INSERT
CARTOON
HERE
TEACHING IS SOFT AND MUSHY
A. STARTLING FACTS
ABOUT TEACHING
B. WHY YOU SHOULD
NOT TEACH
C. WHY YOU SHOULD
TEACH
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
In the last two years, the
State Dept. of Education
has issued more than
50,000 emergency
teaching credentials.
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
In the last five years, there
have been only 8 fully
credentialed teachers for
every 10 teaching positions
in California’s public
schools.
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
In California during the
2000-01 school year, 1 in 7
teachers had no credential
or the wrong credential for
the subject they were
teaching.
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
20% of all new teachers
quit within three years…
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
20% of all new teachers
quit within three years…
50% quit within five
years.
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
Those teachers who scored
in the top 25% on their
college entrance exams
were nearly twice as likely
to leave.
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
One-third of teachers in a
nationwide poll said that
they would not go into
teaching if they had a
chance to do it over again.
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
The life expectancy of
a teacher is four
years lower than the
national average.
“Teaching is the most
responsible, the least
advertised, the worst paid,
and the most richly
rewarded profession in the
world.”
— Ian Hay
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
Teachers are
grossly
underpaid.
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHERS ARE GROSSLY
UNDERPAID.
Teachers earn 29%
less than other
workers with B.A.
degrees.
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHERS ARE GROSSLY
UNDERPAID.
An entry level job in
Silicon Valley pays as
much as a 5th year
teaching position.
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHERS ARE GROSSLY
UNDERPAID.
A beginning engineer
makes $47,112 in
California while a new
teacher earns $26,225.
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
Teaching is
undervalued
by society.
“Those who can, do;
those who can’t,
teach.”
— George Bernard Shaw
“You don’t have to
think too hard when
you talk to a teacher.”
— J. D. Salinger
“Everybody who is
incapable of learning
has taken to
teaching.”
— Oscar Wilde
“Education: the
inculcation of the
imcomprehensible
into the indifferent by
the incompetent.”
— John Maynard Keynes
“Teaching is not a
lost art, but the
regard for it is a lost
tradition.”
— Jacques Barzun
“One out of every
three students in the
United States scores
below the 34th
percentile in math.”
— Bobo the Clown
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
Teaching is
complex.
“We expect teachers to
handle teenage pregnancy,
substance abuse, and the
failings of the family. Then
we expect them to educate
our children.”
— John Sculley
“Teaching … is not
only the hardest job
in the school, it is the
hardest job there is.”
— William Glasser
“Unless one has taught,
it is hard to imagine the
extent of the demands
made on a teacher’s
attention.”
— Charles Silberman
“People sometimes
say, ‘I should like to
teach if only pupils
cared to learn.’ But
then there would be
little need of teaching.”
— George H. Palmer
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHING IS COMPLEX.
THE BALANCING ACT
Providing for success
vs.
Providing a challenge
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHING IS COMPLEX.
THE BALANCING ACT
Computational skills
vs.
Calculator use
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHING IS COMPLEX.
THE BALANCING ACT
Traditional tests
vs.
Performance tasks
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHING IS COMPLEX.
THE BALANCING ACT
Coverage of topics
vs.
Depth of
understanding
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHING IS COMPLEX.
THE BALANCING ACT
Algebraic thinking
vs.
Algebra 1 for all
eighth graders
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHING IS COMPLEX.
THE BALANCING ACT
Real learning
vs.
Test preparation
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
TEACHING IS COMPLEX.
THE BALANCING ACT
State Standards
vs.
Common sense
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
Teaching is
stressful.
STARTLING FACT
ABOUT TEACHING
Teaching is the third most
stressful occupation on
earth behind only air traffic
controllers and surgeons.
“50 years ago, teachers
said their top discipline
problems were talking,
chewing gum, making
noise, and running in
the halls. ...
“The current list, by
contrast, sounds like a
cross between a rap
sheet and the seven
deadly sins.”
– Anna Quindlen
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1940
1) Talking out of turn
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1940
1) Talking out of turn
2) Chewing gum
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1940
1) Talking out of turn
2) Chewing gum
3) Making noise
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1940
1) Talking out of turn
2) Chewing gum
3) Making noise
4) Running in the halls
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1940
1) Talking out of turn
2) Chewing gum
3) Making noise
4) Running in the halls
5) Cutting in line
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1940
1) Talking out of turn
2) Chewing gum
3) Making noise
4) Running in the halls
5) Cutting in line
6) Dress code infractions
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1940
1) Talking out of turn
2) Chewing gum
3) Making noise
4) Running in the halls
5) Cutting in line
6) Dress code infractions
7) Littering
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1940
1) Talking out of turn
2) Chewing gum
3) Making noise
4) Running in the halls
5) Cutting in line
6) Dress code infractions
7) Littering
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1990
1) Drug abuse
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1990
1) Drug abuse
2) Alcohol abuse
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1990
1) Drug abuse
2) Alcohol abuse
3) Pregnancy
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1990
1) Drug abuse
2) Alcohol abuse
3) Pregnancy
4) Suicide
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1990
1) Drug abuse
2) Alcohol abuse
3) Pregnancy
4) Suicide
5) Rape
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1990
1) Drug abuse
2) Alcohol abuse
3) Pregnancy
4) Suicide
5) Rape
6) Robbery
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1990
1) Drug abuse
2) Alcohol abuse
3) Pregnancy
4) Suicide
5) Rape
6) Robbery
7) Assault
TOP 7 SCHOOL PROBLEMS
1990
1) Drug abuse
2) Alcohol abuse
3) Pregnancy
4) Suicide
5) Rape
6) Robbery
7) Assault
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
Teaching is
exhausting.
INSERT
CARTOON
HERE
AN ALIEN’S VIEW OF
SCHOOL:
“School is a place were
young people go to
watch old people
work.”
“Teaching was the
hardest work I had ever
done, and it remains
the hardest work I have
done to date.”
– Ann Richards
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
Teaching is
ambiguous.
EXCELLENCE IN TEACHING
1) High test scores
2) Quiet classrooms
3) Adherence to state
standards
4) Use of latest curricula
5) Modern, high-tech
classrooms
But what about . . .




