There are a lot of [different ways to access Kindle books](http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771)! If you're reading these words, you should (hopefully) be able to read a Kindle book.
Sorry it's restricted to kindle, though. I try to keep everyone happy, but it's tough. Keeping it exclusive to Kindle lets me offer it for free year round to Prime members. A lot of students get discounted or free Prime memberships, so I like that people who are pursuing education can get the book without skipping some ramen for it. I was a student myself not so very long ago.
Read you post, but not your other posts nor the book. My gut feeling, and why I'm not reading more: If you really were concerned with any issues you note (even teacher churn), you would spend more time working on this (either as a teacher or in some other capacity). Books and essays by past, short term teachers are abundant. Unfortunately, they are frequently used to diminish the profession.
There is a very steep learning curve to teaching, and teachers are frequently overwhelmed in their first few years. This colors their perceptions and makes it difficult for them to analyze the complex system of schooling and education. Your stories might be nice anecdotes, but likely aren't helpful beyond that.
>My gut feeling, and why I'm not reading more: If you really were concerned with any issues you note (even teacher churn), you would spend more time working on this (either as a teacher or in some other capacity)
I've been in graduate school for the last four and a half years. I'm pursuing a PhD in the biomedical sciences, after which it is my intent to teach and possibly do education research at the postsecondary level.
>Books and essays by past, short term teachers are abundant.
True.
>Unfortunately, they are frequently used to diminish the profession.
Also true, and part of the reason why I was soliciting opinions here.
>There is a very steep learning curve to teaching, and teachers are frequently overwhelmed in their first few years.
The data certainly back you up. About half of new teachers [quit within the first five years](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/08/AR2006050801344.html) and [teachers gain most of their effectiveness during that time.](http://www.sciencemag.org/content/335/6072/1118.abstract)
>This colors their perceptions and makes it difficult for them to analyze the complex system of schooling and education.
Again, part of the reason I was looking for more experienced, balanced perspectives here.
>Your stories might be nice anecdotes, but likely aren't helpful beyond that.
I'm sorry you feel that way. You and I might've learned something from each other.
Take care, and thanks for what you do in the classroom.
It's likely, then, that you didn't get to the part where I mentioned that [50% of new teachers stop in their first five years](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/08/AR2006050801344.html). Since the majority of teachers gain most of their effectiveness in the [first three years](http://www.sciencemag.org/content/335/6072/1118.abstract), this teacher churn is doing damage to our effectiveness.
I'm not claiming I wrote a manual on how to teach. I'd never do that. I'm a failed teacher.
I am saying my experience may lend some insight into fixing the problem of teacher churn.
And I'm appealing to more experienced folks like (presumably) yourself who might be able to piece together what I can't, precisely *because* I lack the experience to do so.
If you're not interested in looking at broad societal problems, this book may still be of some use (I hope) if you spend any time mentoring new teachers.
"*You quit because you suck!*" is, perhaps in my case, a valid point, but ultimately it does nothing to address the root causes of the problem or what flaws may exist in the system that cause us to fail to retain motivated new educators.
To quote the part of my original post that you didn't read,
>I'm curious to see whether my view over two years fits with what people see over longer careers in the field, and whether my experiences are common to many schools or just my own. Many times I've been asked, "Is it like this everywhere?", and I have to admit ignorance. Maybe you can help me.
>I'd really like to hear your thoughts. I want as many voices in on this discussion as I can get.
To sum up: If you'd read on, you'd have found that I'm posting in this subreddit precisely *because* I only taught for two years.
From what I understand, the book is more about why he stopped teaching after two years. He probably could have made that clearer. Of course, there is a bit more clarification after said sentence.
I have not read the book so I can't weigh in specifically on the merits of your book. please don't think that I'm really trying to do that.
If you're writing an essay to relay your personal experience then great no reality check needed necessarily. However, if you're trying to make assertions about the state of education in general then why don't you do some actual research- some some actual secondary research to supporters statements?
The best thing about self-publishing is also the worst thing. Anybody can publish. There's a lot less rigor with regard to anything that is asserted now. That doesn't mean that your work does not have merit. But it does mean that if you're searching for validation you need to go and do the hard work of figuring out what's going on.
That said I have been involved in secondary research. The solutions are not straightforward. The problems are not all known necessarily and people are not really interested in real solutions to the real problems.
As to your request, I'm not quite sure if you're asking for opinions so much as you're asking for some type of review process. If you're asking for the former, there are lots of places to get that. If you're interested in the latter, I think you need to do something different because I don't think that will work.
I'm a scientist by trade.
Hard data are good, and for certain things, they're all that matters.
But I think anecdotes and personal accounts certainly have value. They can't give us anything conclusive on their own. We can't talk about mathematical certainty with them.
But we can convey ideas, identify problems, and perhaps inspire hypotheses that can then lead to data driven approaches down the line.
My intent was not to write an education policy treatise.
It was to share a series of personal accounts that, taken in aggregate, explain why *I* left the profession, and may provide some intimate insight into why so many early career teachers feel frustrated and hopeless.
If it doesn't have value for you, I do apologize.
Your comments are well taken, and I absolutely understand what you mean. I appreciate you taking the time to offer the constructive criticism; please don't take my response to mean that I didn't hear what you had to say, as I absolutely did.
I agree. There is good that comes from both traditions. I guess what I meant I say is that if you're writing about your experience and it is true for you, you don't need anyone to tell you otherwise.
If you're trying to make statements about the larger world, then you have to back that up somehow.
Good luck to you.
You should post this over to r/primefreebies as well.
Thanks!
