Dear PP,

I am ppp, and I wholeheartedly agree with you. I completely agree that teachers should have years of training and carefully supervised classroom experiences.

The curriculum should respect students abilities and manage a classroom where each child excels together, rather than grouping everyone into "abilities'.

Teachers should be well payed, with excellent opportunities to grow. They should get more respect in the process, and have some opportunities to avoid burn-outs by trying multiple positions, sabaticals, stints in the corporate world.

Children should have a right to be taught by teachers of both sexes. They should see that the business of learning is serious enough to take priority over some corporate job. And frankly, some kids simply do better with a variety of teaching styles.

But that is not what happens. The biggest 2 draws to the profession remain a love of children and a family friendly schedule. The resumes you get reflect that fact, for better or for worse.

I wish the corporate world worked on a family friendly schedule, I wish that the teachers benefited from a professional reputation equal to any corporate job.

I'd love to change the world. But don't put down my own experience when I'm simply investigate what it would take to change a career.

How do we go about it?

And this thread is exactly what is wrong with American public education. Someone is posting here wondering what it's like to be a teacher. S/he is drawn to the "family benefits." And folks are responding with answers about salaries, time off with kids, and how easy it is to switch. I cannot imagine OP posting the same question about becoming a doctor or a lawyer. The training programs for those professions are rigorous and require an intense commitment. There are intense exams that many fail the first time.

And yet, with just a few weeks of training (see Teach for America) someone can be in charge of a classroom in the neediest schools in this country.

We should be following the model in Finland where teacher training programs are long, intense and challenging. All of the universities are public institutions. The bar to get in is incredibly high in terms of grades, achievement testing, experience and interviews. No online degrees. Weed out the folks that just want a career where they get time off with their kids or just to try something different.

There are many things that need to be done in this country if we are going to ever raise our achievement levels among other nations. Overhauling the teacher preparation is just one step in raising the profession.

Stepping off my soapbox now. I've got a lot of work to do to prepare for school opening and I'm procrastinating on a Sunday afternoon.

--Public elementary school principal who was dismayed by how many awful resumes came across her desk

Are you a performer and extrovert?
Are you ready to plan your life around the school year before you have school age children?

My mom was a teacher for 35 years and I've had a few friends leave teaching in the last few years. Whenever I hear someone tell them they'd like to be a teacher this is what they ask.

You have to be at work on time every day. Not like my office job where 8:30 start means anything between 8 and 9 if you don't have a meeting. It means never being late. It means getting up in front of a tough audience and being enthusiastic every day - even when you're having a bad day. It means not being able to take vacation when your friends are - but only on school breaks. It means dealing with difficult and demanding helicopter parents. It means having a tough job that doesn't pay that much, that lots of ignorant people think is Over paid and can be done by anyone. Teaching is hard work and is undervalued by a lot of people. You have to be really passionate about it if that's the route you want to go.

not OP, but looking for a mid-career switch.

For someone with solid math education and coming from a technical field, how difficult is it to combine the educational requirements with teaching experience -- say working daytime as a substitute in elementary schools while taking credits at night?

Or, are there ways to accelerate the education process? I have 2 MS at this point, and 2 kids in early elementary school. Experience with some homeschooling and teaching at college and professional level, including curriculum development, but not little kids in a classroom setting.

I'd like to be out in the field and enjoy teaching before the kids head out to high school!

Anonymous wrote:What's the average pay of teachers in this area?

go to the web site of the school districts you would be targeting. They each post that information, breaking down by experience, field, grades taught, etc.

Anonymous wrote:OP here - thanks for the input everyone. I have a lot to think about.

I would want to teach elementary, specifically the primary grades (K-3). The "family friendly" benefits of teaching really appeal to me as I am planning on having children. I do think I'd be a good teacher - I'm really good at working with kids, have previous experience as a tutor, am very enthusiastic about learning. I'm 3 years out of high school and still think of the year in terms of "school months" and "summer months" - I really can't escape that school mentality.

I've been looking up pre-reqs for programs in my area (not DC) - the earliest I would be eligible to apply is September 2015. That's a bit of a deterrent for me

Look at alternative education programs. Teach for America (incredibly competitive), DC Teaching Fellows, NYC teaching fellows, etc. They are all over and often pay for half of your masters. I am in the middle of one now. It is definitely challenging. But I love it and have no regrets.

