I am hoping you guys can lend me your advice on which job I should take. Job A I have a job offer to teach Sp. Ed 7-8 Resource Math. Two periods of Math inclusion and 4 (50 minutes each) periods of Resource Math. Pros: It pays approx $2k more/yr, it's teaching my favorite subject, I love the classroom space, and it has lots of books, materials, & manipulatives. The campus has the most sp ed programs of all the schools in the district, (learning lab, read 180, PAS program etc) the diag helps teacher out with paperwork load and seems really knowledgeable, principal likes me a lot, said I was perfect for the job during the interview! The cons: it is about 20 minutes longer drive than other job (45+ minutes prob.), limited planning help as I will be the only Resource Math teacher, and then all the demands that go along with sp. ed- extensive paperwork, mentally demanding, etc. Job B This job offer is to teach 6th grade Gen. Ed English Language Arts. I would have 3, 100 minute blocks of ELAR classes. Pros: learn a lot as whole team plans for 6th grade lessons, district trains me on what my classroom schedule looks like, job is 25-30 minutes from home, less paperwork and no ARD's (sp ed meetings) involved. Cons: planning not done on my time, but twice a week with entire team, (might get tiered of doing this and maybe unwanted time commitment?) have 25 students in each class to manage, more papers to grade, $2k less money, much bigger school, give up my classroom for another teacher during my conference period, weekly "duty". Please give me your opinions based on this information. I am new to the teaching field- only 1 semester, I taught sp ed last year. I am certified in sp. ed and gen. ed and am unsure which job to take. I have to make a decision very soon. I hated driving 45 minutes this past semester (I didn't like my school either though) but might be able to do it again or possibly move? It's all highway driving which makes it better too. I might like gen. ed better though? Anyone gone from sp. ed to gen. ed and or have any opinions of which job I should take? Give em' all to me! Thanks
By the way you described both jobs, it sounds like Job A is more what you want. Of course I really don't know, it just seems like that to me! The drive can be a pain, but when I've had to drive farther than I've wanted to, I've looked at it as "me time" and found it can actually be relaxing. On the other hand, I am not a special ed. teacher so I do not know all of the demands, etc. From what I see though it is tough but can be very rewarding. Sorry, not sure if I've helped you at all! But either way, be very thankful you have two offers!
It sounds like you are favoring job A in your descriptions to me as well. Have you made a list of specific pros and cons so you can compare both jobs side by side? If the commute concerns you a lot you could always take job B and then transfer next year into a math position since you said that's your favorite thing to teach.
