A view on the teaching profession....NYT

The Challenges of Teaching

SEPT. 16, 2014

To the Editor:

With increasing frequency, articles are being published that acknowledge the challenges of teaching. “Why Don’t More Men Go Into Teaching?” (Sunday Review, Sept. 7) is one of these.

The premise is that men don’t go into teaching because it is an extremely demanding job, with low pay and little respect. Women — in the past — largely went into teaching because it was one of few jobs available to them and the hours coincided with those of their children.

Today, more professions are open to women, and as schools increasingly demand that teachers take on responsibilities such as tutoring and leading clubs on evenings and weekends, the hours are no longer so conducive to raising a family.

As a former teacher, I know that my current job would be more conducive to raising a family than the 70-plus-hour workweeks that I used to put in at one of New York City’s lauded charter schools.

Moreover, historically, one perk of teaching has been the relative job security offered by the tenure system and the comparatively generous retirement benefits. But as we demonize teachers and blame bad teachers for our failing schools, these small perks are increasingly being chipped away at.

We need smart, hardworking, talented individuals (both men and women) to choose careers in teaching. But with more professions open to women, and the few perks in danger of disappearing, I fear that we will soon no longer be asking ourselves why more men don’t go into teaching but why more people don’t go into teaching.

EMILY LYONS
Chicago, Sept. 8, 2014