You have officially earned all of your college hours, finished student teaching, and finally graduated with degree in hand, and now the job hunt begins. Applying for teaching jobs is exhausting, frustrating, and sometimes feels never ending.  It can feel like there are thousands of applicants applying for the same position and you may feel like you are stuck. The key to landing that “first” teaching job requires a few different things.

Research of School Districts or Organizations

Knowing what you as the teacher want in a school district and school is very important to applying for jobs. I have worked in 4 separate school districts and have been apart of many schools. Each district and school offers a wide variety of experience, and demographic to work with. It is important to know what you want going into your application process. Some of you might be knew to the area and some might not be familiar with the schools in your specific area or may want to work in an area according to what they offer.

Top 10 Best School Districts in Texas

Here is a Top 10 list of best school districts to work for in Texas to help you navigate where you might want to apply.

1. Carroll ISD, Southlake, TX
2. Eanes ISD, Austin, TX
3. Lovejoy ISD, Fairview, TX
4. Highland Park ISD (University Park, TX) Dallas, TX
5. Coppell ISD, Coppell, TX
6. Lake Travis ISD. Austin, TX
7. Allen ISD, Allen, TX
8. Friendswood ISD, Houston, TX
9. Plano ISD, Plano, TX
10. Round Rock ISD, Roundrock, TX

“The Texas Education Agency 2018 Accountability Manual describes the methodology used by the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to award district and campus accountability ratings and how the four metrics used in this study to rank the academic performance of DFW school districts were derived.

The first of these metrics, the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) score is the scaled score of all STAAR assessments administered to district students during the 2017-2018 school year. The Advance Placement / International Baccalaureate (AP/IB) and the SAT and ACT college admission tests metrics are the number of students meeting college-ready criteria specified in the Texas Success Initiative (TSI), a state-legislated program to improve student success in college.”

Teacher Job Fairs

Each one of these school districts and thousands more will usually hold Job Fairs for hopeful employees. Utilize these Job fairs, the more contacts you have the better when starting the application process. Most job fairs will be beginning at the end of April, early May to the beginning of June. When attending make sure you dress professional, and bring a lot of copies of your resume to handout to the personnel of the different school districts. It makes a huge difference when someone can place a face to the resume.

Arlington, Texas Job Fair

Multiple City List of Job Fairs for Teachers

Student Teaching

The relationships and contacts you make during student teaching are very important. Don’t be afraid to rely on those connections during your job hunt. If the schools you did  your student teaching at, does not have any job openings in your specific teaching area, they will for sure have a contact of their own that they can recommend you to.

The Application process

The Resume

The first thing you want to do is to make sure you have a good resume. Those that are newly graduates may not have a lot to add to a resume that would be appealing to school districts. Having your student teaching information on your resume along with great references will greatly increase your chances of an administrator not by passing your resume all together. Also use your college mentors as help when writing your first professional resume. They know the school districts and can help you add  content to your resume that will help you stand out.

Application – Applying to Become a Teacher

Now that you have an idea of where you want to apply, your resume and references, you can start applying. Most school districts have their application online. You can usually find them by going to the school district website and clicking the employment tab. The nice thing about the applications being online in Texas is that most school districts use the same application system. This means you can upload one application and apply to thousands of jobs by just the click of a button.

Interview Process

There is nothing more nerve racking then walking into your first couple of job interviews. Practicing with someone such as your student teaching mentor or an old teacher will greatly help you to be able topinpoint interview weaknesses and turn those weaknesses into strengths. The more you practice speaking in front of people and answering questions on the fly the better prepared you will be.

Make sure you research the school’s website before you go into your interview, know what their goal is and know the kind of campus they are. This can help give you a better sense of the type of answers they may be looking for in your interview. Research key words that administrators like when talking about teaching and don’t be afraid to use those in your interview, such as: cultivate an engagingclassroom, create rigorouslesson plans to increase student engagement.

