So I don't know if anyone can help me, but I am just feeling overwhelmed and burnt out on my job. I am a part-time instructor for Math and Computers, and although I love the teaching aspect of my job I have become burnt out all all the excuses that students give.
I also hate the grading which seems to take up so much of my home time. If I have a busy week and get even the smallest bit behind I feel like I can never catch up. This summer has been particularly hard, and I was in tears tonight wanting to quit my job. I have always wanted to be a teacher since I was a little kid, but I am so burnt out I don't think I am any good for my students or my family right now. Unfortunately I can't just stop working since we rely on my income to keep us afloat.
I have a bachelor's degree in Mathematics with a minor in Computer Science. Does anyone know what kind of jobs would fit my degree? I was looking tonight at options, but so many of them want experience to go with my degree. How do I get experience though if they are only hiring people with experience? If anyone knows what kind of entry level jobs fit my degree I am all ears. I never thought about how my degree would work for anything other than teaching. I don't know what my final decision will be, but right now I just need to know what my options are. I realize that right now I should be just happy that I have a job, but it is hard when you feel like you aren't doing your best at something to be happy about it. I want something I can work hard at, and be the best person I can.
You should see a recruiter, they can actually do some work on your behalf. Your degree is one of the most sought after in the workforce, even in the current economic times. Depending on your skillset (other than the academic side) you may work as anything from a fiscal analyst to a job in the computer, technical or lab industries. Try a job search with your degree as the keyword and see what comes up!
I am a credentialed teacher, though for now I am a SAHM. I haven't taught much yet, but I have certainly had a lot of teachers! Considering how difficult it is to find a job these days, you might want to look into changing the way you do things. For instance, you could have each student grade their own (or each other's) papers at the beginning of class. Or you could have student helpers who help grade. Another option I've come across is not grading everything, although this would mean the entire grade would come down to quizzes and tests. There must be other more creative solutions.
As for excuses, you could accept late papers by a certain date and/or dock points for them.
Don't let burn-out keep you from a job you could love!
If you post your resume on Monster, recruiters will start calling, or you can start calling THEM. You don't have to be serious &/or feel obligated to take anything offered to you, to get out there and interview (interviewing actually works two ways when you're not desperate! ;)
A few other thoughts...in your current field...and not knowing where you currently teach or at what level:
- There are over 20,000 homeschoolers in the city of Seattle. Many of them form cooperatives that are on the constant lookout for teachers. Others need a teacher for the higher level stuff that they just can't keep up on (you do not even KNOW the number of parents I know sweating at night trying to learn calculous enough to be able to teach/grade their 7th grader's work). In the HS community, you could advert yourself as a teacher for the kids/teen, OR as a tutor for the parent. If you decide to go this route...there are tons and tons of newsletters and local HS boards to advertise on...and that's just the secular.
- Tutoring. Anything from elementary to the university level. You could choose just one area, or be reeeally broad and be teaching addition and then SQL in the morning, set theory for one student followed by algebra for another in the afternoon. Where you'll get hits from depends on where you advertise (University Campuses, or community centers, or elementary/middle schools, or HS newspapers, craigslist, etc).
Either of those two options would allow you to teach, but on a MUCH smaller level, an no more grading papers/HW unless you decided to assign stuff that needed to come back to you. Wheeeee.
With either tutoring or teaching privately, you'd also get to more or less set your own hours, and you could start gradually...seeing if you like it (while getting paid no less)...and how many hours you'd need to work to support your family.
anyhow...just some thoughts.
I am sorry you are feeling burnt out... What about if you do tutoring one on one with kids? Right now we pay 30 dollars an hour twice a week to a tutor.. she does it during the summers.. she is also a teacher at my daughter school..
when i was in high school many years ago I had a retired math teacher tutor me and she impacted my life in many ways.. what a wonderful person.
I am happy with paying the 30 dollars an hour twice a week b/c I have heard if I go to a tutoring center it cost much more and you have to pay the center for all these placement test.
Sorry if this isn't what you are looking for just thought it might be less hours and less grading homework and still helping/ teaching kids.
Lenc
You might search DICE, Hotjobs.com, Monster for companies looking for data analysts, researchers, data specialists, etc. in your area. Banks always have a need for people in this role, as do companies like Forrester Research, Neilson, and other marketing research companies, but internet companies are more and more spending a lot of money building analytical tools to better understand how people are using their applications. You don't have to have experience to land a reasonable paying entry level job, but you will need to remember some statistics. Best of luck.
