I'm in a Quandary

[Hooligan]

A little history...I am an RN and worked as an adult med/surg and pediatric nurse part-time for a little over 5 years. Almost 4 years ago, my hospital did a mandatory switch to 12 hour shifts and I was always a 3-11 girl since it worked out well for my family at the time. The kids were younger at the time, and one was just entering pre-school and working a 12 hour shift on either end was not conducive to our family life. My husband's job requires night time on-call once a month and he needs to be able to leave at any given time. We need a bit more stability and home front coverage than 12 hour shifts can provide.

At this same time though, as if by some divine intervention I was contacted by my local high school asking if I'd be interested in teaching Anatomy & Physiology and Medical Terminology for their Career and Technical Education program. I thought I was in heaven! No more weekends or holidays, summer break with my kids and if there was a snow day, no worries! I work in the same district they attend so absolutely no impromptu childcare needed. Everything sounded great!

The pay was not ideal, but I justified that thinking that I made about the same working part-time as a nurse as I would if I considered my summers off as part-time work and the pay schedule based on years of service and education would eventually "catch up" in the pay department. The thing is, our district has been experiencing budget cuts and I have only received one raise after my first year and I'm now finishing my 4th year of teaching and still only making what a 2nd year teacher would make. I have been assured that my position is safe and is not on the chopping block...unlike our unfortunate culinary teacher who has been cut and will not be returning next year.

What I did not anticipate was the sheer overload of after school work during the school year! My God! I had no idea how much uncompensated, extra work teachers do at home in addition to what they do in the classroom! I never cried in nursing...this job brought me to tears from just utter exhaustion and the transition from nursing to teaching was rough. When I got to the school, there was no program in place and I was making everything from scratch. Hours upon hours of making PowerPoints, work sheets, and studying. I had to relearn in great detail a lot of the A&P I hadn't reviewed since nursing school so that I could effectively teach the material in a way that high school students could understand. Needless to say, much of that has improved and I am a very good teacher. My frustration comes from being so sorely underpaid for the amount of BS I have to do. Also, if the current referendum doesn't pass for extra funding to pay the teachers, I'm looking at not getting a raise in the near future.

My students are driving me crazy as well...perhaps it's just this year, but I feel as though the kids are getting worse and worse. They have no drive, don't want to study, and can't manage to stay off their frickin' cell phones and are not punished adequately for using them. They are becoming increasing disrespectful and argumentative and again, for the pay, I question if it's all worth it?!? It's not just me either...all of the teachers are complaining about the students and about how this particular group is just awful but according to the middle school, the next group is going to be worse! Don't get me wrong, the kids aren't juvenile delinquents or anything, but they are coddled in a way like I have never experienced before. They are not disciplined at home or at school and it is apparent by their unwillingness to do their work. They expect you just to crank open their skulls and pour the knowledge in like soup from a can. I have a handful of students who I'm very fond of and I feel as though I would be letting those kids down, but bottom line I have to do what is best for myself and my family. The problem is though, that I'm not sure what "the best" really is.

To further complicate things, I was recently diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy and was unable to drive for several months. During this time, the school librarian picked me up every day and drove me to work. I work with great people, and I live only about 5 miles from the school and the school is a pretty small school with a small-town feel, which I love. If I went back to nursing, what happens if I have another seizure and can't drive again? This situation only complicates things. On the plus side, my own children will attend high school there and I like knowing that I'm part of the community and making a difference on that level. I like seeing my students at the store, and get a kick out of seeing them at their after school jobs when my family and I are out. The overall scheduling works well for the family, but the day to day demands of the job are taking a toll. I used to be the mom who would plan special birthday parties for my girls, sew their Halloween costumes, and make their lunches. I haven't attended a field trip or been able to be room-mom or do any of the things I want to do for my own kids. With nursing I was able to do that. Granted, I missed out on every other Holiday and missed out on every other summer weekend which worked when they were small and didn't realize that Santa came on a certain day. I just honestly don't know what to do. I also find that I get resentful towards my students when they complain about doing activities for class that I took time away from my family to create/plan for them! Ugh...I just don't know...I do feel though that I need to make a decision soon. I've been off the floor for 4 years, and each year I stay away, I lose my marketability in the nursing field. I have thought about going back to nursing part time and taking an online FNP program through Simmons College and just moving on in nursing, but then I just keep thinking, what if I regret leaving the teaching gig...maybe it's just a bad year...maybe things will get better...