Dress to impress. There is nothing worse than showing up anywhere and being underdressed. It is always better to dress to impress. I always recommend a blazer jacket for both ladies and gentlemen. Ladies, a conservative dress or pant suit with a blouse. Gentlemen, suit, jacket, button-up shirt, and a tie. Some inexpensive clothing stores that are great to shop at for business clothes are, H&M, Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic Factory Store, and Nordstrom Rack. You can find some really great pieces that are super affordable.  I walked into my very first job interview wearing a women’s suit. It was hotter than anything outside but I was dressing to impress not for my own comfort. First impressions are very important and can make a difference in getting a call back.

Accepting a Teaching Position

You have made it through the hardest part of the job process, research, applications, job fairs, interviews, and you finally got a job offer. Some of you may get multiple offers and some may only get a single offer. When accepting a position, you need to make sure that you are on board with what you are being asked to teach, how many sections, and the pay. There are some jobs that require an additional certification, and you may not have that yet. Some districts will hire you with the understanding that you will get that certification during the first year of teaching.

Know what you want before you accept any position and don’t be afraid to say no thank you. Those that only received on offer. Don’t worry. That will not be the only offer you ever receive. Use that job opportunity as a stepping stone to learn, grow, and become a better teacher. You very first job may not be the job you want forever, but it can sure provide some of the best learning opportunities you can get.

Each year you teach, you learn a lot about yourself, about teaching and about how the process works. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, be uncomfortable, try something new, you never know by doing that you may find yourself with more opportunities than you know what to do with. Grow, get better, ask for help, and never stop learning.

Resources for Teachers Looking for Teaching Jobs

https://www.hdavidballinger.com/best-school-districts-texas.php

https://www.weareteachers.com/most-common-teacher-interview-questions/

Looking for Salary information for Texas Teachers?

https://www1.salary.com/TX/Public-School-Teacher-salary.html

Looking to become a teacher in Texas? We can help!

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I was at the Texas state Capitol building recently for a tour. We sat on the floor of the House of Representatives and learned about the government process. One of the most fascinating things was learning about the vast number of things that are considered when a bill is brought before the house. How will this impact the economy? How will this impact small business owners?

State representatives in Texas get paid a meager $600 a month and if they opt for insurance from the state, then that money is reduced to almost nothing. The house meats every other year and when they are in session they work for 140 days straight – including holidays. They often get to the house floor at 6:30 a.m. and work until 4:00 a.m. Yikes! I am 43 years old and I had no idea that so many people were working so hard to run the state of Texas and making very little money. There are also a number of very low paid staff members that are in their early twenties who are passionate about politics and laws. I reprimanded myself for not being more active and as I sat their and listened to each speaker on our two day visit I realized that a new appreciation was being formed in my heart for politicians and the state of Texas.

Texas Supreme Court Justice Jeff Boyd

During our visit, we got to meet one of the Judges for the Supreme Court of Texas: Justice Jeffrey S. Boyd. We sat there in the court while he explained to us how cases landed before the 9 judges and what the differences were in the Supreme Court and a regular court. One of the main differences is that there is no jury and there is not a witness stand – at least not in the traditional sense. All of the data that has been presented in a court of law has to go through the appellate courts before it gets to the Supreme Court.

We asked Justice Boyd, “Tell us of a case that was interesting and challenging.” He told us of a case where a rescue dog got out of the owner’s backyard during a storm. That night the owner went to the pound and the dog was there, but the owner didn’t have the $25 to retrieve the dog. He told the pound that he would come back in the morning and get the dog. The next day he came to the pound with his two young sons only to find out that the dog had been put to sleep. Yowza!

Apparently the dog had been mislabeled during the night and so the owner sued the dog pound. The case eventually came to the Supreme Court and Justice Boyd said he had to write a report on the case and it came down to a number of facts. In the past, dogs were considered property like a piece of furniture, but we know that in our culture today many people consider pets a member of the family. So how much is a dog worth? How much should someone be compensated when it is killed accidentally?

In this particular case, the dog owner was only given what they paid for the dog: $25. When I first heard this verdict I was internally outraged! Shouldn’t someone be fined for negligence? What if someone hits a dog with a car? Who is at fault then? What if it isn’t a dog that is killed but a cat, or a lizard? All of these things were taken into consideration and in the end the only fair outcome in the judges mind was compensation for what the owners paid.

