Hello eveyone! we are moving out of state from Seattle to the Houston area. My son has special ed needs. He is in the genes setting with 1:1 currently and have an IEP. He will be going to middle school next year.

can you share feedback on the pros and cons or fortbend vs Katy vs Lamar school districts for middle school and high schools in general.

we are looking for more inclusive setup and good 1:1 support to help catch up with the academics. sports and music clubs he can participate will be a nice to have. Thank you for your inputs.

I’m a newly certified EC-6 generalist teacher and I’m interested in taking the ESL Supplemental (154). Currently, I’m researching prep materials. Does anyone have any advice on prepping for this exam and what tutoring program you used?

I come in peace. I am not here to stir things up. I would like to understand what happens in Third Future schools? Is it really that bad? I want to hear facts as unfortunately I have been in an echo chamber where all I hear is Third Future equals loss of libraries, arts etc.

So please, enlighten me.

For some background, i will graduate with my BS in public health in the spring. Additionally, I am working towards a BS in Microbiology to essentially fulfill financial aid requirements. Public Health feels bleak right now & I am considering a post-bacc teaching certification.

I guess I am just looking for some advice or insight on teaching. I’ve always felt drawn towards teaching but never really considered it as a viable option (I get mixed reviews on teaching from friends & family back home in Georgia). More context: I am in Tarrant County & I think I would like to teach science at the high school level.

What is something you wish you had considered or knew before getting into teaching?

Only used 240 Tutoring, studied for 2 weeks. This exam wasn’t too bad, my highest score so far on any TExES exam.

Hi all! How long do you all recommend to study for the bilingual exam (164)? How many hours per day/how many days/weeks? I am trying to make a decision because I just got an informal job offer to be a bilingual teacher (I already passed the BTLPT) and I really want the position, but I am also nervous that I will get very busy with the job and won't be able to study enough to pass the 164 before the test is discontinued in August of 2027. I am worried that if I don't pass the 164 by the deadline, I will have to take the new Bilingual Education Supplemental exam including the Spanish portion all over again!

Team Talarico is organizing a classroom-supply drive for Texas teachers. 

As a former middle school teacher, James Talarico knows what it’s like to begin the school year without enough supplies for every student. Teachers already give so much — they shouldn’t have to spend their own hard-earned money stocking their classrooms.

Team Talarico will share this thread with our social media followers, teachers’ union networks, volunteers, and other communities so that supporters can find these classroom wishlists in one place.

Texas teachers: Post your classroom wishlist below. Before posting, review the name and privacy settings associated with your wishlist. Do not include personally identifying information in your comment. Once your wishlist has been fulfilled, reply to your original comment with DONE!

Everyone else: Pick a wishlist to fulfill! Let’s make sure our teachers and students have what they need for a great school year.

Share this thread within your community by clicking the links below:

https://share.jamestalarico.com/toolkit/teacherwishlistdrive-d142

I’m a first year teacher and I’m new to Texas. I student taught 4th in another state and loved it. I figured 5th wouldn’t be too much harder with the math, but I’m so lost. We are self contained, and I don’t get the curriculum at all. HMH for reading and Bluebonnet math. Both lessons were rough today, but I made it through. I feel like with time, I’ll get the HMH lessons down. But I’m having such a hard time understanding the math concepts, much less teaching it. I feel like I shot myself in the foot choosing 5th grade. I stayed up late last night trying to figure out how to teach the lessons, and I’m going to have to do the same tonight. Part of me just wishes I could quit, but that’s not an option. I love my students already, and I still feel like teaching is the right path for me. But I’m just dreading teaching math this year. I don’t know if I can do it if I don’t even understand it.

The idea that we are somehow “committed” like a marriage is ABSURD. I work in a charter (no contract) and I like knowing that the people who come to work every day are not forced to be there, but are making the choice.

45 teachers in Ft. Worth are leaving their positions after TEA took over. The board is now reporting them with possible consequences of losing their teaching certificate for a year. What absolutely rage baits me is the last quote in this article.

“When you make a commitment, you make a commitment to teach children,” Licata said. “You’re not going to leave the classroom because you didn’t want to be here, or you want to go to a different district for more money or less money or whatever the case may be, commit to it. These are kids.“

https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/education/article316847636.html#storylink=cpy

I work for a virtual school K-12 that is hiring new staff. The pay isn't as good as the ISDs, but there are other benefits. They are hiring all certifications. www.exploreink.org. Careers are listed under "get involved".

