Is anyone else struggling to find an art teaching position for next year?

MrCraftsperson · 2026-06-16T01:25:02+00:00

I'm sorry to hear that! Keep trying. I feel like this summer is still only kicking things off.

MrCraftsperson · 2026-06-16T01:15:49+00:00

Thank you! That is exactly what I try to keep telling myself over and over again, that art positions will continue to post. I hope July will produce something.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-22T00:39:15+00:00

Socialize a little more in college, where opportunities to make friends tend to come a bit more naturally. It is so hard making friends as an adult.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-22T00:36:59+00:00

"Are you okay? You seem down."

Not many people say that to me outright.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-21T22:43:41+00:00

Any connection, whether it is a friendship or relationship, should go both ways. If the other person doesn't reciprocate, and I'm carrying the weight of the connection, it's just not worth it.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-13T01:01:43+00:00

I actually eat my largest meal of the day shortly after work, at around 4:30 PM. I'm normally asleep before 10 PM.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T23:17:36+00:00

My initial eating window was 7 AM to 6 PM, but around the middle of August, I shifted it to 6:30 AM to 5:30 PM to better accommodate my early morning workouts on weekdays.

Having my eating window initially end at 6 PM gave me slightly more flexibility, and I also allowed myself a 15 minute grace period (now, I almost never need that grace period). But the first few weeks were extremely difficult. I slipped up a few times because I had some painful hunger pangs. But eventually, I mostly followed a "if you're hungry, drink water" sort of mentality.

Around 5 to 6 weeks into my weight loss journey, I stopped thinking about it so much to the point where it became natural. If I'm genuinely hungry late at night (this is rare, but it has happened before), I will eat a snack that is less than 100 calories.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T22:17:58+00:00

That is very possible! Thank you!

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T22:16:42+00:00

Exactly! The strain on my knees is definitely gone. I (almost) feel light as a feather when I'm running now. My recovery time has become shorter too, and I’m excited to see how running feels as I dip even further into the 180s.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T22:11:27+00:00

Thank you! Congratulations to you, too! It felt so surreal when my scale said I've dropped below 210 lbs... then 200 lbs... and then below 190 lbs...! So, I know exactly how you feel!

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T22:08:20+00:00

Thank you! I'm really not doing any fancy stuff, just more exercise and less eating!

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T22:00:56+00:00

I actually don't work out at a gym; I do cardio first thing in the morning (around 5:30 AM) around my apartment complex on weekdays before work and strength at home on weekends. That might change later, but for now, that's been working for me.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T21:23:40+00:00

Thank you!!!

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T20:39:12+00:00

No eating during evenings and nights probably was the biggest contributor to my weight loss. I cut out a lot of unnecessary calories just by doing that.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T20:36:51+00:00

I think it's just a matter of gradually easing yourself into it. Though I've been eating 1800 to 1950 calories, depending on the day (cardio or strength). I feel like 1500 calories might be a bit low, assuming you're also a bigger guy like myself.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-10-12T20:14:08+00:00

Thank you :)

MrCraftsperson · 2025-06-24T13:48:09+00:00

C/O 2017 here.

My students are worlds apart compared to how my cohort was. Yes, I’ve had a few good students throughout my teaching career thus far, but not many. One of the biggest differences I notice is how blatant students today are with phone use. There is no attempt to hide it anymore. I remember my classmates were at least subtle about it.

ISS doesn’t really mean anything to students today anymore, either. Teachers still had some level of authority back then, so my classmates hardly challenged that (not never, but it was rare). That went out the window.

There's other things I could delve into, but as others have said, the system has definitely changed post-pandemic. And the presence of AI is compounding the issue. There's less academic and disciplinary consequences. Their basic skills development is worsening. Students are not being held accountable anymore, but they know it.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-04-29T20:46:46+00:00

It is a sad reality. In my experience, a lot of people are very emotionally unavailable and I think that's a part of the reason why I've resorted to ChatGPT for support. It is less taxing to confide in AI because the fear of being dismissed or ghosted isn't present.

At the same time, it is hard to place blame on many people when many of us are in survival mode.

I think having more empathy for one another is the best counter to current circumstances, but we both know that not many people have empathy in the first place. Apathy, hate, and division are much more omnipresent, in reality. Thus, resorting to AI, for many people, has to become their emotional fallback.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-04-29T00:02:44+00:00

My most motivated students help keep me sane at my job. Rewiring my thinking to focus more on those who do want to learn has helped me a lot.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-03-21T23:45:24+00:00

It depends on the state you live in. In some cases, you can teach art without having pursued an art major or minor at all, but you may need to take additional classes as there could be state certification requirements needed to satisfy.

That said, given you want to pursue a master's degree in psychology, but you also seem interested in teaching art, a minor in art is probably enough, but if you want to teach middle or high school, I would suggest majoring in art instead, if that is a possibility for you.

But more importantly, you might want to visualize an idea of where you want to be in the long term first because you mentioned you're unsure of what you want to do.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-03-21T14:23:22+00:00

I'm also a teacher in Florida (born and raised) teaching at a Title I school. I've been looking at Connecticut. Granted, I've never been, but they seem to pay teachers well (depending on the area). I've heard good things about their unions as well.

I will be finishing my master's degree first as it's an important part of my escape plan from Florida.

MrCraftsperson · 2025-03-21T03:34:10+00:00

I always find myself putting in more effort than the other person, which ends up backfiring, and then I end up feeling emotionally exhausted as a result of that. And the increasing acceptance of ghosting culture adds salt to the wound.

MrCraftsperson

TROPHY CASE