As a new speech teacher, the connections I’ve made and the help I’ve received as a member of the UFT have made me feel more confident in what I’m doing and how I’m doing it.
My first year in the DOE was overwhelming, and I felt unsure about many things. In my second year, I became a member of the Speech Improvement Chapter’s survival class, which is a 10-session course for new speech teachers about our roles and responsibilities. It was extremely helpful.
Here’s an example of what I learned in that class: I was asked by administration to grade the Regents because I don’t have my own class. In my first year, I would have said OK, I have to do this. Instead, I was able to use what I‘ve learned and say, “I was told I’m not allowed to cancel sessions with my students since speech therapy is a mandated service.”
Tenure was another area where the union really helped. You don’t get a lot of direction so unless you’re proactive, you don’t know what goes into your tenure binder. Being able to ask questions and see examples of a tenure portfolio at the UFT’s tenure workshop really helped me know what should go into my tenure binder and eased my anxiety.
Now it’s my fifth year, and I’ve continued to attend monthly speech meetings as well as conferences organized by the Speech Improvement Chapter. I love these gatherings because each time I attend, I learn something new. It’s nice to connect with other therapists and be able to ask questions of people who have more experience. There’s always something going on in the speech world and in the UFT world.
Gabriella Schecter is a speech teacher at East Side Community High School in Manhattan.
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