We then asked the judge what was different between being a lawyer and a judge. He said the main difference is that as an attorney your client gives you the data and you try to get the outcome that they are paying you for. He said that as an attorney you compile data that makes you and the jury believe what you are trying to make them believe.

History Keeps Us from Repeating Mistakes

Have you ever read a good piece of historical fiction? I have read some books by Wilbur Smith and they delve into a lot of African culture. He even has a series on Egypt and in the back of the books he talks about some of the facts being based loosely on real stories found in a tomb. In these books he details so many facts about African culture, the Zulu, the Maasai – fierce warriors who were able to kill lions with nothing more than an Assegai.   In history we can learn where we came from so we don’t repeat the same mistakes. When I read books about World War II and Nazi Germany I am fascinated by the progression of Nazi reign and how hate and fear was used as a tool to control people.

According to an article in Psychology Today, fear is the most powerful motivator, but it is a negative one. If someone tries to use fear to motivate us to do something we know is wrong we can look at history to help us navigate our steps when dealing with a situation that is complicated.

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What are you so afraid of?

Lions hunt gazelles, but these graceful animals are very swift and hard to catch. Lions run at speeds up to 34 miles per hour. Gazelles run a much faster 60 miles per hour. In order to successfully bring down their prey, lions use an ingenious strategy. They split up according to age and speed; the young, fast lions chase after the gazelles but they steer them toward a grassy area where the old, slow arthritic lions are hiding in the tall foliage. As the gazelles come toward the grass, thinking they’ve outrun the young lions, they hear a deep roar coming from the grass. Frightened, they turn and run away from the roar and right into the mouths of the young, energetic lions—which under these conditions are able to catch them. Had the gazelles “run toward the roar”—the thing that scared them—they would have been safe, because once they encountered the older lions lumbering in the grass, they could have easily run right past them. 

Here’s the lesson: when we are afraid, our natural inclination is to run away from what scares us. However, the more we face our fears, the less we are afraid of them.

Have you ever had anxiety about a particular situation but when you got there you wondered, “What was I so afraid of?” This happens to me with voicemail. I will get a call from someone and I am afraid to check it for fear that the person calling will be asking me to do something I don’t want to do. “What if they invited me to an event I don’t want to go to?” I am such a people pleaser that I am afraid of letting someone down to the point that I won’t check their email sometimes for days. This leads to shame. Then I start to spiral and from shame I move on to resentment. I resent that person for even calling in the first place and making me feel these unwanted feelings. Talk about a spiral of crazy making.

When I answer my voicemails immediately I find that 9 times out of 10 the person is just calling to say hello or to give me a piece of information that I needed. Even worse is when they do invite me to something and I miss out on it because I was afraid of being invited. I don’t know what that is about, but I have learned that it is best to just fact things immediately. The longer I go without dealing with any problem that makes me uncomfortable, the more it scares me and robs me of my energy. 

What else is robbing you of your energy? When you look at Marie Kondo’s KonMari Method – “The KonMari method is a system of simplifying and organizing your home by getting rid of physical items that do not bring joy into your life. It was created by organizing consultant Marie Kondo and described in detail in her best-selling book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up.” Her method simply asks, “Does it Spark Joy?” If not, get rid of it. The same can be true in your relationships, your career, your finances. So the question I ask myself “Does it spark fear?” Yes. And why? Is the fear even rational?

Fear of Failure. Fear of Shame. Fear of Pain.

Fear comes in many forms, but when I look at what makes us afraid on a daily basis I’d say that fear of failure, fear of being shamed, and fear of being hurt are among the top fears people face. We learn to be fearful in our youth. As children we learn to be afraid of strangers usually from our parents. We fear being different, learning that standing out can often get you ridiculed or bullied. We learn that being vulnerable can be painful. We create walls to protect ourselves and then we live in fear of having our safe and comfortable spaces invaded.

Define Your Fears Instead of Your Goals

As I was researching this topic for this post I came across this great Ted Talk with Tim Ferriss. He shares his recipe for avoiding self paralysis and self destruction. He introduces the topic of stoicism – which is basically controlling your emotion. I’m not a huge fan of being stoic, if being stoic means repressing your feelings. However, if being stoic is a plan for calming your mind and taking control of your emotions, then I’m all in. As I listened to this talk I had to agree with Ferriss’ plan of action.