OP here - thanks for the input everyone. I have a lot to think about.

I would want to teach elementary, specifically the primary grades (K-3). The "family friendly" benefits of teaching really appeal to me as I am planning on having children. I do think I'd be a good teacher - I'm really good at working with kids, have previous experience as a tutor, am very enthusiastic about learning. I'm 3 years out of high school and still think of the year in terms of "school months" and "summer months" - I really can't escape that school mentality.

I've been looking up pre-reqs for programs in my area (not DC) - the earliest I would be eligible to apply is September 2015. That's a bit of a deterrent for me

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you think you'll have kids and want to spend more time with them, it would be an excellent choice. But you have to enjoy it and want to do it. But it is a super job if you have kids. You can usually do it anywhere you go, and you could always go back and go administrative.
I went to college for HS and wish I'd done elementary now instead.

Why do you wish you'd done elementary? Not op, but I'm thinking of doing high school.

Op, of you are good at math and science, I'd try to get certified in that. There seems to be more demand for that. Am I right, teachers?

Yes. Public middle school science teacher here- not in DC.

There is a massive learning curve. The first year is really, really hard. If you're interested in a bilingual or special ed extension, I'd recommend it, at least where I am- it does make you more likely to get hired. If you enjoy traveling, teaching is awesome. Not at all why I chose to become a teacher but it is a nice benefit to have longer periods off & more flexibility.

As a teacher you could literally work 24/7 and find something to change or "improve-" whether it's more grading, lesson planning, adjusting presentations and projects, etc. It helps to be organized, efficient, and not procrastinate. I am not all of those things, but I am trying to improve.

Anonymous wrote:If you think you'll have kids and want to spend more time with them, it would be an excellent choice. But you have to enjoy it and want to do it. But it is a super job if you have kids. You can usually do it anywhere you go, and you could always go back and go administrative.
I went to college for HS and wish I'd done elementary now instead.

Why do you wish you'd done elementary? Not op, but I'm thinking of doing high school.

Op, of you are good at math and science, I'd try to get certified in that. There seems to be more demand for that. Am I right, teachers?

If you think you'll have kids and want to spend more time with them, it would be an excellent choice. But you have to enjoy it and want to do it. But it is a super job if you have kids. You can usually do it anywhere you go, and you could always go back and go administrative.
I went to college for HS and wish I'd done elementary now instead.

What's the average pay of teachers in this area?

I think its much easier to plan on being a teacher when younger and still in college then later in life. My wife chose teaching as a second career and had to go back and take additional undergraduate courses as well as get a Master's degree. She then interned for a half year (while in grad school) and substitute taught for a year before landing a full time teaching gig. In all, it took about 4 years from beginning to end (undergrad supplement, grad school at a part time basis, subbing, to full time employment). She does love it though. Decent pay, work 180 days, summers off, good benefits, etc etc. The first 2-3 years of teaching are very tough though.....

I taught for 10 years then re-trained (in a science field). I feel it was a good first profession, but it's hard work and, while it is rewarding in that you feel you are making a difference for the kids, it's the same thing every year (more or less) and that started to get to me.

Perhaps plan on teaching for a few years and then going back to the social work idea. By then, you'd have enough 'life experience'!

It is fairly easy to switch careers and become a teacher. If I could do it all again, I would have looked ino higher paying careers or ones that allow for more promotion and opportunities first like nursing, then becoming a nurse practitioner, etc.

You can always teach later in life. You don't have to go straight to it from college, whereas other professions are harder to get into if you don't have the right classes and degrees.

I'm about to turn 21, halfway through my undergrad degree, and seriously re-evaluating what I'm doing with my life. After two years completing all the prereqs for my bachelor of social work, I was rejected from my current university's program (not enough relevant work experience) and have been working full time as a nanny since then (1.5 years ago). I really want to go back to school and finish my degree but I'm struggling with what direction to go in. Until 11th or 12th grade, I thought I was going to be a elementary school teacher. I'm now revisiting that idea.

Any teachers out there who want to tell me what they love and/or hate about their job? Any advice? Thanks!