Everything Education majors are tired of hearing

There was a point where I wanted to be physical therapist and began my first semester of college with a major in Exercise Science at Slippery Rock University. I’m a little more than a year out from graduating now, but with a degree in Integrated Language Arts and English Education.

After many weeks of calling my mom crying for hours at a time, I made the switch to be an education major and I’ve never been happier with my decision. My mom thinks my passion for teaching came from helping coach cheerleading, so maybe that’s where my patience comes from.

I can’t wait to have my own classroom and shape the young minds of America into maybe one day future world leaders.

But with deciding to become a teacher comes a lot of backlash from just about everyone, and here are some things I’m tired of hearing and more importantly tired of being attacked by these kinds of statements.

You’ll never make any money

Thank you for thinking so little of me that I would only make a career choice based on income, it really shows what you think of me as a person. If I had a dollar for every time I heard this I could go to grad school for free. Teachers know well that it is not the highest paid job out there, but it’s one of the most rewarding.

I will get to create lessons and alter them to the interest of my classroom, ultimately allowing some creative freedom in my field. I’m in my major for the moments where I get to watch a student ace that test, kill that college admissions essay and get in to their dream school. I know I won’t be some loaded surgeon with a beach house, but I know I’ll be happy.

You must not be smart enough for a “real major”

What is a “real major?” Accounting? Finance? Biochemistry? Engineering?

You do realize none of those prospective people would even be pursuing those majors if it weren’t for their teachers, right? It’s more than their teachers, yes I know, but teachers play big role in that. People tend to think education majors are all coloring and going into schools and playing teacher. They don’t realize the content exams most licensure programs require you to take to even continue on to student teach for senior year. Hours of studying and hundreds of dollars spent on study materials and exam fees, on top of tuition each year.

So to those who like to think education is the easy way out, sit through a content exam and try not to pull out your hair for me. I took my English Language Arts content exam to continue on to my senior year twice and fell to the floor when I got my passing score.

Your students will never respect you

I’m five feet tall and blonde, so let the stereotypes fall upon me as you try and picture me commanding a high school classroom. But guess what? I’ve already done it a few times in my field placement during my sophomore year so it’s possible. Respect is earned, not given and it’s something I’ve always believed in so just because I’m not the most intimidating person I’m confident my students will respect me the same way I will respect them.

You’re always going to be stressed out

First of all, any job can inflict stress so don’t limit that to teachers. Yes, I am going to have to deal with grading and testing and lesson planning and I’ll be taking my work home with me most nights, but that does not mean I will be living in a constant state of stress. I think going to college has prepared me enough for that as is, just count the times I’ve stayed up all night working on projects and papers like any other college student.

Summers off must be nice!

If you actually think teaching exists only in the classroom August through early June you’ve never actually talked to someone who is becoming a teacher. Summers are typically spent lesson planning and prepping for the next school year. Sure, I won’t be in the classroom teaching students during the summer break, but I’ll be planning and thinking of all kinds of creative and new ideas for the next set of young minds who will walk in to my classroom come August.

While I know full well that these are just a few the things students pursuing a career in education hear throughout the years of getting their degree, just know we have heard it a thousand times before. We just want to make our future students the best they can be academically and help build that foundation. It is more than that, though. We want our students to be motivated and engaged and care about their education. And as the great Aristotle once said, “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.”