I don't advise anyone to enter the profession. Not that I would try to deter anyone from their dreams/goals. I am just saying that I would never encourage anyone that was undecided, unemployed, etc. to enter the profession. I am a special education teacher and the job is NOT fun. My situation is a special case because I teach at a residential treatment center. To simplify it, it's a mini-jail for kids. They live at the facility and are wards of state. They all have "sick." In other words, they are crazy and aren't getting the "treatment" that they need. Considering my situation, I can't generalize to other places, but I have classes with teachers at other schools and it seems to be a mess everywhere.
There are trials and tribulations DAILY!! Out of nine months, I can't recall one good day. I am not going to say that I haven't had one, but if I had, it's been so long ago that I can't remember. From my experience, I have realized a few points:
- The public education system is failing
- Most children are NOT interested in learning
- Parents are NOT involved like they need to be
- We are highly underpaid for the work we do
- Some people's children make you want to stab them
I am sure that teachers in better districts and teachers in private/parochial schools have a better experience. I can not make it as a classroom teacher. I am all for educating kids, but I don't think that everyone is cut out for teaching. It takes lots of patience and drive. It takes a lot out of you. You must be able to deal with stress and pressure. We must realize that these kids are NOT like we were during our school days. They say and do things in school that we would NEVER dream of doing. It's a new breed of kids. Be prepared!