Elementary Education Teachers - Would you recommend your career to a young adult?

[nugov2]

To hit $80,000 a year in my county, you would have to have 41 years of experience!!!

I'd imagine the COL in your area is dramatically less than mine though and you don't have to pay 1,000-2,000 a month in just property taxes which is the average in this area. Our schools see a huge chunk of that money. I know the next state over people pay 3-5,000 all year for property taxes on houses with similar square footage and houses cost significantly less.

 

[Westcoastwild]

I think a lot depends on where you work and what you want out of the job. People in all kinds of job fields- including medical- also complain about benefits, hours, state regulations, low wages. I've been in the medical field and the education field. A lot of it is attitude. A bad attitude will either get you fired or burn you out. I've seen that in both fields.

In my case, I really like the hours. I enjoy the kids. I think there is FOR SURE a disconnect between what you are taught in uni and what really goes on in a classroom. The requirements are a little ridiculous considering what you actually have time to teach and the uni curriculum always assumed adequate budget and working technology. (Ha. No.) I don't enjoy coworkers who hate their jobs and I don't enjoy some of the parents. I actually think parents are more entitled than the kids! Administration- principals- really impact your enjoyment of your job, but a rotten boss will impact your enjoyment of ANY job; so that is certainly not unique to teaching.

 

[BearFamily]

I just started my 21st year teaching. I would absolutely tell a high school student to go into education - IF they really felt a passion for it and understood the pros and cons in today's world.

I have taught in parochial and public schools in the past, and currently teach in an independent school. The pay is not great, but the work environment is pretty amazing. We are free of all of the state dictates and standardized insanity. We have generally good parental support and I'm not only allowed to be creative and innovative, it's pretty much expected of us. We view educating the whole child as part of our mission, so teaching things like empathy, social skills, mindfulness and cooperation are part of our mandate, not something that we wish we could get around to between cramming practice tests and mindless paperwork. There are fantastic independent schools of various different sizes and styles all over the country that are looking for creative, innovative teachers.

I would warn them of the current climate, reality as far as pay in various places, and lots and lots of other things to be considered before jumping into this field. But I love both my job and my overall career and wouldn't trade it for anything else.

 

[nugov2]

I do have to wonder if that is the same in almost any job. There is a reason work is called "work". Especially in jobs that have changed for the worse.

I'd say yes. My dh liked his job in the beginning. He now hates it. 50 hour work weeks 10+ hours in the car to commute, but he makes great money and he knows the reality is with more money usually is more stress, more work etc. He knows the grass is greener syndrome applies and that it wouldn't take long for the new shiny job to be what his current one is. He also has amazing benefits. You have to take the good with the bad and weigh the options and see if they are worth it. Many of my friends feel the perks of teaching are still worth it even though the job is not as great as it once was, same as my dh. I think unless your in that lucky small percentage of people doing a dream job you feel that way about work after you've been in the field for a chunk of time. Even if it is the field you wanted to be in when you were in school.

 

[MSLRAC]

Honestly, I changed careers a couple of years ago to become a teacher because I hated my job at the time. I made great money and took a huge pay cut to start teaching but I love what I do now. Like I stated in the spin off thread, I won't see fame or fortune in my career as a teacher but it's my passion and those light bulb moments are priceless to me.

But there are pros and cons to every career and a person has to weigh those and decide what is best for them.

 

[alicat8]

I say for overall quality of life-no. Ask me again in summer though. Then it seems worth it. Right now it doesn't.

 

[McKelly]

Not a teacher, but know many. They don't like it.

 

[Tattylou]

I think a lot depends on where you work and what you want out of the job. People in all kinds of job fields- including medical- also complain about benefits, hours, state regulations, low wages. I've been in the medical field and the education field. A lot of it is attitude. A bad attitude will either get you fired or burn you out. I've seen that in both fields.

