So often in the education realm, teachers feel obligated to do more, take on more, be more. We are often made to feel guilty for taking a sick day - the burden of the sub shortages across the nation being put on our backs. We get looks from administrators for being that teacher that leaves on time at the end of our contractual day. We have parents of students upset when we aren't able to answer emails or phone calls at 10 o'clock at night.
Seeing how the general public responded to teachers this past year puts me on edge. Teachers were initially praised for pivoting so quickly and switching from traditional in-person teaching to remote teaching in a matter of a couple of weeks. But when teachers "demanded" safe working environments before returning to the classroom, we were quickly thrown under the bus and villainized. Teachers were again made to feel guilty for wanting to protect themselves and their loved ones at home during a time when COVID cases were on the rise.
And now teachers are leaving the profession in droves. Each day that I am on social media, I read through another smattering of posts where teachers have drawn the line in the sand and are not taking anymore. They are choosing themselves...and getting an onslaught of negativity, blame, and guilt-tripping because of it.
I, myself, have contemplated a move into something other than a classroom teacher. Don't get me wrong. I absolutely love what I do - I love teaching kids, I love being in the classroom. But this pandemic has changed us. It's changed me. It's changed the kids that walk through my door. It's made me realize how much teachers have been taken for granted - how poorly we've been treated as professionals in our craft.
Teaching in today's classroom has never been more challenging. Anyone who says differently has not been in a classroom in the last ten years.
Teachers - do not feel guilty for taking care of you, in whatever capacity you need that to mean. Take that sick day or mental health day. Leave at the end of the work day and don't take those papers home. Do what you need to do for you...because no one else is looking out for you except you.
