I have an interview on Friday. Tips?

Love it! I ended my student teaching in mid-May, but came back in June as a surprise to sign their yearbooks one of the last few days of school (they were in 5th grade moving up to the middle school). Those reactions are always good inspiration to tough it out, no matter how how frustrating the job search gets!

 

It's been a week...any word yet?

Did you send the thank you notes?

 

No word yet. I think they would inform me if I were not chosen, they emailed me about the other position I applied for that was filled in-district through an employee transfer stating that another candidate was chosen for that position.

Yes I did.

 

Applied to two districts/six positions today.

 

Sometimes schools do not call to let you know they chose someone else. I'm still waiting for callbacks on interviews I had almost 10 years ago. Keep applying!

 

The district I live in sends out an email if they don't pick someone for a position - at least they did with the position that they hired from within for

 

What they do in one instance may not be done in others. If you haven't heard, it's okay to call them and ask if the position has been filled.

 

Bros, do you think they are still deciding on the position for which you interviewed almost two weeks ago?

 

Bros, if I were you, I would seriously consider leaving New Jersey. New Jersey is an EXTREMELY tough job market. I'm not suggesting this because of any other circumstances, I'm suggesting it because you're a new teacher in New Jersey. You will have more success with a wider search radius, in multiple states. If I were you, I'd be sending out applications to the suburbs of Baltimore and Washington. Maybe Philly too, although the job market isn't much better there. But seriously... a special ed teacher trained in New Jersey? I can virtually guarantee that you'd find a job eventually in Fairfax County, Virginia, to say nothing of either Baltimore City or DC Public Schools.

Yes, moving away from your parents would be hard. You'd have to find new ways of doing things. You'd need to set up a support network. You'd have to learn new coping skills. I understand all those things. I'm not pretending it will be easy. Honestly though... you're a... 22? 23? year old man. You're going to have to live without your parents eventually, no matter what, and as difficult as you will find it now while you're young, you will find it far more difficult if you're 56 and your parents pass away. Now, maybe you'll beat the odds and get a job near your hometown. If so, that would be wonderful for you. But you should be realistic also, particularly if you are truly determined to be a teacher. You're in a tough market for teachers, even discounting the hurdles you'll already need to go through.

 

You should have mentioned the nepotism that is prevalent in New Jersey school districts. If you don't know the principal or superintendent the job search is going to be that much harder.

 

Bros,

Have you considered teaching overseas? I did it and it was a wonderful experience. You will be able to experience another culture and meet wonderful people. You can also save a lot of money. It might also look good on your resume.

 

Bros, I'm going to say to you, because it's the truth. Not to be mean, as other have accused me of in another thread. You need to see the truth. Not a sugar coated version. Most people, including non teachers, aren't told they aren't picked. Of the ones informed someone else got the job, MAYBE 10% are told why. For example, say you went in that button down shirt you made your parents button for you and one of the buttons was undone. No one is going to tell you “Why are we going to hire you when you can't button your own shirt?”. No, you could sue them. There's a lot of discrimination that goes on, especially when there is a lot of candidates. If I'm the principal, I can decide I don't like people who wear short sleeve shirts if hundred of people apply. I'm going to say this to you, because the others won't, they're not going to tell you didn't get it, or why, because you're differently abled. They don't want you to turn around and sue them.

Bros, I also think you're not ready to be alone in a classroom by yourself. I really think, especially as you live at home, you should try subbing. It would give you experience and help you with the things you're lacking in without jeopardizing the whole year for a class. For example, you have an issue with getting students ready for dismissal. That's something you can work on, without it always happening to the same students and the parents getting mad. I know you said there were issues with the district you wanted to sub in, but try any district that will take you. If you want, you can pm me and I will send a list of like five districts that don't even require substitutes to interview. You just fill out a form and get fingerprinted, get your clearance in the mail, bring it back and are allowed to sub.

 

Nothing in the meeting minutes about the position having been filled - and they just had a board of ed meeting yesterday.

