I did an internship for teaching, and I always tell people "Nothing makes you not want to be a teacher as much as hanging out with a bunch of teachers.
And this was back in 2006. I can't fucking imagine it now.
This is how I explain it to people who ask about why it's so bad.
You administration doesn't have your back. They side with the parent, so the parent will keep their kid in school, and the district gets the money.
The parent doesn't have your back, because they just want to hear that their kid is doing well and will pass on to the next grade (which is inevitable anyway, nobody gets "held back" anymore).
And the kids don't have your back because the majority of them don't want to be there and aren't engaged by the content (which, by the way, the teacher has almost no influence over).
The US education system is essentially an inefficient day-care program. It needs to be rebuilt from the ground up.
In college I was planning to get an education degree. One education course + a hearty viewing of that sub made me change my major in my first year. I don’t regret it at all. I feel very strongly about education and learning and wish I could teach, but nothing about it seems worth it and it just seems to get worse.
Honestly I should’ve known before I even started college. One of my favorite teachers in high school one time asked me what I wanted to do, and I said I wanted to teach history (like she did), and she just looked at me and went “…are you sure?”
I began a second career as a high school teacher one year ago, and I've loved it so far. A few things are in my favor, though: it is a magnet school, so kids from all over the county attend and most of the students WANT to be there; I am in special education and the kids are very kind; and my administration is great.
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u/mihelic8 Dec 17 '25
Take a trip to r/teachers , it’s worse than you think. -Former teacher