I didn’t have support when I worked in a non-union private school in New York City for three years when I first started teaching. I used to go to school trembling. I don’t have that nervous feeling in my stomach anymore. Now my mentor from the UFT Teacher Center comes in my room once a week to observe me and then we meet for another period.
She teaches me so many things. She’ll come in and say, “Maybe you can do it like this,” and then she’ll get me resources on top of it. Whenever I doubt myself or have any questions, she’s always there for me. And it’s better for the kids because as a new teacher, I don’t know if I would have gotten the hang of guided reading or progress reports, etc., right away. It’s such a blessing to have her.
At the private school, they just threw me in the school, and I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t have a go-to person to ask for help. We didn’t have a contract. We only got 15 minutes to eat lunch and then we had to do lunch duty. I didn’t even have a prep so I couldn’t get anything done during the day. And my principal would make up her own rules: We dismissed at 2:30, and my principal would say, “You have to stay here until 3 every day.” Or, “You need to be here on Sunday for an open house.” I’d say, “But I have a wedding to go to!” and she’d say, “If you want a job, you have to show up.”
I can actually say that I enjoy teaching now and if I’m stuck with something, I have that support. I can’t imagine going back to a job without a union. I’m so much happier now.
Patricia Ginestri is a first-year teacher at PS 151 in Queens.
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