Column 79 for April 22, 2001

I’ve got to be fair. Last week I wrote about "Senioritis." Teachers get it too. Sometimes I think teachers might look forward to the summer break even more than the students do. Many (All?) of us are aware each morning of just how many school days are left.

This is a really tough time of the school year to keep focused on teaching. Spring fever hits us too, you know. Not only that, but it’s that time when school projects and folders are due and have to be graded, final exams prepared, and so forth. Keeping the students centered on learning is extra challenging right now.

This is also a time when teachers must commit to a contract for the following school year. For anyone considering changing systems or locations it is especially difficult. If a teacher doesn’t sign a new contract by mid-April, the system considers their position "vacant" and begins searching for a replacement. If a teacher interviews with a different system, that new system usually doesn’t offer an actual contract until near the start of the new school year. Basically this means that if a teacher decides to make a move, they will be effectively unemployed for a period of several months.

On the other hand, if a teacher signs a continuing contract, and then receives an offer from a different system during the summer, they must submit a request to their current system to be released from their contract. With the teacher shortages, Carroll County has told their teachers that no requests like this will be considered after the end of June. Breaking a teaching contract can result in losing your teaching credentials altogether. Even with so many teaching vacancies, it is very difficult to make a change.

Back to the teachers’ version of "Senioritis." What can you do? If you are the spouse or significant "other" of a teacher, you can try to be a little extra tolerant of their moods as they go through this next month or so of stress. If you are the parent of a student, you can help everyone by reminding your child that school isn’t over yet, and to keep working.

Together, we WILL make it! Peace. tomiswho@mindspring.com