Teaching Careers

Teaching Careers Are a Great Option

People of all ages and educational backgrounds go into teaching. There are undergraduates who choose a teaching career after they finish their majors, but prefer to work in education instead of the business world. There are also exceptionally bright young people who want to help change the world or people who are coming out of a first career (such as engineering, military, etc.) and feel like they want to do something with meaning and purpose—not just earn a paycheck.

In both these cases, those who choose a teaching career tend to be high energy and are often inspirational to their students, because they are passionate about teaching and (in the case of second career teachers) can bring in real-life experiences that make book and classroom learning more relevant. If you decide to pursue a career in teaching, you'll be part of a truly dedicated group of people.

What You Need to Succeed in a Teaching Career

It's easy to be impressed with teachers. They tend to be caring and hardworking, and are creative problem solvers. The ones thrive (have a long-term teaching career and love it) tend to be really interested in young people, believe in the power of education and have good communication skills. They also tend to be well organized, flexible and open-minded. If this describes you, you may want to get the teacher training you'll need pursue a teaching career.

But a "successful" teacher isn't always a "good" teacher. Success depends on how you measure it. If test results are high, for example, that may be due to excellent teaching, or it may mean the teacher has "successfully" taught to the test.

However, a good teacher is usually always successful as well. But what makes a teacher "good"? It used to be that just knowing your subject and being a good communicator—even a bit of an entertainer—were enough to get students engaged and inspire them. But if you go into a teaching career, you'll learn that being a good teacher requires more than being articulate and entertaining, or just having content knowledge.

Teachers must learn to teach. And this is where teacher education school comes in. In a teaching degree, you'll get not just the content knowledge you need, but also the tools to communicate subject content to your students and help them "make it their own." If a teaching career is for you, you can get both content knowledge and learn how to teach, at the best teacher education schools.

Learning from the Classics

Aristotle referred to the special knowledge required of teachers when he said: "Those that know, do. Those that understand, teach." Already in classical Greece, scholars knew about pedagogical content knowledge—a teacher's understanding of the learning process within a given subject and what it takes to help learners overcome the hurdles they are likely to encounter. This is what you'll learn during your teacher education, and how to integrate it into your teaching career.

Any way you look at it, there is nothing as valuable as a good teacher. Teachers have the opportunity to influence children in their intellectual development, and often have a positive impact on young lives. Just think of the teachers that inspired you.

If you hear the calling of a teaching career, look for a school of education near you—or find a good teacher college online—and begin your studies today to spread your knowledge in a good—and successful—teaching career.