Pros
Loved my students, lots of different cultures represented. Most of the teachers were awesome to work with...we bonded through mutual hatred of management.
Cons
Management was some of the worst I've ever worked for. I don't necessarily think it was one particular person, as much as it was pressure from corporate. They aren't very flexible with schedules and they put an extreme amount of pressure on teachers to reach results (which is understandable, but resources should be provided to achieve said results). The two biggest reasons I left was Money, they grossly under pay their teachers and staff when comparing to a similar job with a public school (they won't pay for days off teachers are forced to take, i.e. Christmas break, Government holidays etc...) The other reason I left was because there wasn't a lot of room for growth within the company. It's very difficult to get raises, and change grades etc... I felt stifled and my willingness to work hard was constantly taken advantage of. They definitely have the highest employee and enrollment turn over rate that I've ever seen. One year I went through 4 co-teachers (they kept quitting because of management) and the parents were never informed that their children would be getting a new teacher. So I was left to deal with upset parents and an untrained co-teacher. The communication is truly terrible between management, staff and parents. I had more than one parent teacher conference where my director reprimanded me in front of the parents for issues that I had nothing to do with. It was a very discouraging experience, I would leave work each day emotionally and physically exhausted, only to go home and work some more (unpaid). My prep time was unpaid and I was often left alone with 30+ students. I worked there for 4 1/2 years and was never really thanked for my hard work. I had the best test scores and highest enrollment for my grade and all I ever heard was negative comments from miserable management who were choosing to stay stuck in a soul sucking job. The benefits are terrible and very expensive. I left Challenger in July and I'm just beginning to feel normal again. It's like I'm recovering from emotional abuse. My new job is amazing, who knew work could actually be a happy, uplifting and fun place to be! I actually get paid for days I'm not at work (sick time, vacation, personal days) It's a revolutionary experience that I'm basking in. I just hope my equally unhappy co-workers are eventually able to break free of the chains of Challenger.