What is a good soundtrack for writing recommendation letters?  Well, Fugazi got me going this morning.  I have to write 12 letters as of this morning.  I have completed six at this point.  Second person to sign in today.  And I read an article form the UK about how teaching is in the top three in most stressful jobs.  While it mentioned other stressful careers - medical fields, EMTs, police - one thing was a bit funny.  It made special mention that some IT jobs are stressful, but clearly not at the same level of teaching.  The article noted the extraordinary amount of work beyond the school day, the demands put on us from the community and society, the pressure to have students perform to standards set by those who have no comprehension of the myriad factors that enter into what goes on in the classroom that have nothing to do with the classroom.  So, for those of whom this job stress is a pissing contest, I think those of us in education win.

Because it sure does seem like a contest with some people I know.  It seems people have no ability to say "You know what, your job as a teacher is hard.  I will not demean what you do by gong on about how hard my job is as an equal comparison."  I know it sounds so rude, but too bad.  Teachers have to educate all our kids regardless of home/living situation, health status, intellectual ability.  We are expected to get through to each and every kid.  Now, there is the expectation that no student can fail their exams once all exams are averaged at the end of the year.  They can fail for the year, but if you have too many fail, it must be you.  In other instances, we can be sued and in some instances, that suit can be personal, not union protected.  Oh, you're "on call?"  Good for you.  I am too, it just is not put into words.  I am expected to reply to e-mails 24/7.  If I do not make myself available to help a student at any time, that is a problem.  Sure, it isn't in writing, and the union will say there is no contractual expectation.  However, it is implied...  very strongly.

You see, the thing is, we have been seen as servants.  Part of it is misogyny, plain and simple.  When I have to deal with mansplaining from any of my male IT friends or relatives regarding the stress and pressure of the job that I could not possibly understand because it is so technical, I roll my eyes and have begun to tune out.  The fact that teaching provides a benefit to society makes it valuable in a way other professions can't even touch.  The benefits of education reaches communities regardless of how advanced, developed, or undeveloped they are.  It has traditionally been a job held by females.  We are not ones to broadcast anything about the difficulties of our jobs,  We just buckle down and get to work.  Therefore, no one truly knows what the job entails unless they have done it.  You can train a person all you want, prepare them as much as possible, have pre-service students do all the research possible.  You are not fully prepared for all the possibilities involved in this job until you get that first teaching position.  As this is not my first field of work, I know that there are few other careers like that.  If a network goes down, we will survive, regardless of the field dependent on that network.  We survived without this technological infrastructure and we can do it if push comes to shove.  But an uneducated society?  Do you really want that?  Do you really think my job is equal to yours now?