In my case, I really like the hours. I enjoy the kids. I think there is FOR SURE a disconnect between what you are taught in uni and what really goes on in a classroom. The requirements are a little ridiculous considering what you actually have time to teach and the uni curriculum always assumed adequate budget and working technology. (Ha. No.) I don't enjoy coworkers who hate their jobs and I don't enjoy some of the parents. I actually think parents are more entitled than the kids! Administration- principals- really impact your enjoyment of your job, but a rotten boss will impact your enjoyment of ANY job; so that is certainly not unique to teaching.

This exactly ^^^^^^^^^^
(Not a teacher, but my DH and my father are....)

 

[Party.Of.4-NY>>>FL]

The median salary in my county is $101,692.

With Superintendents making over $300,000 in some cases.

 

[hippiechicken]

I love my job!! I teach 5th grade now. This is my 19th year teaching and I previously taught kinder, 1st, 3rd, and was a literacy coach. I recently went back to the classroom because I missed the kids. I believe you have to have a passion for kids and what you are teaching to make it worth it. It's not an easy job, but I think I'm pretty good at it and I like my summers off!! I think the school or district where you work and administration makes a huge difference. I'm lucky to be in a place that supports teachers' and students' innovation and creativity. The people I work with all seem to enjoy the job, too...
Perhaps she could do some classroom visits. My daughter took a children's literature class in college that worked in a school and then confirmed that she didn't want to teach full time.

 

[Jhaberlein]

I have 14 years experience: 4 schools in 2 different counties. 8 years as a middle/high English teacher and the rest as library media specialist. This is my first year in a k-8 school. Due to budget cuts I have been "displaced" twice; once in each county. As much as I absolutely ADORE my kids and what I do, would I recommend it? No. Would I choose a different path if I could? In a hearbeat. I will echo what everyone has said: decisions are being made by people who have never set foot into a classroom, "best" instructional methods are constantly changing resulting in teachers needed to "re plan" lessons, county and state testing... I can't even. It's easily a 60+ hour work week your first few years. If she's absolutely passionate about it, she'll get a good feel for it during internships in her college program. Look for one that offers internships EARLY in the program! If she's just kicking it around.... try to introduce other options for her to consider.

 

[monsterkitty]

This is year 27.5 for me. I was hired at my school three days before Winter Break and haven't looked back. I love my kids, the colleagues I work with, and my community. However, I do not love the ridicules paper work, tests, and everything else that prevents me from putting all my effort into my students and their lessons.

Would I recommend teaching to a high school student? It depends on the student. Some I would tell to go into education in a heart beat because I can see their grit and their desire. Others I would say think about a different career, even if I've seen traits that would make them a really good teacher. However, the "new" education systems that we are creating are no longer good fits for many who desire to teach. I see our profession eating up and spitting out too many younger teachers because the system is no longer about kids.

 

[disykat]

While I agree with the premise that all jobs get discouraging, teaching is interesting in that everyone is an expert at your job because they were once a student.

 

[Southernmiss]

While I agree with the premise that all jobs get discouraging, teaching is interesting in that everyone is an expert at your job because they were once a student.

I think this is a common thought of teachers. But I very much disagree.

People have opinions of many occupations they know little about- currently law enforcement officials are the target.

Teachers just often think they have a monopoly on it.

 

[monsterkitty]

You bring up a good point about how wildly teacher salaries vary across the U.S. I live in the San Juan Unified School district where teachers start at $44,600* for a 9 month contract. We have lost 6 people this year to teaching this year because the pay, benefits and time off are so much better than our industry. And very few people who are changing careers hire in at bottom scale, you can get boosted up 1 step for every year experience for another job that is related to your teaching job up to 10 steps, so if I were to teach High School Journalism or TV Production, with 41 years experience, I would get 10 step ups and start at $79.037. Not my cup of tea though. I prefer to do, not teach. But for people with school age kids, it can be a god send when it comes to dealing with child care since you have the same schedule for holidays and vacation.