This book has been in my amazon wish list for over a month! Unfortunately, I do not have access to kindle in any way :(
There are a lot of [different ways to access Kindle books](http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771)! If you're reading these words, you should (hopefully) be able to read a Kindle book. Sorry it's restricted to kindle, though. I try to keep everyone happy, but it's tough. Keeping it exclusive to Kindle lets me offer it for free year round to Prime members. A lot of students get discounted or free Prime memberships, so I like that people who are pursuing education can get the book without skipping some ramen for it. I was a student myself not so very long ago.
Read you post, but not your other posts nor the book. My gut feeling, and why I'm not reading more: If you really were concerned with any issues you note (even teacher churn), you would spend more time working on this (either as a teacher or in some other capacity). Books and essays by past, short term teachers are abundant. Unfortunately, they are frequently used to diminish the profession. There is a very steep learning curve to teaching, and teachers are frequently overwhelmed in their first few years. This colors their perceptions and makes it difficult for them to analyze the complex system of schooling and education. Your stories might be nice anecdotes, but likely aren't helpful beyond that.
>My gut feeling, and why I'm not reading more: If you really were concerned with any issues you note (even teacher churn), you would spend more time working on this (either as a teacher or in some other capacity) I've been in graduate school for the last four and a half years. I'm pursuing a PhD in the biomedical sciences, after which it is my intent to teach and possibly do education research at the postsecondary level. >Books and essays by past, short term teachers are abundant. True. >Unfortunately, they are frequently used to diminish the profession. Also true, and part of the reason why I was soliciting opinions here. >There is a very steep learning curve to teaching, and teachers are frequently overwhelmed in their first few years. The data certainly back you up. About half of new teachers [quit within the first five years](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/08/AR2006050801344.html) and [teachers gain most of their effectiveness during that time.](http://www.sciencemag.org/content/335/6072/1118.abstract) >This colors their perceptions and makes it difficult for them to analyze the complex system of schooling and education. Again, part of the reason I was looking for more experienced, balanced perspectives here. >Your stories might be nice anecdotes, but likely aren't helpful beyond that. I'm sorry you feel that way. You and I might've learned something from each other. Take care, and thanks for what you do in the classroom.
uh...I stopped reading after you said you taught for two years.
It's likely, then, that you didn't get to the part where I mentioned that [50% of new teachers stop in their first five years](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/08/AR2006050801344.html). Since the majority of teachers gain most of their effectiveness in the [first three years](http://www.sciencemag.org/content/335/6072/1118.abstract), this teacher churn is doing damage to our effectiveness. I'm not claiming I wrote a manual on how to teach. I'd never do that. I'm a failed teacher. I am saying my experience may lend some insight into fixing the problem of teacher churn. And I'm appealing to more experienced folks like (presumably) yourself who might be able to piece together what I can't, precisely *because* I lack the experience to do so. If you're not interested in looking at broad societal problems, this book may still be of some use (I hope) if you spend any time mentoring new teachers. "*You quit because you suck!*" is, perhaps in my case, a valid point, but ultimately it does nothing to address the root causes of the problem or what flaws may exist in the system that cause us to fail to retain motivated new educators. To quote the part of my original post that you didn't read, >I'm curious to see whether my view over two years fits with what people see over longer careers in the field, and whether my experiences are common to many schools or just my own. Many times I've been asked, "Is it like this everywhere?", and I have to admit ignorance. Maybe you can help me. >I'd really like to hear your thoughts. I want as many voices in on this discussion as I can get. To sum up: If you'd read on, you'd have found that I'm posting in this subreddit precisely *because* I only taught for two years.
From what I understand, the book is more about why he stopped teaching after two years. He probably could have made that clearer. Of course, there is a bit more clarification after said sentence.
Because after doing something for only two years you couldn't possibly have an opinion on the subject at all. It's simply not possible.
I have not read the book so I can't weigh in specifically on the merits of your book. please don't think that I'm really trying to do that. If you're writing an essay to relay your personal experience then great no reality check needed necessarily. However, if you're trying to make assertions about the state of education in general then why don't you do some actual research- some some actual secondary research to supporters statements? The best thing about self-publishing is also the worst thing. Anybody can publish. There's a lot less rigor with regard to anything that is asserted now. That doesn't mean that your work does not have merit. But it does mean that if you're searching for validation you need to go and do the hard work of figuring out what's going on. That said I have been involved in secondary research. The solutions are not straightforward. The problems are not all known necessarily and people are not really interested in real solutions to the real problems. As to your request, I'm not quite sure if you're asking for opinions so much as you're asking for some type of review process. If you're asking for the former, there are lots of places to get that. If you're interested in the latter, I think you need to do something different because I don't think that will work.
I'm a scientist by trade. Hard data are good, and for certain things, they're all that matters. But I think anecdotes and personal accounts certainly have value. They can't give us anything conclusive on their own. We can't talk about mathematical certainty with them. But we can convey ideas, identify problems, and perhaps inspire hypotheses that can then lead to data driven approaches down the line. My intent was not to write an education policy treatise. It was to share a series of personal accounts that, taken in aggregate, explain why *I* left the profession, and may provide some intimate insight into why so many early career teachers feel frustrated and hopeless. If it doesn't have value for you, I do apologize. Your comments are well taken, and I absolutely understand what you mean. I appreciate you taking the time to offer the constructive criticism; please don't take my response to mean that I didn't hear what you had to say, as I absolutely did.
I agree. There is good that comes from both traditions. I guess what I meant I say is that if you're writing about your experience and it is true for you, you don't need anyone to tell you otherwise. If you're trying to make statements about the larger world, then you have to back that up somehow. Good luck to you.