They are probably arranging demo lessons around now - as NJASK stuff has been happening for the past two weeks - testing last week, makeups this week.

I do not have the life skills to live independently - at the least I would need assistance in a house/apartment to do things like prepare meals and to accompany me to doctors appointments to fill out forms

Only reason I got the interview that I did was because my parents are friends with a person on the Board of Ed.

My aunt works for a private special needs school down in South Jersey.

I don't think teaching overseas would be advisable for me until I cease needing to get yearly checkups by my cardiac electrophysiologist - as I have to get a 24 hour holter monitor done yearly to monitor my premature ventricular contractions

...Duh? Of course they won't go "We didn't hire you because you're disabled!" they'll say "We hired another candidate for the position and we wish you luck in your future endeavors"

I am still trying to get on the sub list. I am going to call either tomorrow or Friday, as NJASK testing makeups end on Friday. Hopefully I can get an interview sometime next week for subbing, that would be nice.

The only issue I have with helping students get ready for dismissal is that I move a little bit slower to make sure that I am doing it correctly. No parents ever got mad - dismissal prep was always started 10 minutes before children were called for bus lines - which was more than enough time to get 20 students ready for dismissal at 30 seconds a student, some more, some less.

This would not be an issue in an upper elementary classroom - or anything above first grade, where the students are more independent and able to do more tasks related to dismissal autonomously - with some reminders i.e. don't forget your folder, get x signed, remember to do ____

 

So can you learn those life skills? What are you doing to gain those skills?

Bros, every now and then you slip in a post that reminds me that you are indeed a human, not a robot! A little emotion-some passion-is what you need. You need to embrace what life has thrown at you and make the best of it. Stop making excuses for everything and attack your job search.

 

I won't ever be able to use a knife to help me cut food - my muscles/motor skills/dysgraphia prevent that - and insurance won't fund maintenance OT, which I would need in order to have motor skills & muscles that have a decent strength. As it stands, my hands can probably exert 10 lbs of force each when gripping. After 39 weeks of OT, they could exert 30 (left) and 40 (right), which were the same numbers showing at 23 weeks, but with no chance of improvement seen. All three OTs I have seen have said there is no chance of even moderate improvement of my coordination/motor skills, as that window long passed.

With my dress pants, those are easy for me to get on because it is just a clasp that I have to slide to get it to stay. Still looking into things for dress shirts.

I have been applying to jobs in the districts around me, and a few a little bit further out - where it'd be around $1000 a month in cab fare.

 

I hope you are also looking for special education advocate positions. With your background knowledge, I think you would excel more in advocacy than you would in classroom teaching.

 

Can you buy precut food? Vegetables are sold precut, so are some meats. Use scissors. One of these. Meals on Wheels. Eat out. Assisted living. Get a roommate. Whatever!

Point is, bros, plenty of people with disabilities far better, the same, and far worse find ways to live independently.

I just find it difficult and unproductive to give you interview advice for a teaching position, one in which you will be directly responsible for the safety, well-being, and education of young children, when in the next post you tell us you can't possibly live alone because you can't button your own shirt.

I get it, if your disabilities honestly prevent you from living independently, and you are 100% sure that you will never live separate from someone who will provide you with food, clothing, transportation, and other necessities, then maybe...just maybe...you should heed the advice of several posters who suggest looking at a profession that is more suited to your abilities.

 

Been looking, haven't found any yet.

Yes, I could buy precut foods. Scissors are a bit difficult for me - that double handed blade might work for me, provided I can apply enough pressure.

I am not a prognosticator so I cannot predict the future, but I know that for at least the next few years, I do not foresee myself living independently.

With transportation, my parents drive me to doctor's appointments - to help fill out any paperwork. With school, the taxi drives me.

 

You are on SSDI, right? Maybe you should take the next year or so and focus on making strides to live alone. It can be done, if you are willing. Then you could move to an easier place to get a job

 

I do not want to be the doom and gloom but as my own parents are aging and I am an only child I am having to face the fact that they are not going to live forever and at some point (much sooner than I am going to want it to be) I am going to have to face living in a world without my parents. I am 49 years old and my mother and I are co-dependent on each other. Have you thought about how you will get along when your parents are no longer able to take care of you?