*http://www.sanjuan.edu/cms/lib8/CA01902727/Centricity/domain/116/documents/salary schedules/certificated salaries/2016-2017 K-12 Regular_Salary_Schedule.pdf

The highlighted sentence is an excellent point. But it's not just about salaries. In my state you would not be given credit for steps for years outside of education. In fact, if you switch school districts they don't even match years to years. If I left my district my new district would only give me credit for up to 7 of my 27 years.

I topped out on our pay scale at year 20 with a Masters Plus 120 additional credit hours. I will continue to stay at this pay rate until I retire unless we are given a pay raise which hasn't happened in several years.

 

[Aliceacc]

I'm secondary math, and have been teaching since 1980. My husband teaches secondary English, and started a year or two after me.

And we would both absolutely recommend teaching for anyone who is interested.

I LOVE my job. I outlined some of the reasons in the other thread, so I won't repeat al the things I love about it. But check my posting history-- I brag about the kids I teach on a pretty regular basis.

I would disagree, though, with the idea that former students are experts on teaching. I've given birth twice-- that certainly does not make me an OB-GYN. Sure, the experience was shared. But the perspective was vastly different.

 

[DawnM]

I haven't taught for many years due to being home with my kids, but I felt like the pay was actually good and as you get your masters and add more years you do have a lot of room to grow with your salary. I would be making almost 80,000 if I wouldn't have left to stay home. You get promotions by going back to school and getting your masters if you wan to be an administrator. Now that being said, most of my friends still teaching feel like the job has changed dramatically and while they make too much to leave always tell me to stay home or do something else when I decide to work again. I will go back to teaching because I love working with kids. The pay is good IMO and the hours are great. All the days off are a perk and summers off. All great for working when you have kids. If I didn't have kids I'd probably work in a different field.

I would be making more than that if I had stayed in SoCal and not stayed home for 10 years. But we moved to NC and I am making less than when I left LA. But thankfully, the COL is less and we bought our house at the right time.

I am working because I wanted to go back AND we need to pay for college and don't want us or our kids to go into debt.

 

[Tattylou]

I am not a teacher. I am a psychotherapist. The clients I have who feel the most stressed, disappointed etc in their job are not typically teachers. I know teachers feel it a bit too, but they generally go back to the moments that make teaching worthwhile. The ones who struggle the most are the ones who's dream it was to be a teacher or another helping profession working with kids, but were discouraged from pursuing that dream because they were told that business, finance, or whatever would make them more money.

 

[Magpie]

I'm a reading and math tutor and I've worked with teachers.

I think, as with many jobs, it really depends where you are teaching. Is your work environment supportive? Do you feel satisfied with your accomplishments?

Teaching, somewhat uniquely, has the potential to be extremely rewarding. Many people get into it as a passion, and a calling, and a desire to make a difference in the lives of others. And, in many cases, because they were inspired by a teacher when they were young and want to pay it forward.

It's a great goal for a young person, and something you both should keep in mind is that it's possible to have MANY careers over the course of your working life. Start with teaching. If it doesn't work out, you've still got that university education under your belt and work experience to carry you forward into a new career.

I would never discourage any teenager from following their dreams, just because the career might be tough or low paying.

 

[Tattylou]

I'm a reading and math tutor and I've worked with teachers.

I think, as with many jobs, it really depends where you are teaching. Is your work environment supportive? Do you feel satisfied with your accomplishments?

Teaching, somewhat uniquely, has the potential to be extremely rewarding. Many people get into it as a passion, and a calling, and a desire to make a difference in the lives of others. And, in many cases, because they were inspired by a teacher when they were young and want to pay it forward.

It's a great goal for a young person, and something you both should keep in mind is that it's possible to have MANY careers over the course of your working life. Start with teaching. If it doesn't work out, you've still got that university education under your belt and work experience to carry you forward into a new career.

I would never discourage any teenager from following their dreams, just because the career might be tough or low paying.

The highlighted part of this is Truth with a capital T.