Long Island Forums > Teachers

NYC teaching vs. Long Island teaching....opinions???

Posted By	Message
beautyq115	I currently teach in NYC...trying to get out the LI (I know so many are in the same position as me) Has anyone taught in both LI and NYC and would you be able to do a side by side comparison for me? Is it really worth it having a LI job???? Posted 1/9/07 9:10 PM
MrsMadness	I've only taught on Long Island so I am speaking from that perspective but... Pros: Money, proximity to home, resources available to me and my students, high levels of support from parents and administrators, high levels of expectations Cons: High levels of expectations and involvement, especially when you are untenured I was a reading tutor in one school in Brooklyn before I got my certification and although I loved the kids, their economic situations and homelives were totally depressing. It was hard to overcome those obstacles although working with them was very rewarding. Compared to the teachers in that school, teachers in my school are much happier. Posted 1/9/07 9:32 PM
anna	I know someone who worked in a "tough" area in Queens. and now she workes in a TOP district on the island. so she went from one extreme to another. She said each had its challenges. TOUGH area - LACK of parent involvement. rude kids, lack of discipline and respect for authority. she was even threatened by some students (bad students blaming the teacher) she feared for her life. (she and a few others took it to higher levels and the NYC bd of ed sided with the students! badmouthing her right in her face... and shes a VERY nice, softspoken, great person. TOP district - parental involvement can get overwhelming, they stop her anywhere anytime to ask her a gazillion question about their children, even stupid senseless questions, they try to "run" things that is not their place. basically the parents overstep their boundaries in many cases. and Ive heard this with MANY teachers in top notch districts. of course she loves the feeling of being in a safer area, closer to home (although not too close that she'd ever see her students on weekends ) hope that helps Message edited 1/10/2007 9:19:22 AM. Posted 1/10/07 9:18 AM
jes81276	I haven't taught in the city, but I student taught there, went through the NYC school system myself as a student and one of my best friends teaches there. She is in a good district too. The only major differences are the pay, it seems like we get more "stuff" (supplies, etc.) and the class size. However the opportunities for staff development in the city are amazing, and the resources are alot better than we have. Alot of people are comparing based on good and bad districts - we have bad districts on LI as well. Not all districts in the city are bad - some are excellent. I think a good district in the city is very comparable to a decent district on LI. Posted 1/10/07 4:47 PM
anna	Posted by jes81276 I haven't taught in the city, but I student taught there, went through the NYC school system myself as a student and one of my best friends teaches there. She is in a good district too. The only major differences are the pay, it seems like we get more "stuff" (supplies, etc.) and the class size. However the opportunities for staff development in the city are amazing, and the resources are alot better than we have. Alot of people are comparing based on good and bad districts - we have bad districts on LI as well. Not all districts in the city are bad - some are excellent. I think a good district in the city is very comparable to a decent district on LI. I agree with that last sentence. Sorry that I came across that way that's the only story I had to compare, and I dont have the experience to voice my own experience to compare. My sister's in a very good SD in Queens. She needed services for one of her daughters and a few LI teachers she was telling the story to were AMAZED at what services she got for her daughter, how much time was given to her CST meeting (I think 4hrs ) and how many resources came through for her from the NYCBOE. So that's from a parent's perspective (the parent being my sister in this case ) But of course there are total opposite stories too. SHe (my sister) is on the ball with her daughter's academics and she had binders with her, organized from top to bottom ready to request stuff, ask and answer questions and be her daughters best advocate. I was so proud of her Sorry if that was a tangent, scatterbrain over here and to defend the lower-rated districts (whats the politically correct way to refer to them? ), Im a strong believer in there being great and terrible situations everywhere, whether as a mom, teacher or student. and being that Im bilingual, well trilingual, fluent in Italian and SPanish, Ive applied to sub in a lower-rated SD, for the MANY good reasons Ive heard from teachers that work there. The sense of reward they get from students that dont have as much and appreciate them all the more than the spoiled brats on the opposite extreme. I hope I didnt offend anyone in any way. Message edited 1/10/2007 6:07:28 PM. Posted 1/10/07 6:04 PM