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Teachers

Teachers share the best excuses.

Kindergarten through 12th grade teachers and college professors have heard every excuse in the book. Whether it’s a third grader claiming their “dog ate my homework” or a college freshman claiming their grandmother died to get out of a test, they’ve heard it all a billion times.

A college professor once listed the top 21 excuses he’s heard from his students. Here are the top five:

5. “It’s the last week of the semester.”

4. “It’s St. Patrick’s Day or 4/20”

3. “Our other teacher held us back.”

2. “My timetable showed the class was canceled.”

1. “I’m taking a vacation.”

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Education

Woman who teaches full time shares how she had to get a second job delivering pizzas

“Everyone’s talking about all the reasons teachers want to leave. But what about all the teachers that want to stay, but literally can’t afford to?”

@alexislongcrier/TikTok

"I'm doing this because I can't survive on my teacher paycheck."

Teaching has never been an easy job. Add to that the surge of remote learning challenges, making up for curriculum lost during school closures, a growing concern for safety and—last but not least—having to help more anxious and depressed kids than ever

The responsibilities have increased for an already taxing job. And yet, teacher salaries remain abysmally low, forcing many to either quit altogether or find supplemental income.

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Education

Teacher mispronounces every student's name to get a laugh, but it also serves a bigger purpose

Oddly enough, this kind of silly roll call can make everyone feel equally welcome.

A teacher mispronounced her students' names, which ironically may have made all of them feel more welcome.

Anyone who has lived in the U.S. with a nontraditionally American name knows how hard it can be to get some people to pronounce your name correctly.

My husband's name is Javad, which is only two syllables and objectively not hard to say (juh-VAHD), but I've watched many people mutilate it over the years even after being given the correct pronunciation. I remember one time watching him introduce himself to a man clearly and slowly—twice—and the man still called him "Bob," like he couldn't even digest this name he'd never heard before, much less pronounce it.

As a kid, at the beginning of every school year or every time a substitute teacher came around, it was common for my husband to have to correct the pronunciation of his name. Not the end of the world, but annoying. I can't imagine how much more annoying it is for people with longer names that aren't familiar to many American ears.

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Education

She quit teaching, works at Costco, and has 'never been happier.' That says something.

Maggie Perkins' viral videos and unique perspective have ignited the conversation around teacher attrition.

Maggie Perkins doesn't miss having a winter break.

Maggie Perkins loves teaching, loves teachers and loves students. In fact, she loves them so much that working on her Ph.D. in Educational Theory and Practice. Her research is focused on teacher attrition, examining why quality, experienced teachers quit the profession—something she understands all too well since she recently became one of them.

The former educator now works at Costco and she says she's never been happier. Her migraines are gone. Her anxiety has improved. She sleeps through the night. As an entry-level employee, she makes less money than she did teaching, but not enough less to make a difference in her financial situation. She goes home from work happy at the end of the day.

Perkins has been sharing the contrast in working conditions between the classroom and Costco on her TikTok channel and it is eye-opening, to say the least.

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