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 co-workers or students??? 
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Ive been hearing about how bad some students are from teachers who work in schools. Recently I have been doing an internship at a school and it seems to me that the other teachers are more to deal with than the students. They gossip, they complain, and they dont follow through on all the things that they say they will do. Do you think your co-workers are going to be more to deal with or the students? And, how will you manage this?

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Jerry Nicole Whitener (Nicole)


Fri Oct 17, 2008 10:19 am
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I think it really depends on the kind of person you are. I think there will always be teachers who complain, gossip, and are just plain lazy. I think you just have to choose not to participate in these things and to set a good example for your fellow teachers who are. I don’t think interacting with other faculty members will be difficult all the time if you have the right attitude and do your personal best in the classroom.

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Kerry Crosby Smith


Sat Oct 18, 2008 4:49 pm
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I think this is an important issue to consider. Especially as we will all be new teachers, it is going to be important for us to get along with our co-workers and it will be hard if there are teachers who are 'just dealing with students.' One thing I have heard from many people is to stay away from the teachers' lounge. I also think it would be appropriate to suggest alternate ideas or bring up positive things about a student in the gossipy teacher(s)' presence. This lets them know you don't agree with them without being rude. Disagreeing but not being disagreeable. (<---I borrowed that.)

Like Kerry mentioned, there will probably always be people with poor attitudes, it is up to the individual to deal with those people.

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Emily Mackie


Sun Oct 19, 2008 11:07 pm
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Let me share a story from my own personal experience with you. My first year teaching I had a friend who taught second grade. She was one of two people that I knew before starting work at my school. She is a very good teacher, but she is also very outspoken. She was not one of my principal's favorite people. They had very different ideas about school and teaching. I spent a lot of time with my friend outside of school and she was the one person (other than my mentor) that I went to in school when I had a problem or just needed to vent.

I found out a couple of years later that my principal seriously considered firing me or asking me to "volunteer" to be moved to another school because of my association with my friend. While she is very outspoken I basically kept to myself and kept my feelings to myself, but because of my friendship with her I almost lost my job! Thankfully, my mentor (who was a friend of the prinicpal) spoke up for me and told my principal that I was not like my friend and that firing me based solely on my friendship was a mistake.

As for gossip, it happens. Even I, who tried to stay in my classroom out of everyone else's business, ran into this problem. I stayed out of the lounge when I could and talked to only a few people that I worked closely with. My second year teaching I walked into the work room to make copies and overheard two teachers, who I rarely spoke to, having a conversation about me that obviously wasn't good because when they saw me they stopped talking.

My advice is to just be very careful about what you say and do. Try to remember that there will always be people you don't get along with, but always keep your students in mind. They are the reason that you are in the school in the first place. Also, find one person that you trust and talk to them because we all need to vent sometimes, but be careful not to talk to everyone in the building.

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Erin Painter


Mon Oct 20, 2008 12:19 pm
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WOW! Thats all I can say to Erin's story. That is unbelievable to hear something like that. I guess I haven't really thought about issues like this because I consider myself to be a very easy person to get along with, yet I'm sure many people who deal with this everyday also consider themselves to be easy to get along with. I do think that it is ridiculous that grown men and women can't seem to put their differences aside for the benefit of their students. As a teacher, I refuse to let the unneccessary drama in the school have an impact on the way I teach and how I run my classroom. I do understand that some instances will not be able to be avoided, such as Erin's incident involving her boss, but I will do my best to be the best teacher I can and leave the drama alone, and I feel like any good teacher would also do the same.

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Dana Currin


Mon Oct 20, 2008 6:39 pm
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In high school I had the whole "drama" deal. It never crossed my mind that I would have to deal with that as a teacher! Bad relationships with co-workers can really hurt your enjoyment with the teacher profession. Also, as teachers, we should be setting the example for our students and show them gossip is unnecessary and harmful. Since I will be a middle school teacher this is very crucial. Honestly, I'm the kind of person to get wrapped up in my work. I will probably stay in my room and work on creating entertaining lesson plans or associate mainly with my students. Middle grade students are so much fun and I would rather build relationships with them. I probably won't have time for "gossip" with co-workers. If I've learned anything from high school it's that I shouldn't even put myself in a position to make others think I'm gossiping. It always comes back to bite you in the butt.

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Jessica Placke


Mon Oct 20, 2008 8:39 pm
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To answer your question Nicole I believe that my co-workers will be more to deal with than my students. To put it bluntly you are in a position of authority with your students and you are not with your co-workers. If you build the appropriate relationships with your students and show them that you are in charge of the classroom while still being caring and compassionate you will be able to manage your students. As far as your co-workers go...they are adults and will do what they want regardless, all you can do is ignore it and carry on with YOUR work.

