Accountants, physicists, lawyers, dentists, surgeons... we need these. All of these. They are highly respected positions that require years of schooling, degrees and aspiration. They also come with a reward of high-income salaries. But with all of these technological developments and scientific advancements, one of the most important careers of all time seems to be getting lost.
41 percent of teachers statewide leave the profession during their first five years of teaching.
I have fallen into the trap. When I was younger, I always thought I would grow up to be a teacher -- an English teacher, to be exact. Reading and writing have always been my passion, but as I've grown older, something else has trumped importance over my dreams of having a classroom -- money.
Teacher candidates now interview districts to see which school system has the best offer.
"Teachers don't make enough money." If I'm spending all this money on a college career, why aim to be a teacher when I could have a different profession and twice the income? I want to live comfortably, not paycheck-to-paycheck. I want to be able to go out to lunch or dinner, and not worry about whether I can afford it or not. I am only one person, but the thought of "not making enough money" has scared me away.
80 percent of teachers surveyed said they would not recommend becoming a teacher.
It's scaring everyone away. So... who will be teaching our children in the classrooms?
I graduated high school in 2014, and I'm still close to my teachers from ninth grade. I still babysit their kids, I still go in and visit them in the classroom, and I still text them so we can stay up to date with each others lives. My teachers did more than "teach." They mentored me. They developed my critical thinking. They influenced my values. They made me the person I am today. I want my children to have those same kinds of relationships.
But it seems like teachers are being more and more discouraged to keep teaching.
The median pay in 2014 of high school teachers was $56,000.
$56,000 isn't too bad, right? Wrong. In most places, teachers' salaries change based on how well their test scores are. When the bell rings and class is dismissed, teachers don't stop working. They put in countless unpaid hours.
There is unequal funding among states, among school districts within each state, and even among schools within specific districts.
Not only is the payment system ludicrous, but teachers today are forced to "teach to the test." Standardized testing and all of the new requirements have caused teachers to focus on their students' scores instead of teaching them to thinking outside the box and solve real-life problems.
I don't know how to do my taxes. I don't understand mortgages. I don't know what other options are out there. I feel like I was shoved through the system, and used to make the test score charts go up.
The education system is a beautiful thing, and we wouldn't have the system without teachers.
I want to be a teacher. But I don't want to be a teacher in this system.
