Teachers Have It Easy

I have friends that despise teachers. They don't necessarily despise the person, but more so the profession. They feel that teachers in general live a life that is simple and carefree. After all, and I'll quote one of them here: "Those who can do. Those who can't - teach." Ouch! That's a bit judgmental.

Other gripes I often hear about are: Teachers get too much time off. Teachers have an entire summer to do nothing. Teachers don't have to deal with real world problems. Teachers are safe from being fired because they have tenure. Teachers only work for 6 hours a day. I could keep going, as they often do, but I think you get the point.

So what's my reply to this barrage?
"Yep, teachers have a very cool job." We 'can do' and that's why we teach. It takes skill, patients, and some very unique ways of teaching to help a child who struggles with a concept.

I also tell them, "Before you judge, step into the classroom and give it a try." I often have parents leave commenting that they don't know how I do it. Simple - I love what I do and I care about the kids (although don't let them know that, it will destroy my reputation as a guy teacher). Anybody who loves their job does it know matter what the circumstances. I personally wouldn't want to be a forest ranger for a living, but for the men and women who do it day in a day out, they love it.

We do get the summers off. It's great! This summer I will spend my time taking more graduate classes to improve my abilities within education. Most teachers take their summer time to further their education. Also, as a coach, I will more then likely put in an additional amount of time working with kids on the court. It's a shame that sports have become so front and center that a typical season has extended to 10-11 months, rather than the standard 3 months it use to be. Ahhhhh, the price of winning.

The real world problem is mostly laughable. Spend a day with a teacher. We manage 30-50 issues a day. Anything from social issues to educational issues. Students bring the full gambit. It's hard to believe, but not everybody walks into class with a big smile on their face everyday. For those in the business field, I have a question for you. When was the last time you had to approve the vomiting of a coworker, or be responsible for the office bathroom breaks, or have a coworker complain to you because another office worker had looked at them wrong. When was the last time two you had to mediate between two coworkers because they had a sharing issue in the break room (oh, and don't forget to throw in the fact that the entire office of workers are waiting for you to finish the mediation so they can move on with their day.). Real world? We have real world!

With regards to the tenure issue. Teachers are fortunate to have a system in place that protects them from undo prosecution. Wait a second .... that's just like that thing called the Bill of Rights! Teachers can be fired even if they have tenure. Yep, it's true. The tenure process is in place to allow for correction and modifications to be made if a teacher has fallen behind in certain facets of the job. However, if they don't meet the necessary standard, they can be dismissed. Sounds similar to most professional jobs.

Finally the last issue of the day - our 6 hour day. I'm at school as kids are being dropped off by their parents, so I know of a few that I actually beat to work most days. Teachers will typically put in about 10 hours a day. Sure there's the school time (8-3:30), which is 7.5 hours, but it doesn't end there. Unlike my friends who bash teachers, they don't bring home any of their work from the office. Teachers typically have papers to grade and plans to prepare for in order to get the job done. Those teacher bags/totes that you see most carrying out of the building at the end of the day aren't filled with cookies (which is a darn shame).

Teaching is a pleasure. It's fun, addicting, ever changing, and never dull. The students I deal with are nothing short of our future, and I take that seriously. When I look out at my class I envision the next leader, inventor, and comedian. They're there in front of me everyday, waiting to see what I can teach them next. The funny thing is, half the time we deal in book knowledge, while the other half we're learning how to be good people and quality citizens (hopefully while having a good time along the way).

Someone once told me that teachers touch lives. If you want to make a difference become a teacher. Well, I would say,... if you want to make a difference become a world leader. If you want to become a teacher, do it because you love it, you love working with kids, and most of all you get to write your own blog! And yes, I'm rethinking my friendships.