics and parents. Add in NEA and tax payers and it gets messy. Let's go back to the days when the teachers has the ability to do what is best for her students without her hands being tied.

[HeidiKC]

Anyone else?