Howdy Tuesday! Hope everyone had a great day yesterday and has another great day today! Considering the weekend I had, yesterday was quite productive for me. Of course, it helps when someone else is here to take care of the animals and I don’t have to get up every five minutes due to one or the other getting sick. Anyways, today I decided to share of why I decided to get my teaching certification in Texas instead here in my home state Louisiana. Let’s get started with “Louisiana versus Texas Teaching….”
Louisiana Teaching:
I love my home state. Seriously, I just can’t see to stay away being that I’ve moved to Florida in 2004 and moved back in 2006. Then moved to Mississippi in 2010 and came back in 2012. Not to mention I’ve moved to Texas in 2014 and came back six months later. Of course, moving back from Florida was because I couldn’t handle being that far from my family anymore since my mom had her stroke and back from Texas because of our business warehouse going up in flames. However, moving back from Mississippi, only happened because I wasn’t getting any bits for anything I had been applying for; therefore, I had to move back.
If I could I would totally teach here in my home state. When I was in middle school, which also happened to be the school my mom taught, I had dreamed of becoming a teacher just like her and even one day teaching there at the same school. There are at least four of my friends I went to middle and high school with who now does teach at our elementary/middle school. At one point I really thought I would be one of them teaching there with my then principal being my boss. Of course, he was supposedly retiring over 10 years ago now and is still kicking. They even built a new gym and named it after him because of the retirement.
Unfortunately, Louisiana just doesn’t pay that much and now with all my marine animals and science background, I need to be somewhere I can teach the kids about the awesome animals of the sea. Here where we live currently, we don’t particularly have anything for such things. Shockingly, we are finally getting an aquarium, though I’m still waiting to see how it is going to as good as any of the ones I have been to and I’ve been to a couple that was not that great.
No worries! I am and always be a Louisiana NOLA Saints Fan, as well as, LSU Tiger!
Texas Teaching:
Okay, yeah, Texas is not Louisiana. Since I’m trying to get certification based in North Dallas area I’ll be close to my aunt and cousins who I lived with and worked for in 2014. I’ll also be close to my sister and brother-in-law since they are moving back to the states. So, those are two pluses I’m looking forward to once I get moved.
My plan is to teach in the North Dallas area for a couple years. Then after I have some experience, I hope to move down towards Galveston or Corpus Christi. At the least, anywhere close to the Gulf of Mexico. Though everything will depend on how things go and if anything else major happens. Meanwhile, in the North Dallas area, I am looking forward to field trips to the zoos, aquariums, and museums.
So, while researching the various schools in the area I’ll hopefully be working in, I found the school I really hope to get my teaching position. I find it kinda funny being since I’ve always wanted to work with marine animals/dolphins mainly since in high school. This particular elementary school happens to have their mascot as the… Dolphins! I literally laughed out loud when I saw that and saved the page so I would be able to find it easily when it was time to apply. Seriously, I think since I’ve always wanted to work with dolphins one way or another, this might actually be the way I work with ‘dolphins.’ Weird I know but hey, you just never know.
“Louisiana versus Texas Teaching:”
So, what’s the major difference in teaching there instead of here in my home state? Seriously, you haven’t figured it out? Well, it’s the money. Everything seems to be about the money. According to my research over the last several months, in 2014 my home parish first-year teachers starting salary was $41, 967. In the Independent School District, I plan on teaching in, as of 2016, the first year teachers starting salary was $51,475.
Yes, there’s a two-year difference; but seeing as the parish has not updated their salary information, it’s most likely the same. Despite the $9,508 difference in salary pay, the other big thing is Texas doesn’t require state income tax. Of course, this could be a good and bad thing. Things such as food, clothes, and gas are higher in price; but then again, we are always in Texas so I already pay those prices. The majority of my clothes are from stores there since our malls here are the worse.
There you go! Hope you enjoyed! It’s certainly not called “Random Tuesday” for no reason! ?
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Have any questions about today’s “Random Tuesday” “Louisiana versus Texas Teaching” post? Feel free to comment below! Hope you enjoyed!
Crafty JBird
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