 

I completely agree with this. You would be FAR better off in life if you learned to live without relying on your parents.

You can't use a knife reliably? Learn to use a crock pot. Drop food in, pull food out, and if you did it right, it'll pretty much fall apart. At the risk of sounding insulting, my great-grandmother passed away at the age of 101, and was still regularly cooking for herself at 98. Learn to bake. Learn to cook pasta. Find foods that won't require you to use a knife.

Just as an adult, I think your first responsibility needs to be to learn how to take care of yourself. I know you don't want to think of this... nobody does... but your parents aren't going to live forever, and they aren't going to want to be the caretaker for their adult son, either. They'll want to relax, retire, travel, move to Florida, and all the other typical "old people stuff." How can you honestly go into a classroom and tell all the children you're working with that they have the capability to be productive, self-sufficient members of society if you don't believe it of yourself?

I'm not going to pretend it'll be easy, but it won't be easy teaching that fifth grader reading on a first grade level how to access grade level curriculum, either. You have to find ways to make it work, and you have to find the right accommodations.

 

Bros, I'm going to be brutally honest...your parents are doing you a tremendous injustice to you by not preparing you to survive on your own. Perhaps they are afraid to let you try, perhaps they have their heads buried in the sand, perhaps they just want to enable you...whatever the reason, since they aren't willing to help, you need to do it on your own.

I have a child with severe disabilities who will never live on his own. He is grown now (chronologically), but we have worked to get him as independent as possible within the confines of his abilities. He can take care of his health needs (shower, shave, etc. He has learned how to cook using an oven, stove, and microwave. he can do his own laundry, do the dishes, clean his room and bathroom.

My child does not go anywhere on his own, stays with me when we shop, will not drive, but, he can take care of his immediate needs. When we are gone, he will need a care giver to shop for him and pay bills for him, etc, but he will be able to survive.

You will not survive a week without your parents, and that is the injustice that has been done to you.

You very rarely take any advice offered to you here, but I agree with the posters who are saying that looking for a teaching job should not be the top item on your bucket list...you need to teach yourself how to survive.

 

Bros...did your parents call the bd of ed member friend to let him know you were applying? You've mentioned this person before.

 

I am on SSI. SSDI is for individuals who have worked for 5 or more years in their lifetime. SSI provides $752.25 to a recipient in the state of NJ who lives alone (I currently get $524.98).

My father turns sixty this year and no man in the last two generations of his family (the only generations we know about - his and his father) have lived past the age of 69. His side of the family has history of cancer, heart issues, and diabetes. Luckily, only the diabetes has shown up so far - but he has some heart issues that went undetected until recently, and he is currently on a corrective regimen for those issues, and examined yearly by a cardiologist to see if surgical measures need to be taken.

My mother turns fifty this year. Her family, if they don't die of cancer in their sixties, live well into their 90s. Some history of dementia on my mom's side.

By the time it reaches that point, my brother or extended family may be able to assist me if need be (I have six cousins, five live around here, three have "adult jobs" and want to stay in the area for the foreseeable future) - or I could seek the assistance of state/local organizations.

My parents would never move to Florida. They aren't the snowbird type

My parents probably won't be retiring for at least 15 years (in my father's case) or 20 years (in my mom's case, but might be less if her back gets worse, then she can just claim SSDI, which she doesn't have much of due to... unusual income reporting by a company she worked for for ~15 years)

I am good at figuring out accommodations, but I think I have a bit of a blind spot to myself.

Enabling is most likely, at least on the part of my mother. My father buries his head in the sand - he doesn't think my disabilities are as.. affecting as they are.

I can't drive. My coordination and vision prevent it. So I used public transit for college and taxis for student teaching & field experiences.

I have enough microwaveable food in the freezer where I could survive for a week - I microwave food for most of my lunches, except on Sundays where I help my dad cook fish - I usually help gather the spices/whatever else.

