Rebuilding Rob

I don’t normally like to post things from Fox News, as I don’t watch the channel. But I heard about this story the other day elsewhere on the Interwebs, and given that it pertains to my occupation, I thought it was interesting to share.

It’s generally accepted as a fact in teaching that 50% of new teachers leave the profession within the first five years. Think about that for a moment: a 59% attrition rate. It’s truly one of those cases where someone says: “look at yourself and look at the person next to you. One of you will be out of this profession within 5 years”. So for me to hear that this young lady left the profession after only three years is not surprising.

What’s more, this young lady’s decisions for leaving the profession are equally not surprising. This is not an easy job. The rewards a few and far between. The challenges are many. What this young lady says is true: students don’t read enough. They don’t write enough. As an English teacher, I can attest to that. I know that they don’t read or write because their grammar is horrible in their native language.

Furthermore, many students today are lacking critical thinking skills. Obviously this is not true of everyone. But school is exceedingly difficult for students who lack a general knowledge base and the critical thinking skills to figure things out. When you also factor in the internet, smartphones and the eve-growing presence of AI in our lives, many students feel like they don’t NEED to learn this stuff.

It’s no wonder this teacher left the profession. It’s not easy. And it’s not getting any easier for us. Teachers are expected to cover more content in the same an amount of time. The truth is, I could go in all day about the challenges facing teachers today. There have been books written about this subject.

Maybe I’m some kind of masochist, but I embrace those challenges. I know that I work a job that most people aren’t willing to take. I can with my field of work, I’ve mostly worked in places where other teachers don’t want to teach. I’m not saying all this because I think I deserve a pay in the back. The truth is, I love my job. Most of us bitch about it because we DO love our jobs. We want things to be better for both teachers and students.

When I hear stories like this one, I feel bad. I shake my head. I’ll usually say something like “another one bites the dust”. I understand why they leave. Hell, they’re usually justified in the decision. it this is one job I can’t walk away from. I live it too much. I can’t imagine what I would do if I didn’t teach. And the times I’ve have had to lie, it has been devastating to me.

As this school year winds down and other teachers retire or walk away (as this young lady did) all I can do is steal a line from the WWE and say “best of luck on your future endeavors”.

Thanks for stopping by Rebuilding Rob. Be sure to like, 👍 comment and subscribe to my blog below. It’s greatly appreciated! Also, feel free to follow me on social media as well! Check out my most recent posts as well as some earlier, related posts:

• Rob’s Retro Movie Review: This is Spinal Tap (1984) – The Movie That Scaled to Eleven
• A Death in the Family (And My Disposable Income): My Life in Comics
• The Supporting Cast: Navigating the Eras of Male Friendship
• Life is What Happens: A Look Back at My Non-Existent 2025 Vision
• The Moment I Walked Inside a Hallmark Movie

The article “A War of Attrition” first appeared in Rebuilding Rob.