I believe I can begin to understand the difficulties we are having trying to fill teaching positions, in special-education classes and otherwise. Good teachers are valued by their students. On the other hand, however, teachers face constant ridicule from society. They are considered lowly on the job chain.
If a child has any discipline problems, it is blamed on the teacher. If students are having trouble learning a concept, the teacher is to be blamed. If little Susie doesn’t perform up to standards, it is the teacher’s fault. Teachers have become the scapegoats of our education society.
We go into our classrooms demanding that teachers do their jobs our way. Would anyone dare go to the CEO of a prominent company and tell him how to do his job? Not only that, but also blame him for every single problem each of the people working under him has?
We expect so much of these humans. When it comes time to reward them for their efforts, however, we fall immensely short. Teachers are poorly paid by school districts. More and more teachers are forced to leave because they cannot support themselves. Yet we still expect to attract college students to the profession?
I am 14 years old. I aspire to become a teacher. As I have begun to recognize the way our society treats these professionals, I have come to understand the warnings I have gotten to choose another profession. Frankly, I don’t blame teachers for leaving.
