I was once told that teachers are just glorified baby sitters and everything we teach them could be boiled down to three words: letters, numbers and coloring. After I cooled off I showed the parent my 30 page lesson plans and that was only one week's worth. She proceeded to tell me that she could easily do my job. I could see quickly I was getting no where with her so I kept my thoughts to myself... until now. I would like to suggest to you that not anyone can be a teacher because teaching is way more than glorified babysitting. Here are 5 reasons why not every one can be a teacher.
1. Paper work.
Not only do you have to write lesson plans each week that cater to all the needs of your students but you also have IEP's, PEP's, and PDP's (these are documents to help students learn better and be given resources they need). Then you have progress reports, report cards, home work sheets, and the occasional notes home to the parents. After writing all of those things there is still more that somehow the school digs up just when you think you are almost done and that once mega pen set that was suppose to last you all year has one pen left.
2. Files.
Along with paper work, organization is key to teaching. Have you ever seen a teachers desk piled a mile high with paper work and they have no clue where they barred that document that needed to turned in on Friday? Now imagine if all that paperwork was filed into a neat system. A file for allergies, medical documents, behavior reports, report card, parent notes, lesson plans,...and so many more. The best part is as the teacher you are expected to put your hands on any given document at any time during the year.
3. Bladder control.
When you become a teacher you give up the right to go to the bathroom any time you please. This may seem a bit petty to you but if you have ever went the who day with out a trip to the bathroom you will know the pain a teacher goes through.
4. Patience.
Oh, boy this is a big one. We all have that one person that can really get on our nerves. Well teachers have 20-30 students that at least one (usually more) time(s) during the school year becomes that person. From not learning a concept to not caring about learning to bad mouthing the teacher to throwing objects at the teacher, teachers have seen it all. As teachers all you can do is keep on keeping on. You cant spank them, kick them out, yell at them, or really anything more than send a note home and hope it gets better.
5. You take your work home with you.
The best way to sum this point up in is with a song.
If you have never heard this song it wraps up teaching pretty nicely. As teachers we have every kind of student you can imagine and though it is not our job to help them do anything more than learn the material and teach to the test we can not help but care. Now imagine if you saw a little kid with no shoes and no water living on the side of the road. Could you turn it away? This is what teachers see every day and though we can only do so much we try our best. One of the biggest things you hear about teachers is they never make money well I can tell you why. It's certainly not because we don't want to make it or because we buy extravagant things for our lovely house. Its because our pay check goes right back into our classroom. If our students need something in the middle of the year and for some reason can not get it who do you think buys it? That's right the teacher.
Still think teaching is glorified baby sitting?
