This past year, along with thousands of others teachers around the globe, I pondered quitting teaching. It was by far the hardest decision I was faced with. You see, I was teaching in my complete dream position, and I had been there for ten years. I was nominated multiple times for Teacher of the Year for our state and even made it to the semi-finals. Teaching at my school was everything I wanted teaching to be. But I listened to my heart and my head, and I quit my dream job.
Why I Quit Teaching
“Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings’ end” – Semisonic
Before I tell you why I quit teaching at my dream job, let me tell you a little bit about why it was my dream job to begin with. Let’s go back to those golden days of my student teaching internship. That year, I was able to work with a large local district near my hometown, where I had known a few graduates, and some of their siblings were young enough to be in my classes. I was thrilled with my placement school and loved every second of my experience. I began my journey as a math teacher dreaming of working in the big public school district I interned at. But destiny, or budget cuts, had other plans.
You see, I have always believed that math is about more than just solving for x. I’ve always wanted to introduce problem solving and higher order thinking into the mathematics curriculum, and I was particularly interested in finding an answer to the age old question “When am I ever going to need this?” So when my big district job didn’t work out, I sought out my dream teaching position. I landed a job as the only math teacher in an up and coming competency based high school in our area, where we used project based learning as our primary means of delivering instruction.
I was pushed out of my comfort zone and away from the step-by-step lessons and pacing guide I had grown accustomed to during my internship. But I was up for the challenge and the chance to teach mathematics in a way that felt meaningful to me. I’m so grateful for the experience to work with such an innovative group of educators. Bringing real and relevant mathematics to life for my students allowed me to grow in ways I never imagined.
Over the last 10 years, I’ve worked to build up my department and program and have helped launch two new campuses with our model. It was NOT an easy road, but the results have been 100% worth it.
Every day, I got to engage kids in coursework relevant to their lives through Project Based Learning, and bolster their self esteem as they learn to progress at their own pace using a blended instruction approach. I couldn’t love it any more! So why did I quit teaching there?
When to Quit Teaching
I knew my time at my school had come to an end.
My word of the year for 2020 was “purpose”. At the time I chose it, I thought it’s meaning in my life was to help me be intentional. And really, to be honest, I was hoping it would help me curb my Amazon spending habits…. But as the year went on, I came to realize that 2020 would be the year that I recognized that my purpose changed.
In 2020, my purpose in education shifted. For the first ten years of my educational career, I was focused on learning and practicing with the most innovative teaching practices to design a classroom experience that was Moore than Just X for my students. And my school was the perfect place for me to do just that. But my new chapter in education called for me to bring that mission beyond the four walls of my classroom and my school. And to do that, I knew I I had to quit teaching where I was and venture on. I needed to share these ideas and practices with students and teachers who weren’t yet familiar with them.
A shift in my Professional Purpose
Like so many other teachers, I turned to the internet and social media during the pandemic as a way to escape and connect. I started chatting with and helping teachers in districts all around the world bring project based learning to their classrooms. I began to wonder… should I quit my teaching job and pursue a new venture?
I’ve worked as an instructional coach and I’ve served as a mentor teacher. Perhaps my new purpose was to teach teachers about how to bring project based learning to life in their classrooms. I was really excited to interview for a district math coordinator position, where I could really help transform the experience for so many teachers, and by proxy their students.
But the more I talked with these teachers and administrators, the more I realized that while I have all the experience in the world with project-based learning, blended instruction and mastery based assessment, what I didn’t have was a good understanding of what it was like to work in a big public district. We’ve all been to PD with presenters who have never taught (or hadn’t in years), and found them less impactful. I didn’t want that to be the person in that position leading an entire district without having taught in one. So I thought about it for a while.
My purpose as a Parent
Meanwhile, I was also parenting during the pandemic. My own children’s district was really stepping up to show how they were educational leaders in our state, and I was confident that they would be leaders long after the pandemic had ended. And while I applaud their district for having made the choices they did during the pandemic, I also felt the effects of those choices as a parent.
Collectively my children were quarantined six times…that’s twelve weeks of schooling they’ll never get back. By all means, my children were in a prime position to survive and thrive in schooling through a pandemic. A math teacher mom at home who uses their LMS, regularly reviews curriculum, and regularly infuses blended learning practices into her teaching for the last 10 years… What more could a kid need to support them in at home learning during a pandemic?! And yet, when the last quarantine hit, I saw just how devastating those 12 missing weeks had been.
My heart sank realizing the impact this year had on my children. And that’s when I felt it… my true new purpose and new calling. I had to bring my practices to new places, not to support teachers, but to support students.
I knew my classroom practices could boost confidence and capabilities for a diverse group of learners and learner variability. I’ve got ten years of evidence to support that. It was time to do more and to support more students than I had ever before. My first ten years in education my purpose was to develop these instructional practices and for at least the next ten years my new purpose is to use these practices to support students as we navigate post-pandemic life and define a new normal for education.
Room to Grow with New Purpose
Having spent the year reflecting on and refining my purpose, I set out to find a position where I could impact more students and support them in redefining the new normal. There was truly only one place in my mind where I would be able to have the most impact: my own children’s district. Within a few weeks, I learned they had an opening for the upcoming school year. So I did the hardest thing I’ve had to do, I decided to quit my teaching job and applied for the open position. And now I’m excited to say that I will be starting my next chapter with them this coming August. I’ll be bringing the best student centered practices with me as I embrace a new beginning.
Why do teachers quit teaching?
Teaching is a journey. There are so many reasons why teachers quit. For some, it may be a poor fit within a school. Or it may be that their skills can be used better in another profession. For me, it was a journey to rediscover my purpose and passion in education. If you find yourself asking: Should I quit my teaching job? I encourage you to take time to reflect on your purpose and your passions. You may find that changing roles in education, either by position or building or district is the change you need. Or you may find that you are ready to quit teaching altogether. It’s your journey. Pursue your purpose and passions wherever they may take you.
Keeping it real,
P.S Ten years is a long time! Check out my Instagram Post where I said Goodbye to my school and shared all of the different spaces I taught in during those ten years and my teaching stats from my career there!