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Amanda Klinger


Mon Oct 20, 2008 9:10 pm
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I think that there will be obstacles with both co-workers and students. With co-workers you will always have to deal with cliques, gossip, and others not doing what they say and unfortunately the bigger the staff the bigger the issues. It realistic to accept that some people are going to get along better than others and have more in common and some people are going to have to work on things just to keep them civil and professional. I think the most important part when dealing with these things is to try and stay neutral. It is best to stay out of the gossip and cliques as much as you can and if you say you are going to do something for someone then try and follow through with it and hope that they will return the favor. You also have to know your limits and not get in over your head with all you have to do. It is okay to tell someone that you are too busy with other things to take on something else.
I feel that the struggles with students will be more of a will battle with some but for the most part it will be working with the students that just don't get things. As a teacher we are supposed to struggle with these things. It helps us grow as a teacher and it helps the student learn. It is just a shame that with the territory of being a teacher comes dealing with all the co-worker drama as well.

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Kelsey McGraw


Tue Oct 21, 2008 12:49 am
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It has been my experience in both internships as well as other activities I've done in schools that the co-workers are more of a problem than the students. Many times it is because of what co-workers say about certain students that causes the "self-fulfilling prophecy" of students being a problem in the first place. There are times when it is ok to share opinions on students or issues with co-workers but it is important to remember that in a profession such as teaching the comments that are made puts both your reputation and job on the line. I think its better for teachers to just keep their mouth shut when it comes to the negatives of the classroom. Its ok to talk to a mentor or a friend about it so that the emotions aren't internalized but its not ok to just go around the school and share your opinions with anyone you see. Basically my philosophy with venting about students is to cool off before saying anything, and if possible wait until you can make the conversation more about how to help the student or your relationship with the student rather than how much that one kid is driving you crazy! I expect discipline problems and issues to arise with my students but I fully expect that my co-workers are going to be the source of my frustration more times a day then my students.

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Katie Tyndall


Thu Oct 23, 2008 5:42 pm
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This is an interesting thing to think about. I have always hoped that I will be in a place where I can get along with most all of my collegues and we can discuss issues and problems in a way that will help each other and not hurt each other or the children. I agree with Kerry that if you have the right attitude, it can make things a lot better. I know that sometimes teachers can be a problem and be gossipy and put students and other teachers down. I think in these situations you just have to stand up for yourself and those students or teachers in a kind way and probably distance yourself from that teacher.

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Brittany Norman


Fri Oct 24, 2008 12:35 pm
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Throughout my teacher education, I have been told time and time again "Stay away from the teacher's lounge!", and I think this is probably good advice. I think it would be important to learn from your colleagues, but I think the negativity that teachers' seem to have may do more harm. I think it would be ideal to find a great, experienced and positive mentor teacher to learn from and be encouraged by, because I think it would be a shame for your relationship with the other teachers to take time and energy away from your job to teach your students well!


Sat Oct 25, 2008 10:59 am
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I honestly haven't put alot of thought into Nicole's question, but I do believe that fellow co-workers can cause more problems than students. However, I also think that there will be positive co-workers in which we can benefit from. It's important to know who will be beneficial and who we need to stay away from. School should be a positive place and just like mentioned earlier we are in the classroom to teach students and further their education.

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Lauren Jennings


Sun Oct 26, 2008 6:11 pm
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If I had to make a guess about whether I will have to deal with my co-workers or students more, I would guess it'd be my co-workers. I've heard a couple of stories from special ed teachers about co-workers that gave them issues about their students. I think I will struggle most with how other teachers and school staff think about my students, talk about my students, and treat my students.

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April Wilkinson


Mon Oct 27, 2008 12:48 pm
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That is very true Nichole. Some not all co-workers are going to be a lot to deal with. I have spend a good amount of time at my moms school helping her on teacher work days and throughout the day teachers will come in and out of her classroom gossiping about other teachers or even students. My mom chooses not to get involved with the gossip and simply listens but doesn't add to the conversation. If she did choose to be involved in the gossip then she would have to deal with her co-workers, but because teaching is not about co-workers it is about students then it is not a teachers place to try and deal with co-workers unless they are harming the teaching environment.

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Hannah Johnson


Mon Oct 27, 2008 4:21 pm
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I went to a seminar the other night with the North Carolina Teacher of the Year for 2008-2009 and she brought up a great point that I thought was relevant to this. As we are professional eductors, we should behave in a manner that reflects that. She said to achieve this we have to leave the negative issues at school, collaborate POSITIVELY with POSITIVE colleagues and be the bearers of the positive aspects of our school in public. After all, you never know who is listening. Many influential people live in our communities, shop at our grocery stores, and go to our kids soccer games...these people have the power to cut or increase funding and negative comments could sway their opinions.

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Amanda Klinger


Tue Oct 28, 2008 9:16 pm
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Speaking from experience (both of my parents work in a small school and I volunteer there) Co-workers cause many more problems than the students ever could. I've been so disgusted by staff members’ behaviors that I've pretty much vowed to myself that when I'm a teacher, I will go into my room shut my door and not talk to most people in the school. While I don't think that this is necessarily the best way to handle things, it definitely seems better than getting pulled down into the drama.

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Nikki Tester


Thu Nov 06, 2008 10:02 am
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