Job Responsibilities
Teach 3 freshman level college english composition courses each semester. Per
week
totals of hours, including all classes -- 10 hours classroom instruction, 10
hours
prep time, 3 hours office work / administration, 24 hours grading. For
approximately
85 students, provide instruction, grading, testing, evaluation, administrative
record-
keeping, conference, and office hours for one-on-one instruction/conferences,
etc.
Two of the courses currently are second semester freshman level and one is an
entry-
level developmental course.
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Job Requirements
Came into teaching through first obtaining a Master of Fine Arts Degree in
Creative
Writing at Old Dominion University with an emphasis in teaching college
composition.
I then took two semesters of Teaching Assistantships where I acted as lead
teacher
for one college level freshman English course under the mentorship of the
Writing
Chair. Classes which I took to obtain the emphasis in teaching college
composition
seemed to be of little use in carrying out the actual teaching I did, whether as
a
Teaching Assistant or since. Though a little class time was spent on evaluating
student work, classroom management, developing syllabi and lesson plans, and
time
management, content of those teaching courses was primarily theory rather than
actual classroom instruction practices.
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Uppers
Seeing the progress which students make over the course of a semester. I get to
not only watch their writing skills improve, but also mark progress in their
critical thinking skills, analysis and research skills, attitudes toward writing
in general and even see their knowledge of the world expand.
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Downers
Administrative tasks. I hate taking attendance -- mandatory for the courses I
teach
-- and doing grade spreadsheets. I don't mind the grading of papers or
assignments
in and of itself; it's the compiling of the grades and keeping attendance that
seems
menial and tedious to me.
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Lifestyle
Work hours vary depending on when classes meet. I schedule office hours to be
convenient according to class times. There is virtually no business travel
unless I opt to attend professional conferences, which the school gives me time
off for, but for which they pay no fees or expenses. There are several scheduled
social events each semester. For instance, next week, we are having a
Thanksgiving social. Dress code is instructor dress; though slacks are
acceptable, of course jeans are not. Our campus has a wide range of diversity in
both student population and faculty, staff, administrators.
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Compensation
Compensation amounts to around $500 before taxes per credit hour taught, a
typical
wage for teaching as an adjunct at a community college in Virginia. Adjuncts at
my
school, and most higher ed institutions in Virginia, do not receive any benefits
at all;
however, being an adjunct is usually a step toward a full-time position. Yet,
currently
in Virginia, because of recent political decisions, higher education funding is
at a
minimum, so full-time positions rarely open and then, even if they do open, many
institutions are hiring adjuncts instead since we work for less money and
receive no
benefits.
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Advice to Jobseekers
Work outside the state of Virginia until the state's economy is again providing
adequate funding to higher education.
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