My husband is no help whatsoever. He is supportive of whatever decision I make God bless him! He would welcome more pay, of course, but bottom line, he just wants me to be happy. Unfortunately, the only time I'm happy is during the summer when I'm spending time with my kids. I hate the hustle and bustle of the school year and I feel like I miss out on so much! I feel like I had a better work-life balance in nursing even if the scheduling was erratic.

I feel as though I have gone from one marginalized career into the next. What's next?...Social work? Anyway, I realize this post is just one long pity post...so I apologize for that...but does anybody have any thoughts?

[Simonesays, BSN, RN]

I definitely don't think that teachers are compensated enough for the hard work that they do! It sounds like you are a great teacher who is coming up with thoughtful and appropriate lesson plans, who is putting in the extra time it takes to effectively support your students. They are lucky to have you!

One thing to keep in mind, is the more tired/burnt out you become, the more you are likely to perceive your students in a negative light. Things that might otherwise mildly frustrate you will become more serious issues when you are stressed and over-worked. (i.e. Sometimes it's not the students/patients that necessarily change- it's our perceptions of them). Summer is almost here and it might be worthwhile to post-phone any major decisions until you have some time away from the classroom and are more rested and relaxed.

Personally, I like to make pro/con lists (yes- I'm a big nerd) when making difficult decisions. I weigh each factor (i.e. time with your young children in the summer would be very important to you) so even if one list has more pros than the other, it depends on how important you perceive the factors on each list. Sometimes it's just seeing everything laid out in writing that can make your decision more obvious to you.

I think in terms of advancing your career, you have lots of options! You can use one of your summers to start a masters program, begin your NP etc. In the future, you can become a nurse educator (great hours, pay, adult learners, no marking) or a nursing school instructor. Talented educators are invaluable to the nursing profession!

Best of luck in your decision-making!

[little star, BSN]

I know your pain. It all comes down to knowing whether you are a nurse or a teacher, you positively impact the lives of others. My background was med/surg for 2yrs, then OR/ICU for the past 14yrs. However, as the mother of five children who were stairsteps as they say, I chose to work agency to allow me the flexibility of self scheduling. I was able to be there for them when they needed me most and I do not feel as though I missed anything.

[Hooligan]

If this is a required course for some students, or they need to have a minimum grade in it, then you have a whip hand.

(Big smile for first day of class) "Who owns a cell phone? Hold them, up please! Excellent! Wow, 18 (or whatever-- count!!) of you! Now, since we are in an important class, there will be no cell phone use in this room. Every time you enter this classroom you will turn your phone off and place it in this basket. If I don't have every cell phone in the basket by three minutes past the hour with everyone in their seat, everyone will be marked absent and receive a zero grade for the day (peer pressure! This will work well to have them enforce this). You'll pick them up at the end of the hour. Thank you."

There will be incredulous p***ing and moaning. Ignore it completely. You will get calls from angry parents. Explain calmly. "Since some students chose to be disrespectful of everyone's time in class by being on their phones, texting/facebook/instagram/candy crush/etc., the only fair thing is to collect all phones during my class. Since surely your child wasn't one of them, and the phone would be back in his/her hands in 50 minutes, you can agree that it shouldn't inconvenience him/her in any way. Whatever it is, it can surely wait that long, don't you agree? Of course if there is any emergency and you can't get through to a student during class hours, you should call the school office at xxx-xxx-xxxx (have that number handy for these calls!) and your student will be contacted immediately."

If you really want to do something for the public health in the building, run this plan past the rest of the faculty and get them to do it too. They will probably kiss your feet. You'll have to give a heads-up to the school secretary who will be fielding the calls from the parents; tell her to take numbers and you will call them back. I can promise you you'll only have to call them once. Optimally, your principal should have enough guts to make it a school policy, send / email home a notice the first day of school that the policy will be in effect beginning next Monday, and that's it.

I agree on the third-+ year makes it easier. Same lessons, same slides, just make the quizzes different so there's no saving them from last year. Personally, I favored handing out "note taking outlines," where the headers were on the sheet but the actual facts had to be added in by the student. Kept them busy, and I didn't have to do all their work for them (I love the can of soup visual). I also threw in random slides of cartoons, scenic vistas from far away places, little things, sometimes with applicability ("This is the Mona Lisa, painted by Leonardo da Vinci, who also did these beautiful anatomical studies of the shoulder that we are going to see today," for example) about once a week to keep them awake.

