I am currently on the road to my bachelors degree in education and for the past year I have been gaining experience working as a substitute and other paraprofessional positions.
A few months ago I wanted to work for a local school district, and I preferably wanted to be a Pre-K teacher assistant. My mothers aunt worked at this district already, so I was able to get recommended and pushed through pretty fast.
Eventually, I bagged a interview for this position at a elementary school and I was super stoked about it. The school was literally five minutes from my house, there was a potential pay increase, everything looked great.
The day of the interview, I meet with the principal and assistant principal; we discuss the position I applied for which was again Pre-K assistant, and then they tell me they do not need that position filled out that school. During the interview.
Here is when they do the good old bait and switch. They offer their special education position being that they are in dire need, and that is a tough position to fill in that district.
Being that I have worked in a group home setting with disabled adults, this sounded like something I could handle. So I decided to take the offer and prepare for my first day. Everything was still going good. I had hope.
My first day comes about, and I am given a tour of the school by the principal. I greeted some of the teachers but, something about the atmosphere felt off. When the principal would tell them, I am new in that department, they had a attitude sort of like “good luck”.
(side note: we were under a weather warning for snow so everyone was pissed the district was even open;hoping for early release)
Once the principal guided me to the classroom and introduced me to the two teachers I’d be working with, he practically ran away and just dumped me there.
I start becoming familiar with some of the students, introducing myself. I tried to interact with the teachers I’d be working with, but it was almost as if I wasn’t there. They continued about their lesson plans, sending emails, running out of the room to speak to other teachers, etc.
As the day goes by, everything is running smoothly. I’m interacting with the kids more. I’m learning their behaviors and temperaments. I’m starting to hold longer conversations with the teachers.
So then, after lunch, everyone has returned back to the classroom. One student decided to take things from one of the teachers desk while they were out. I’m not just going to stand there and watch them take these things so I politely asked them to put it back.
The student does not listen, and as I ask them again, I tried swapping the items in their hand with a tablet. The next thing I know the kids start punching me in my arm.
All I hear is one of the teachers screaming, telling them to stop and pulling them from me. She gets so riled up and starts telling me this is why we don’t handle situations with the student like that.
No one has told me any information about these kids or what their disabilities are. They barely held any important conversation with me about the kids I would be potentially working with long-term. I approached the situation in the student in the most gentle way I could because I know what I’m dealing with.
You can argue it’s my job to ask this information, but wouldn’t you want to tell a new hire that head on?
I ended up having to write a report down, I had a meeting with the principal and assistant principal, where I can embarrassingly admit, I cried from shock. They called the students parents to the school and had a meeting with them as well.
Apparently the student did that before. They have records of his behavior and physical outburst. And no one told me. Why? Because they were desperate.
After that situation, I ended up returning back to the classroom to finish out the day. Mama ain’t raise no quitter. All of a sudden the teachers are so concerned, the start filling me in on all the students and their behaviors, they get reeeal nice with me.
The district ended up being closed for the following week, but once I return back to that school, I resigned and turned in my badge and key. I also ended up with bruises.
TLDR: Districts are so desperate for help in their Special Education department, that their schools are falsely posting job openings and aren’t adequately preparing educators for what they are walking into…..oh and I got beat up.