I agree with not touching the good/bad convo. As a public school educator, I exist in a system In which I am penalized for my effectiveness. I can identify with shortcomings of a socialistic system. For example, I happen to be able to connect well with the wayward middle schoolers, I’ve found success with good number of reluctant middle school math students. As a result,my middle school counselors direct increasingly challenging students to my schedule. My Strength in ability has been revealed. As a result, I am expected to then to provide more to with students that take a larger portion of my time and energy. I am expected to produce more and more with less This is our fundamental difficulty in public schools. There has to be another way to do this. I have yet to see a way out.
Dumping more work on the best worker happens in many environments. It is a perverse consequence, and in the short term it may seem wise to work below your capacity and not draw too much attention. I think the private sector provides better incentives, however, to recognize and compensate talent. Public salaries are often fixed to a scale, but private salaries are often raised based on performance. And when a high-performing but under-recognized employee like WanderingEng switches jobs, the losing company pays a price in lost revenue and market share, feedback that is less common in the public sector.
|Dumping more work on the best worker happens in many environments. It is a perverse consequence, and in the short term it may seem wise to work below your capacity and not draw too much attention. I think the private sector provides better incentives, however, to recognize and compensate talent. Public salaries are often fixed to a scale, but private salaries are often raised based on performance. And when a high-performing but under-recognized employee like WanderingEng switches jobs, the losing company pays a price in lost revenue and market share, feedback that is less common in the public sector. Agreed. I have been finding myself concentrating on doing the basics of my job really well, and cutting out the "above and beyond" actions (calling more parents after hours) and scaling back to conserve my resources, while at the same time keeping my eye open to sweeter deals elsewhere (as a grade 6-8 math teacher), my position is in demand. I currrently work in a wealthy county, Oakland County, Michigan. My school district recieves the second lowest per-pupil foundation allowance in the county. We are spread thin for resources and serve students that come from very low socio-economic status (school performance is a low priority in the lives of many). I won't be surprised to be offered an opportunity to jump ship and work in a more affluent school district in the remaining six plus years of my career. Public Education, where unlimited demands meets limited resources. Other than that, I really do enjoy what I do much of the time. The Upside, I work in a place in which I feel needed.