The hard choices — what we most fear doing, asking, saying — are very often exactly what we need to do. How can we overcome self-paralysis and take action? Tim Ferriss encourages us to fully envision and write down our fears in detail, in a simple but powerful exercise he calls “fear-setting.” Learn more about how this practice can help you thrive in high-stress environments and separate what you can control from what you cannot.

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I am afraid of what people will think of me. It still affects every decision I make. I can’t be happy with my own decisions if I am going to get a negative response from other people. That’s no way to live. My choices, my life, what I love to do, shouldn’t be influenced by outside critics who have not earned a seat at my feedback table. I should only be concerned with feedback from the people that I have asked to give me feedback. Why is this concept so hard to grasp? It’s easy to say that I’m not concerned about what others think, but the reality is I want everyone to like me and approve of everything I do. That is an unrealistic way to live.

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” – President Roosevelt

The above quote is from a speech given by President Roosevelt in 1910 a year after he had left office. This speech has recently been brought back into wide circulation and discussion by Brené Brown who used this speech in her book “Daring Greatly”. The words are inspiring – especially in the wake of social media and instant feedback or critique by the masses. It challenges us to get into the arena and ignore the critic who “neither know[s] victory nor defeat”. Brown’s book continues to encourage people to be vulnerable and find strength not in their success, but in being real about your failures.

This is powerful and seems counterintuitive in a world where we try to always present a strong front. Being vulnerable is not something we are taught. Instead we are told as children to “quit crying, rub some dirt on it, to ‘buck up’, to pick yourself up by your shoelaces.” The

Girl, Wash Your Face

Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are So You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be

I recently listened to an audiobook that was off the beaten path for what I normally read. A friend recommended “Girl, Wash Your Face” by Rachel Hollis and I thought the title was funny and interesting. Was it a memoir? A fictional story? I didn’t even do any research, I just downloaded the book and pressed play.

The book is a combination of instruction and motivation that is geared toward women. As a man, I listened patiently as Hollis encouraged moms, soon-to-be moms, and women who wanted to be moms as well as empty-nesters, entrepreneurs and single women. But the core of the book is about believing in yourself and doing what it takes to make big changes by taking small steps. As I was reading, I couldn’t help but think that at the core of many of my own problems in moving forward in a new career path, a dating relationship, or a big purchase is always tied to what other people will think. It makes sense in a world where every single thing we do can be posted on social media and the value of our existence is summed up in the number of likes, loves, and comments.

I’ll admit it, I love social media. I like to post a selfie and get people to tell me something, anything. “See Me!” Seems to be the resonating chorus from our social media walls, some, maybe more than others. Social media is a vortex that sucks me in time and again because it is a quick, albeit shallow, way to get easy-to-accept feedback. The reason I say “easy-to-accept” is because compliments are hard for me to accept. Is the person saying the compliment because it is true, or because they want something? Am I really “handsome, funny, intelligent”?  I often wonder why positive feedback through a digital platform is so much easier to take than a compliment in person.

The More Authentic I Am, The More I Love Me…

What I have learned about myself through books and quite a bit of therapy, both counseling and group therapy, is that:

I fear judgment of others because I judge others.

I fear taking chances because I fear that others will judge me.

I fear being authentic because someone might not like the real me.

But what I have found is that the more authentic I am, the more I love myself.

Yes, there have been some people that don’t like the real me. I have had to replace those friends with new friends and I’ve found that being the real me is much less work, less stress, and less exhausting. At the beginning of 2019 I didn’t make any big resolutions, instead, I decided to give myself a break and stop expecting so much of me. When I gave myself a break, I started seeing others in a different light as well.

Aren’t most of us doing the best we can with what we have been given? Sure there are a few people who seem to suck the fun out of things, but I’ve found in general that people are still kind and caring and deserve to be given the benefit of the doubt.

A New Career as a Teacher. The Reward is So Great.

So what is my point in all of this? It can be hard to change careers and to start something new, but iteach works hard to make the transition into a teaching career easy. While being a teacher can be a challenging career, it is also one of the most rewarding.

Hear what other teachers have to say about their experiences as a teacher.

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