What are the pros and cons of being a teacher?

• You get to make a difference in the lives of your students

  When you are a teacher, you have the ability to make a significant difference in the lives of the children or adult students you teach. Being a teacher also serves as a great foundation and jumping-off-point to other careers.

  Each day a teacher works with their students is another opportunity to make a positive lasting impression on their pupil's lives. They can awaken a child or adult student's intellectual curiosity that may have been dormant up to this point.

  Many teachers cite one of the most gratifying aspects of teaching is when one of their students has an "aha" moment from their instruction.

• You have the opportunity to use and hone many different skills

  Some of the skills you gain and hone as a teacher include organization, public speaking, motivating others, coaching, and creativity.

  These are great transferable skills that can be applied in other professions if a teacher wants to change careers, or if they want to continue working part-time after they retire.

• Most teachers get summer vacations and holidays off

  If you work as a teacher in grades K-12 you get the entire summer off, just like your students. You also get any holidays your students have off as well.

  Some teachers opt to continue working during the summer months by teaching summer school, or giving personal tutoring sessions. This is a great option if a teacher is looking to make some extra money.

• Many teachers gain life-long friendships with other teaching staff

  Teachers often develop many friends that are instructors at the same school or even ones in at a different school in the same community. The bonds they have with their colleagues are generally very strong and can be utilized during times when a teacher is struggling and needs support.

• The ability to continue learning and growing

  Many teachers cite this as a pro to the profession, as they are often afforded the opportunity to learn and grow themselves. There are so many great resources for teachers to draw upon and new techniques that they might try to adopt.

  Teaching is generally a labor of love, so it is not surprising that they also cherish the chance to continue their own education and growth.

Cons:

• Many teachers salaries are low

  This is a tricky one because there are teachers that make decent salaries, however, this is often dictated by the state someone teaches in. For example, a teacher in California gets an average salary of $84,531 per year, while a teacher in Florida makes an average salary of $52,386 per year.

  On the whole though, the average salary of teachers in the United States is known to be on the low side, and this is something teaching unions have been trying to change for some time. The amount of work that goes into teaching is not reflected at all in terms of their earnings.

• Many teachers are dissatisfied with their jobs

  In a recent survey, just 12% of teachers said they were very satisfied with their job, and nearly half of teachers are dissatisfied with their job.

  The unhappiness of teachers is rooted in many different issues. It is a common refrain to hear that teachers aren't paid well relative to the work they have to perform.

• Some teachers have to work in underfunded schools

  Many teachers also work in difficult environments, such as public schools in impoverished areas. These can be severely underfunded and not have the resources of better public schools, or are in even more stark contrast to private schools with a wealth of funding and resources.

• Not being able to help difficult students

  Many teachers do have breakthroughs with difficult students, however, there are some students that no matter how hard a teacher tries they can't get through to them. This can be frustrating and exhausting, especially if the student is distrustful during class.

  One difficult student can hinder the learning ability of an entire class, and this is a complex situation that doesn't always have an easy solution. Sometimes a school's administration will be of little help in these matters and leave most of the burden of finding a solution on the teacher.

• Summer vacation pay

  Some schools offer teachers their last check on the last day of school and do not pay them for the entire summer. Meaning a teacher might not receive a paycheck again until school resumes for the fall semester.