Teacher
(Female, Age 50) from richmond, NY
This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 50 who works as a Teacher in richmond, NY. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.
At a Glance
Current Job
Basic data on your current job
| Job Title | Teacher |
|---|---|
| Salary | |
| Other Compensation | None Set |
| Hours/Week | 45 |
| Company Size | (not answered) |
| Location | richmond, NY |
| Years Experience | 26 years |
Career Ratings
Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)
| Years in Career | 0 |
|---|---|
| Education | (not answered) |
| Income Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Interest Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Work-Life Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Fulfilment Rating | 0 / 10 |
Current job Q&A
Describe the type of organization you work for.
Urban public school system. Elementary school, grades pks-5.
Describe your job role and responsibilities.
Assess students who may have developmental disabilities.
Member of school Child Study Team.
Prepare individualized education plans.
Teach early childhood special education class.
Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
10 weeks summer vacation, 1 sick day per month. Health insurance, retirement benefits
Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
undercompensated
Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
I work primarily with my teacher assistant/paraprofessional. I love it. Having a good assistant is worth it’s weight in gold.
Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes
Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
Small, small, classroom. Building is old, not up to date technologically.
Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 4
Benefits: 5
Hours: 7
Co-Workers: 2
Supervisors: 3
Job Title: 8
Level of Responsibility: 6
The Actual Work: 1
A day in the life of…
Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:
| 5am to 6am | |
| 6am to 7am | |
| 7am to 8am | Prepare for daily lessons.
Review lesson plan for the day. Set up learning stations. |
| 8am to 9am | Assist getting children off of the schoolbus.
Supervise children eating breakfast. Take children to classes. Special bus arrives bringing preschool special education students to school. Assist getting them off of the buse. Take them to class. Manage student belongings. Read notes from parents and guardians. Accompany students to bathroom. Assist those with intellectual disabilities and other special needs to complete toileting and hygiene activities. |
| 9am to 10am | Children’s center time. Supervise paraprofessional and work one-to-one with individual students. Work with related service personnel such as occupational, physical, vision therapists. |
| 10am to 11am | Large group activity-literacy, songs, movement, books, basic concept skills, etc…
Small group motor activities. Prepare students for lunch in the cafeteria. |
| 11am to 12pm | lunch-assist students getting lunch trays, opening necessary containers such as milk, fruit, etc…
Toileting activities, |
| 12pm to 1pm | Supervise children on playground. Assist those children with motor impairments.
Supervise children and work with them on literacy activities. Prepare snack and supervise students. Prepare students to go home on the bus or be picked up by parent. |
| 1pm to 2pm | Lunch break.
Clean up classroom. Prepare activities for next school day.s Complete daily paperwork. |
| 2pm to 3pm | Update student records, record daily observations, review individualized education plans.
Meet with parents as necessary. Tutor Kindergarten students Assist other students load buses, supervise children wait for buses or parent pickup. |
| 3pm to 4pm | Complete those duties not finished earlier in the day.
End of school day. |
| 4pm to 5pm | |
| 5pm to 6pm | |
| 6pm to 7pm | |
| 7pm to 8pm | Review plans, record data. |
| 8pm to 9pm | |
| 9pm to 10pm | |
| 10pm to 11pm | |
| 11pm to 12am |
Table of Contents
How you got your job
How did you get your current job?
I applied by sending in a resume.
What was the application process?
resume, paper application
Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
Interview first with Human Resources personnel, then interview with principal, assistant principal.
If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
What assessment tools I can use.
How do I decide what to teach.
HOw I would handle certain problems.
Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
I thought it would, but you really don’t know anything until you get your first class. Now that’s really on the job training!
Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
Bachelors and Masters degrees in Special Education.
Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Just like the above answer. College is great, but the on the job training is the best.
If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
NA
If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Get a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree. Don’t limit yourself to courses in your major. Try to student teach in an urban classroom. If you can do that, you can do anything. It’s kind of like being an emergency room nurse.
What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
Social skills-to be able to work with all types of personalities.
Organization-to keep student’s work up to date, keep IEP files in correct order.
Technology-be proficient with both Mac and Windows computers. Know how to work with multiple types of communication.
Learn sign language.
Time management skills.
Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Master’s is definitely important.
What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Plan ahead, be super organized, be open to other people’s opinions, have everything ready early. Occasionally take a mental health day.
Long-term career plans
Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
I am right in the place that I want to be. I just wish my pay scale was better.
What are your current career goals?
As I approach retirement age, I’d like to mentor younger teachers.
Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
I love what I do. I just wish teachers were respected.
Prior work history
Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:
| Title | Length | Salary | Description | |
| Prior Job 1 | Teacher | 2 years | 18K | Teacher, Learning Disabilities/Emotional Disturbance. |
| Prior Job 2 |
Educational background
Please list your educational background:
High School GPA:2.7
| GPA | School | Degree | |
| College (Undergraduate) or Technical/Vocational |
sss3.4 | Virginia Commonwealth University | Special Education |
| Graduate or Professional (Masters or Doctorate) |
3.8 | Virginia Commonwealth University | Special Education |
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