Caring for, respecting, and
relating to students
Believing in kids
Compassion, energy,
creativity, and intelligence
Inspiring life-long learning
“To be a good teacher you
need to keep two things in
mind simultaneously:
1) you need to reach
every student,
every minute.
“and …
2) in the broad sweep of
a student’s life, you are
little more than a speck
of sand.”
– from Possible Lives
by Mike Rose
“It is the supreme art of
the teacher to awaken
joy in creative
expression and
knowledge.”
– Albert Einstein
“Education is not
the filling of a
bucket, but the
lighting of a fire.”
– William Butler Yeats
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TEACH
Teaching is
frustrating.
“For every person
wishing to teach,
there are thirty not
wanting to be taught.”
– W. C. Sellar and R. J. Yeatman
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
Clocks move more
quickly during prep
periods and more slowly
during staff meetings.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
On Staff Development
Days, clocks don’t
move at all.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
The line at the copy
machine is inversely
proportional to the
number of minutes left
in your prep period.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
The copy machine will
jam just before you
need to run off an
important test.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
Good students
move away.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
New students
haven’t covered
anything you’ve
been learning.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
The problem child will
turn out to be a school
board member’s son or
daughter.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
Kids with colds will
sneeze in your face.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
The disaster drill will be
scheduled during your
prep period.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
An assembly will be
scheduled during the
period in which you are
most behind.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
A disaster will occur on
Parent Visitation Day.
MURPHY’S LAW
IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
When something
wonderful happens in
your class, nobody is
there to see it.
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
1) Teaching requires
CREATIVITY.
2) Teaching is COMPLEX.
3) Teaching is EXCITING.
4) Teaching is SATISFYING.
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
5) Teaching is COMPELLING.
6) Teaching is intensely
PERSONAL.
7) Teaching is FUN.
8) Teaching has a SOUL.
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
Teaching
requires
creativity.
“Good teachers
are usually a little
crazy.”
– Andy Rooney
“One can do anything,
anything at all …
provided with a
passionate and gifted
teacher.”
– Pat Conroy
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
Teaching is
complex.
“A successful teacher
needs:
 the education of a
college president,
 the executive ability
of a financier,
the humility of a
deacon,
 the adaptability of a
cameleon,
 the hope of an
optimist,

the courage of a hero,
 the wisdom of a
serpent,
 the gentleness of a
dove,
 the patience of Job,

the grace of God,
and
 the persistence of
the Devil.”

– anonymous
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
Teaching is
exciting.
“Perhaps teaching is really
a mutual experience
between the younger and
the older; perhaps all there
is to be learned is what
they can discover between
them.”
– Amanda Cross
“Teaching provides a way
to stay young at heart, to
maintain a lifetime of active
learning. … It is in every
respect a profession of
hope.”
– Vito Perrone
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
Teaching is
satisfying.
“Why teach? Why did
Prometheus steal fire only
to turn around and give it
away? There is an inherent
generosity in the human
spirit – one of its faces in
the face of a teacher.”
– Michael Crichton
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
Teaching is
compelling.
“Teaching is a
life sentence …
24/7.”
– Jonathan Kozol
“Love is a
better master
than duty.”
– Albert Einstein
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
Teaching is
intensely
personal.
“We teach more
by what we are
than by what we
teach.”
– Will Durant
“Most of us end up with
no more than five or six
people who remember us.
Teachers have thousands
who remember them for
the rest of their lives.”
– Andrew Rooney
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
Teaching is
FUN!
“To love what you do
and feel that it
matters – how could
anything be more
fun?”
– Katharine Graham
“Teaching seems to
me beyond doubt
the greatest of the
professions.”
– Theodore Brameld
WHY YOU SHOULD TEACH
Teaching has
a soul.
“If you plan for a
decade, plant a tree.
If you plan for a
century, teach the
children.”
– anonymous
“Teachers are more
than any other class
the guardians of
civilization.”
– Bertrand Russell
“The future of the
nation is on the
shoulders of
teachers and how
they teach kids.”
– Richard R. Green
“Human history
becomes more and
more a race between
education and
catastrophe.”
– H. G. Wells
“I beg of you to stop
apologizing for being a
member of the most
important profession in
the world.”
– William G. Carr
“A teacher affects
eternity; he can
never tell where his
influence stops.”
– Henry Brooks Adams
“I touch the future.
I teach.”
– Christa McAuliffe