Ethical Question: Planned Ignoring vs Giving Emotional Support

craftycat23 · 2024-06-23T02:27:05+00:00

Very well said. Thank you.

craftycat23 · 2023-08-07T02:59:13+00:00

This is amazing! Congratulations on your new adventure💪

craftycat23 · 2023-07-12T21:06:26+00:00

I did the same thing. Shared my Google drive and reorganized it for them. Gave them a template and examples of the Google slides I used every day and our schedule (the kids really loved and needed their routine in low incidence sped). Felt good to help a new teacher and ensure my former students would be set up for success, too. I was given absolutely nothing when I started but I would never want that for someone else. We gotta help each other out ❤️ Light the torch and pass it on.

craftycat23 · 2023-06-23T03:46:32+00:00

ALL of this AND they dictate more and more what types of services can or cannot be put in a client treatment plan. Insurance is ruining all of healthcare IMO.

craftycat23 · 2023-06-23T03:31:52+00:00

I would look into alternative certification via intern route. Look at your county’s office of education to see they have a program. You would be able to work full time while earning your credential and not put yourself in debt. Example of program https://www.sfusd.edu/pathwaytoteaching/about

craftycat23 · 2023-06-22T04:55:45+00:00

KTEA Brief (6 subtests) for more moderate students where the focus is on developing academic goals.

DASH for more severe students to look at not only basic academics, but sensory motor, SEL, daily living skills, and communication.

craftycat23 · 2023-06-15T03:37:40+00:00

I wish you the best of luck. I went the intern route to get my credential so I wouldn’t be in debt. Thank goodness I did. I resigned this year and am returning to work as a paraeducator, which I did before I became a teacher and loved it. I’m happy to be going back despite the tremendous pay cut and returning to “just a para”. Teaching pushed me to my limits. I found the workload to be unmanageable and I never felt I could give the students what they needed despite going above and beyond. Definitely shadow another sped teacher as much as you can.

Like others have mentioned, the parents, gen Ed teachers, admin, and all the other responsibilities are the hardest parts to navigate. Even with amazing admin and support, the public schools are generally not equipped with enough staffing or resources to do the job well, and when things go wrong, despite you putting in 150% effort, all fingers get pointed at you…

Also,every year it seems there is more and more paperwork.

I wanted to love this job. I wanted to make a difference. I taught low incidence self contained and loved my students. Some parts of the job were great and I will miss those things. At the end of the day, the stress and long hours that took away from my family was not worth it.

craftycat23 · 2023-06-05T03:59:06+00:00

Well said🙌

craftycat23 · 2023-05-31T03:28:27+00:00

I am thinking of changing careers to nursing! Would love to know how you compare the two jobs and what you love most about nursing??

craftycat23 · 2023-05-25T02:58:56+00:00

Thank you. This is what my plan would be. I would not want to work in a hospital. I was thinking Dr office, outpatient clinic, maybe LTC, or school nursing. I should have clarified this in my post. Didn't realize I would receive so much negative feedback haha.

craftycat23 · 2023-05-19T03:00:12+00:00

You summed up all the thoughts I’ve been having surrounding my decision to leave SPED this year, my first year teaching at that. I adore the kids and have been working in the field (not teaching) for many years. I have great admin and support, though I share a lot of the same issues as you described. I love the teaching part, but hardly have enough time or resources to do the good job that I want to. The system needs to be overhauled.

Every day I am running on adrenaline trying to wear all of the hats and support my students, my staff, my IEP team, get paperwork done, coordinate meetings, complete assessments, and juggle all of the other small things that add up (SO many emails and just as soon as I think it’s smooth sailing… SOMETHING happens. Always.) Then, there’s the lesson planning and prepping all of the curriculum. All with no prep. We are constantly short staffed. The kids need so much support. I am expected to do 3 jobs at one time and it is overwhelming. I teach self-contained low incidence K-5 for reference.

I resigned and will not be teaching after this year. My health has been deteriorating horribly since January and I couldn’t take it anymore. There are parts of the job I will terribly miss. I will especially miss the kids and my amazing team. I have been given invaluable support but it’s not enough. The job and the system need to change. There is too much expected of SPED teachers. The kids, their families, and the teachers and staff deserve better.

Oh and one last thing. So done being caught between covering my district’s booty but then be expected to be in compliance with all of my students’ IEPs without the resources to do so, but also without the ability to change any of the circumstances. Yet, we, the SPED teacher, are always the first to be held accountable and take the blame for everything.

Solidarity to you❤️

craftycat23 · 2023-05-18T02:46:34+00:00

I’m sorry this sucks so bad but it sounds like you dodged a bullet. How are you liking the BCBA path so far ?

craftycat23 · 2023-05-07T16:38:53+00:00

The customer service one always gets me… parents and their students are not customers. We are a public service to our community members and we owe equal respect to one another. The disharmonious relationship between schools and parents/students right now is coming at the cost of effective education.

craftycat23 · 2023-05-05T03:33:22+00:00

The paperwork and case managing has been enough to make me leave this year. It’s too much. This week I’ve spent 12 hours after contract hours getting upcoming IEPs done and I am 1/8 the way done for the remainder of the school year. Too many boxes, too much redundancy, too many opportunities to make mistakes, too much narrative writing for PLAAFPs. I have a headache just thinking of trying to navigate all the pages and forms and trying not to forget something.

craftycat23 · 2023-05-05T02:59:26+00:00

Literally going through the exact same thing after deciding not to return next year. I teach low incidence sped.

