this post was submitted on 21 Sep 2023
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Work Reform

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A place to discuss positive changes that can make work more equitable, and to vent about current practices. We are NOT against work; we just want the fruits of our labor to be recognized better.

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[–] TheRealJefe 57 points 1 year ago (1 children)

This is becoming more and more common overall.

An acquaintance of mine I met while working a help desk job: He was in process of getting his degrees to become a teacher, did so and taught high school math for 5 years. As much as he loved, and took pride in, the work he did with teens and making a difference, the continued stress of a bullshit administration (at 2 different schools and districts) took its toll. He left, becoming a corporate training (see, still teaching) and I've seen a marked difference in his attitude and life. He has less stress and a fatter paycheck.

Teachers shouldn't be put though the wringer and not be expected to react. "There's no workers shortage, just a shortage of slave labor" is more evident in their profession than any other (outside possibly food service).

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 year ago (2 children)

You're 100% right. My wife has a masters degree in education and spent 7 years as an English teacher with 3 very different types of schools in different districts. She left to be an instructional designer (with zero experience in that field) and nearly doubled her salary overnight.

If America wants to take education seriously they need to stop screwing over teachers.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

America* does not take education seriously. This is evident from 50 years of Republican policy.

*legislators

[–] pachrist 2 points 1 year ago

No, America doesn't take it seriously, not just legislators. There's a significant chunk of the population that thinks public schools are evil and liberal factories to send kids to hell because they teach sex education and science.

[–] LiquidPhD 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

If you don't mind telling, how did she find an instructional design job? My wife is looking to make a similar transition. Any tips for trying to make the switch?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Honestly, it was a bit of luck.

We live in a larger city in the the Midwest. Looked on indeed frequently and applied for a position at a privately owned - medium/large sized company that is headquartered in our city.

In terms of experience they were looking for 3 years of design and course curriculum. My wife had more of that, just in a different industry. Also required a bachelor's degree and she had a masters in education. A lot of overlap skills but different titles.

It also helped that her hiring manager and two peers on the team were former teachers as well. Luck was definitely involved.

They did request sample work before one of her interviews. She YouTubed a walkthrough on how to use a free instructional design platform and threw something together. A lot of the skills and platform knowledge she has now was self taught through Google and YouTube.

Good luck to you and your wife. Teaching is a challenging career.