I have a dilemma, a decision, a problem to be solved: I have been offered 1 of 10 coveted resident teaching positions at a nearby alternative elementary school. Over 200 people applied for this 10 month program where essentially you are working along side the head teacher of a classroom of 17 kids….I don’t know what my age group would be, but they organize the classroom by skill level versus age. I interviewed two months ago, dismissed it, and moved on. (I also recently accepted a part-time sales position at another dance store with the possibility of a management position opening up in January…however, I had to talk them up from 7.50 an hour to 9, so even though it would suck to back out of the job, it’s not like I’d be climbing any major ladders there).
Pros and Cons of the resident teaching position are as follows:
Pro: It’s only 10 months. If the long hours suck, if the school sucks, if teaching sucks, it’s only 10 months.
Con: It’s only 1o months. What to do after the program is up? I had initially been concerned because when I asked this question during the interview they told me most of the resident teachers go on to grad school. OK, so what if grad school is not in my near future? I asked this question again when the position was offered and I was told that this year’s residents are older, many of them already have their certification and/or master’s degrees, some of them are planning on perusing social work, etc. So it sounds like it can be whatever you make of it….but still, when the ten months is over it’s back to the job hunt.
Pro: It will get me out there, provide a vehicle for me to do really meaningful work, allow me to develop any dance/theater type programs I envision for elementary school age. It will be a good networking tool because the school is very connected to the alternative education community.
Con: I have no interest in being an elementary school teacher. I have always been drawn to high school aged kids. I’ve never taught in a classroom setting, only taught small, 45 min. to 60 min. classes one day a week to various age groups.
Pro: The money…it’s pretty good money. More than I’ve ever made in my life. I could look at it almost as paid education.
Con: You work up to 9.5 hour days; really, truly earning that salary. This sounds pathetic but I would have to get up at 6am in the morning…it would be a big challenge for my selfish, sleep-hungry, ass to drag myself out of bed every morning. I worry that it will take me away from things that I enjoy, like taking dance and theater classes and performing, that it might suck my soul, it would exhaust me and keep me from cooking dinner and making my bed, (although it’s only 10 months).
Pro: Paid holidays, Christmas and Thanksgiving time off, Spring break, the school year also includes field trips, traveling with the class, valuable opportunity to teach a real live classroom full of kids.
Con: What if I wasn’t meant to be a teacher, what if I hate it, what if I was meant to be a dance retail manager or buyer, what if I was meant to be a fashion designer, a jewelry designer, what if I am doomed to be a struggling, starving artist.
Pro: Working with respectful people, gaining new insight and developing new ideas, possible wealth of inspiration just waiting to be untapped, facing the unknown, being valued and respected by colleagues, gaining a sense of purpose. It will give me something to do for the next year instead of constantly wondering: What next? Why haven’t they called? How am I going to find work?
Con: Terrified of the unknown, scared to lose myself, afraid of exhaustion, worried I’m putting all my eggs in one basket…and god, the time commitment sounds huge.
After the initial interview I thought, whatever, I don’t want this. But I never thought seriously how I could turn down a potential opportunity…and I admit, I’m flattered. They saw something in me, something that said, hey this kid could be a good teacher, a good asset to our school. It’s like they gave me the recognition I’ve been hungering for…just by offering me a position that over two hundred people applied for. I said I needed the weekend to think about it. Please, give me your feedback, and any potential questions I may be missing, I’m really torn.