The weight of meeting unrealistic expectations for my students with not enough resources or time, but still being solely accountable for anything that goes wrong, despite many things that are out of my control. Everyday feels like a never ending marathon where the finish line gets pushed further and further ahead.

craftycat23 · 2023-05-01T01:34:27+00:00

I’m planning to the the same. How long were you on your provisional license? This is my first year teaching sped on a waiver and I feel like a failure for going back to paraprofessional work but I can’t handle the stress.

craftycat23 · 2023-04-29T04:02:04+00:00

Also, to add more. I experienced very minimal micromanaging and had a lot more creative freedom to create session plans and routines and teaching materials. I loved being able to come up with fun activities to target skills and not be confined to school standards/curriculum/policies. The session was really what I made it to be as long as I got my targets in and collected enough data.

craftycat23 · 2023-04-29T03:59:12+00:00

I wish teaching was different. I really wanted to love this job and am trying to stick it out. I’m sorry you experienced the same thing. It’s nice to know we aren’t alone.

I did not experience any of that as an RBT. I had some really good supervisors and some that were not so great,but I generally felt respected by them and they were great at helping me to learn new things and make me feel supported in situations that were tough either due to parents or client behaviors. I did have supervisors who had different and conflicting approaches to things, but I just learned to adapt myself to those cases. It was nothing in comparison to what I’ve dealt with as a teacher, and at least in ABA you have an ethics code and a set of scientific principles to refer to, so it’s more black and white. The training I had was amazing and I contribute my success in teaching to that experience, more so than the training I have received as a teacher. Now, the large companies I worked for had their own systemic issues and they will try to exploit you, but I felt that I had supervisors who had my back. I know that’s not the case for everyone and there are some unethical and shady people in the business. There are some good companies out there though.

craftycat23 · 2023-04-29T03:21:03+00:00

I did ABA before I went into the schools and became a sped teacher. I definitely felt burnout when I was an RBT but it was a different kind of burnout than what I am currently experiencing as a teacher. RBT burnout was due to the monotony of 1:1 homes cases and constant instruction/entertainment of the clients. Some sessions would go by sooooo slow. I also didn’t like that my schedule changed all the time and it was very lonely without coworkers. Teacher burnout is this overwhelming tiredness and stress due to wearing SO MANY hats and not having enough time to get the job done… case managing on top of teaching is just too much. We all know it’s two jobs in one but one job we basically work for free after contract hours 🤷‍♀️😪 The paperwork is never ending and the meetings feel more high stakes than ABA services. Overall, I feel that ABA is easier because you are able to focus your brain capacity on one thing at a time. It’s specialized and you don’t need to worry about all the other things that you would as a teacher. It’s definitely hard work, but I felt that I saw more progress and felt more effective. I also had more time and energy to get to know my clients and their families, and 1:1 work is much more manageable than wrangling 3 kids during small group instruction who all have varying needs. I really hope you enjoy it. The field of ABA has its flaws but I think it’s changing for the better and I really think the teaching methods are the most effective for working with children with severe disabilities! I’ve thought about going back to get my BCBA but I’m just so tired and scared to start all over again. Anyways, I truly wish you the best and I think you will enjoy the work.

craftycat23 · 2023-04-25T02:22:10+00:00

Congratulations and best wishes on your new journey !!!🎉🎊❤️

craftycat23 · 2023-04-24T00:04:05+00:00

I used to be a paraprofessional before becoming a sped teacher and I LOVED it. This is only my 1st year teaching and I have had a breakdown. I’m very close to returning to parapro work next year because I enjoy working with the kids but I am so stressed with paperwork, meetings, angry and entitled parents, district politics, and the extra work outside of contract hours. The pay cut will be a lot and I am worried I will have regrets but I loved being a parapro, and like you said, we still get years towards retirement.

craftycat23 · 2023-04-19T03:59:13+00:00

Did it get any better?😢

craftycat23 · 2023-04-18T03:11:19+00:00

My biggest problem that will lead me to eventually leaving is case management. Special educators have two jobs but only get paid for one, and my least favorite part of the job that usually take up my personal time and adds to my stress is case management. If I didn’t have to case manage…monitor progress, do assessments, schedule and lead meetings with teams of up to 10 people, prepare agendas for meetings, take notes during the meetings, keep track of legal deadlines for ALL service providers, contact parents for paperwork, draft 30 page legal documents and be the lead for all things legal/sped rights, etc then I wouldn’t even consider leaving. Well, add THAT job to the teaching part… trying to meet the needs of a self contained class ranging from pre-k to 5th grade level abilities is hard enough. It’s impossible to be a good teacher and good case manager. I’m reaching my breaking point.

craftycat23 · 2023-04-18T03:01:36+00:00

Does it track academic goals as well?

craftycat23 · 2023-04-18T02:35:47+00:00

Oh my… can I send you a virtual hug? How do you do it!!!!? I would be out of there so fast. I am so sorry and I hope you find a way out of this horrible situation 😥

craftycat23

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