Hang in, summer is almost here. :)

Hmmm...very good suggestions here. A basket wouldn't work though...someone could take somebody else's phone and there is a liability issue there. We are not allowed to take phones away from students either. If there's damage, even before we get our hands on it, the student could accuse us of damaging it and we are then liable for the damage to the phone. Sadly, this is a policy in place from past history. A teacher confiscated a phone from a student and the phone already had a cracked screen. When the teacher gave the phone back the student accused the teacher of cracking the phone, and because the teacher couldn't prove that the damage was done prior to taking the phone, the teacher was responsible for replacing/repairing the damaged phone. Think documentation, documentation, documentation. But, perhaps I could find a way to enforce the peer pressure angle. Thank you for the helpful suggestions.

[Hooligan]

Thank you to those who gave their sincere, thoughtful replies. I will take the summer to enjoy my kiddos and likely the break will help ease things a bit. I will give things one more year and evaluate my situation a bit more then. I have had a rough couple of years, with the things going on in my personal life and I'm sure that is adding fuel to the fire. I'm just hoping for a more peaceful next year, both personally and professionally. Again, thank you all for your input.

[jadelpn, LPN, EMT-B]

Have you thought about switching to teaching either a technical school or college teaching nursing/LPN/CNA/Medical assisting? Or even online courses?

Teachers have thankless jobs that seem to consume a great deal of their lives.

Do you have a teacher's union? If not, you should...

I have no other advice than to say that it astounds me how some children are allowed to behave without parents going nuts. As a parent I would be horrified. Perhaps now is the time to really, truly say what you mean in conferences and report cards, and grading. A&P is what I would think would be on the honors track. Therefore, if one can not maintain the workload and puts in zero effort, then they should not be in honors. And if they do not pass your class, they will need to make up a credit.

Start collecting cell phones. If high school students can not put their cellphones away in your class, then they need not be in your classroom. And I would be very strict about it.

The end goal is theirs and not yours. A bad grade affects GPA, which affects college. Perhaps your class should be geared toward juniors with teacher recommendation or seniors only. If they are not paying you what you deserve, then you could perhaps advocate changes that what you are doing is worthwhile to the students who want to learn. Could you attach AP testing to it? Then it narrows your students to those who adhere to the policy regarding advanced placement classes.

Lastly, private or charter schools have an amazing reputation as well. Invested kids and parents. The invested kids and parents in public schools can be few and far between.

Teaching is definitely a passion. I have 2 of them. One of which was very invested in severely mentally ill and developmentally delayed children. The second about to start a masters program for education and math. God love 'em, and none of my kids ever, ever thought about nursing.....YUCK...they say HAHA!!

[Farawyn]

Hmmm...very good suggestions here. A basket wouldn't work though...someone could take somebody else's phone and there is a liability issue there. We are not allowed to take phones away from students either. If there's damage, even before we get our hands on it, the student could accuse us of damaging it and we are then liable for the damage to the phone. Sadly, this is a policy in place from past history. A teacher confiscated a phone from a student and the phone already had a cracked screen. When the teacher gave the phone back the student accused the teacher of cracking the phone, and because the teacher couldn't prove that the damage was done prior to taking the phone, the teacher was responsible for replacing/repairing the damaged phone. Think documentation, documentation, documentation. But, perhaps I could find a way to enforce the peer pressure angle. Thank you for the helpful suggestions.

UGH! This is crap. Also, some kid could just pocket their phone and not put it in the basket- what are we going to do, search them?

Such crap. When did even simple rules become debatable, and why is everything a lawsuit?

And...Get off my lawn you pesky kids!!!

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

Have each student put it on a back table him/herself, then. Nobody touches anybody else's phone, but the students do not have custody of them during class. And if the students place them in a basket on that table and the teacher never touches it, no liability there.

UGH! This is crap. Also, some kid could just pocket their phone and not put it in the basket- what are we going to do, search them?

If it's in a pocket, muted, and not in use (so the teacher can't find it!!) the teacher's objective is still met-- it's out of the hands and off the lap/desk. Student thinks he's outwitted teacher, when in reality it's the other way around. :)

[Farawyn]

Have each student put it on a back table him/herself, then. Nobody touches anybody else's phone, but the students do not have custody of them during class. And if the students place them in a basket on that table and the teacher never touches it, no liability there.

If it's in a pocket, muted, and not in use (so the teacher can't find it!!) the teacher's objective is still met-- it's out of the hands and off the lap/desk. Student thinks he's outwitted teacher, when in reality it's the other way around. :)

Until they go to the bathroom, text mommy and tell her to come pick them up. Cue to me in the Health Office looking like a deer in headlights as the mom comes to pick up her kid that has never been down to see me...

/hijack over. I'm sorry, OP!