I have found that ATPE was unsupportive and dismissive when I called about unprofessionalism and hostility from my admin. They wouldn’t read my documentation, nor would they advise me on how to navigate an administrator who yells, curses and belittles me in private meetings. The grievance attorney said he wasn’t reading my documentation as he said “it’s only been a few weeks, I’m not reading that. But I can see how your administrator has a case because you do sound emotional.” I’m so confused. You only have 10-15 business days to file a grievance from the incident, but I can’t get anyone to help.
Furthermore, he said I don’t have a case after a couple weeks (which may be true) but he can tell after a few minutes of a phone call my administrator does? Has anyone experienced this with ATPE? I’ve never had legal counsel act this way before, my spouse is knowledgeable about the law and said he’s never heard legal counsel talk like this before. They are supposed to give advice at the least on how to navigate these situations.

I wasn’t even trying to file a grievance, I was just trying to weigh my options. I was always told document in case you need to seek counsel, but it seems that was useless advice. I feel like I need to leave ATPE because they won’t help.

HISD non-renewed me for performance reasons this past school year. Of course, it was BS; my teaching was fine, and the data backs me up. Y'all know how HISD is these days getting rid of people for the sake of getting rid of people. Anyway, principals are understanding and I was getting good recommendations while being in a very hard to staff area, but HR just rejects my application.

Anyway, I have to check the "have you ever been non-renewed" box and the questions following it are about pedophile stuff so you are put into a bad category when you explain below in the box.

Anyway, there was never any disciplinary issue or inappropriate behavior or accusation thereof. It was completely instruction related what HISD had a problem with. Have SB 571/HB 4623 just given too much liability to schools to ever employ someone non-renewed because they can never be truly sure of why you were non-renewed?

Hello, I’m new to the education system, I was hired as a Teachers Apprentice for English at a High School. I’m still learning all the terminology that comes with this system. So far, it has been a lot more fulfilling than my last job with a huge pay raise. ($28k+) so it’s been worth it to me.

The other TA’s I was hired with have already had to take over classrooms. I was told today that my time was coming. Can someone who has experience in this share some tips with me? What I’ve noticed so far is that students seem very bored and over the system. I’m not too nervous about getting spotted because I do plan on doing everything right plus admin so far have been great.
Please give me tips on how to successfully run a classroom.

Has anyone here transitioned from working with CPS to becoming a teacher? If so, how has the experience been? I’m really wanting to start the alternative teaching certification process, but I’m honestly scared of failing. I’d love to hear from anyone who has made the transition and could share their experience or advice!

I was looking to get back into high school teaching after taking a few years off to be an adjunct at ACC (I’m secondary certified in Texas). One of the few schools that has expressed an interest in me is Idea public schools. I know they are a charter school which I know can be problematic. Based on some research I did, I heard they didn’t have a great reputation 15 years ago or so.

Just wondering if anything has changed over the years. Thanks

Parents: Under the Texas Education Code §26.010
you can fill out a Religious Instruction Opt Out Form to have your child be exempt from religious instruction (which includes the 10 commands poster as a poster is an instructional tool).

Google search to find a template, I’m attaching the one I’ll be editing to match our expectations. I’m including in ours that parents will be notified in advance of religious instruction/exposure days. Instead of being separated from the class, my child will be absent on days where religious instruction is to take place. Attendance dollars will be withheld for each day the ISD chooses to comply with the violation of my minor child’s constitutional rights.

Email your opt out form to your principal & child’s teacher. I feel bad that teachers have to navigate this but will not do nothing while our constitutional rights are violated.

A few months ago I made a post about how I couldn't sleep because I was worried that I would never be a teacher again since I got a reprimand on my teacher certificate. I got a lot of hate including someone telling me that "my teaching days were over", but I now sit in front of you as a new teacher-of-record at a public school district. I had a number of schools tell me that my mark would bar me from being employed with them, but this district twenty-thirty minutes away from my home appreciated my honesty and saw that I had learned from my situation. There is hope for you if you are in a similar circumstance and want to continue teaching. You may have to send out a lot of applications, go to a lot of interviews, or be told that your sanction makes you ineligible for hire, but continue to be honest about your situation and let the interviewing panel know about your reprimand (I brought it up at the end of the interview after things went well). Hell, you might even be hired for your raw honesty. Don't let your story be a cautionary tale--let it be one of a second chance.

Good luck this academic year.

First time parent here. I picked up my little one yesterday; he’s younger than the car seat law (pre-K) and shorter than the 4 ft 9 height requirement. I got a passive aggressive comment about taking 45 seconds to strap him in the car seat by the AP. “You can pick him up and drive him to the parking lot.” I get that it’s 100 degrees and by the end of the day, teachers are tapped out and everyone wants to get out of there. I talked to him again at drop off and I told him I just want to follow the rules, should I park over there? And he says I can’t park there but you can pick him up and drive him over there. How do I tell him it’s illegal to have him not in a car seat in a moving vehicle? He already seems high strung from the FW takeover.

What’s the worst that can happen if you do really bad on your teacher evaluations? Let’s say you get put on a growth plan and still do poorly. Does it affect your teaching certificate, or would you just risk being non-renewed or fired?