My dad was talking to him one day about something, he mentioned to him that I was doing student teaching, the neighbor said that when a job got posted that I was qualified for on paper, I should apply for it, then we tell him so he could get me in for an interview. We told him, I got that first round interview. We thanked him last weekend for getting me the interview - first weekend we saw him, he's always busy during the week even though he is retired.

 

I had a feeling you would only respond to the SSI correction. What about the rest of what people wrote? Why don't you take the next year to work on skills needed to live alone? I know it is scary to make that jump but in the end, it would open up so many possibilities, professionally and (maybe more importantly) socially

 

$752 is not enough for someone to live alone in NJ, even with section 8 housing - which all has a long long waiting list

 

bros, this may seem like a strange request but I think it may be a helpful exercise. Can you make a list of all the things you feel would prevent you from living on your own? I ask because all the things I have seen you mention so far are things that do not sound like things that necessarily have to preclude you from living on your own. You don't seem to have much confidence in your own ability to become independent, and I think that is something you should focus on before jumping into a full-time career. So, I suggest that you make a list, and then for each item, pretend you are trying to come up with accommodations for a student and make a list of possibilities. If you feel comfortable, share it here and I imagine there are many people who would be willing to help you brainstorm. I think what is truly preventing you from becoming independent is your lack of confidence, not your disabilities.

If you are able to work on your skills and come to a point where you would be able to live on your own, you could much more easily relocate to an area where the job market is less saturated and that was either small enough to allow you to walk most places, or large enough to have a public transportation system that would allow you to get around easily without the need for a car.

 

No one is telling you that you need to move out and support yourself right now...(bangs head on wall in frustration)... we just want you to learn self sufficiency skills.

 

Here's the emoticon you're looking for

Code:

:banghead:

 

I would have used that one...it's cute. Just felt like typing

 

Bros. here's the question everyone is hinting at. What are you doing to plan for your future? No one can predict the future but your parents aren't going to be around forever. Do you really want
To put your care on your brother? Do you really want to rely on NJ public assistance for your upkeep ?
(Keep in mind the state isn't keeping up on their contacted responsibilities to fund the pensions and health care of those of us public employees who have collectively bargained for such)

 

I do not see myself moving out of the house until I am in my late 20s/early 30s. I don't think it is feasible before that point.

I know the state isn't very good with keeping their end of the bargain - they cut DVR funding right after I finished community college, which reduced the amount I was able to get in tuition assistance by $1000 to $2500 a semester, which covered almost half my tuition a semester.

Most of the programs I would utilize would be county funded, most likely, or private businesses, such as taxi companies as the county paratransit is not very reliable.

 

Why is it feasible in your late twenties but not now? What will change in the next few years?

 

I am struggling with the fact that basically you can't take care of yourself and yet you plan on being responsible for the care of a classroom of students! I teach junior high and believe me it still takes a LOT of stamina to teach every day. Have you really been in charge of a classroom ALL BY YOURSELF all day yet? Do you know if you have the stamina? I am sure you will comment about student teaching, etc. but you were closely supervised.

You need to find the services that you need to be independent. Do you even want to be independent? Do you enjoy having your parents take care of you? I think your dad's head is in the sand because he wants you to have your own life separate from theirs.

 

I think I have the stamina to handle a classroom all day.

My dad's head is in the sand because he does not understand my disabilities. He has stated this multiple times to me, with statements such as "I don't get what's up with this 'anxiety' thing." or "Don't have me write that you are epileptic, the doctor'll think you're retarded!" (He had epilepsy, went away in the 90s, he was diagnosed in the 60s)

 

Had a loss-of-consciousness seizure today at my college commencement.

Didn't get to walk.

 

Are you feeling okay now?

 

I am so sorry you didn't get to walk. I hope that you are okay now.

 

That's awful!!! I'm so sorry. Hope you're ok.

 

Hope you're okay now, bros. Sorry about not getting to walk.