Poor Reasons to Choose Teaching as a Career
Make the Right Decision before Becoming a Teacher
Jan 24, 2009
Degrees are expensive. Imagine spending four years and $100,000 to get a degree that you don’t use for more than three years? Deciding to teach should take careful consideration and must be done for the right reasons. The following not those right reasons to choose teaching as a career.
Money
The NEA (National Education Association) states that the starting salary for the average teacher in the US is $30,377. Statistics are slippery things and the average teacher salary information varies greatly. The NEA says the average teacher salary for ’08 hovers around $52,000. Take into account however the low and high, based on the states. South Dakota comes in at $36,600, while California comes in at $64,400. Thinking about the variance in cost of living, they pan out to just about the same. And that same is not much. You will not get rich teaching.
Accolades and Ego
If you want to teach because you think people will respect you and stroke your ego because you are smarter than they are, think again. There is an aphorism, much lamented by the teaching profession, that goes, “Those who can do, those who can’t teach.” This has been the prevailing mood of much of the country for a long time. There are those students who come back and thank you, but they are, alas, in the minority of the students you will actually reach. A good teacher is intrinsically motivated.
Summers Off
This is such a misconception that it seems only teachers and their partners know the truth about summers. It comes down to this: teachers are paid for the time they teach. During the summers they are essentially furloughed. Most teachers can choose to receive the rest of their pay as one lump sum or let it continue to pay out bi-weekly. Some teachers supplement their incomes by teaching during the summer. Other teachers take classes or earn money from summer jobs.
The Desire to Be in Control
If you feel the need to be in control do not go into teaching. One of two things will happen. You will either become the kind of teacher that students detest, reducing your effectiveness as a teacher. Or you will leave the profession within 5 years. Check out Barbara Pytel's article, "Teachers are Quitting," here on Suite.com.
Classroom management (the jargon for controlling a classroom) is really more about finesse and diplomacy than it is power. Make no mistake, teachers are in charge because there is a tacit understanding among the students that this is simply how it should be. If they respect you, classroom management is a breeze. If they don’t, it can be a nightmare.
Remember that there are many good reasons to teach. If this article hasn't scared you away from the profession, you may just have the stuff to become a great teacher.
