07/24/2023
(Long post-stick with me 😊)
Did you know last year 90% of teachers spent over $500 of their own money on classroom supplies? 100% of the teachers I know have spent well over $1000. We get reimbursed $300 😵 With teachers fighting for a raise we are loosing teachers at a frightening rate. We are told that our raise is contingent on the services provided to our students. Basically if we want a raise services to the kids needs to be cut. You can’t keep quality teachers if they don’t make a living wage. Now paying for supplies, curriculum (yes, that is out of pocket as well as most SPED teachers get the leftovers), snacks (my students come to school hungry), adaptive equipment, etc puts my family in a financial hardship.
Did you know that I’ve witnessed subs with students with high academic and behavioral needs assigned as full time teachers? These subs have no former or formal training to be equipped to handle the needs of this demographic, therefore leaving these students academic deficit gap getting bigger and bigger. This year is no different.
Did you also know there is a teacher aides shortage. Why do I need one? Help keep students safe when the teacher is dealing with a dangerous behavior, help data track, take SPED students to mainstream in Gen Ed, and support the teacher and class as a whole. SPED aides need a specific type of training that teachers are told to provide, but given no free time to do so?
Did you know that most SPED teachers fight to be in classroom in the Gen Ed community? We are usually pushed to the outskirts. This is a big problem with inclusion and equity being unbalanced for my students. It decreases their visibility and they are forgotten.
I LOVE my job, but it’s a lot. And with having a child who needs more support with the challenges we have faced after her coma this year our family is faced with a heavy emotional strain as well. So if I’m asking for donations (like on my Amazon Wish List :
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2WI94115YQ5VL?ref_=wl_share) know that it’s one of the uncomfortable parts of my job since this should all be provided😡
