The good news for students working toward a degree in education is that finding a job once they graduate should be a breeze.
The bad news for everyone else is that this is because the nation is suffering from a shortage of school teachers.
Schools without enough teachers must increase class sizes, meaning many students don’t get the one-on-one attention needed to prepare them for the next grade, and they fall further and further behind every year.
As college students, most of whom do not plan to enter the field of education upon graduating, it is easy to lose sight of how this impacts us. But look forward a few years into the future to when children now enrolled in the state’s public schools will be our co-workers, bosses and employees. A key component to healthy local, state and national economies is a well-educated and qualified workforce. If the quality of public school education takes a blow, we all feel the pain.
Educators are overworked, undervalued and shamefully underpaid, pushing a lot of students with a desire to teach away from the profession. Many people graduate, work for a few years at a higher-paying job then return to school to get their certification once they realize they were meant for the classroom.
This will strike a chord with many students at the University caught between the desire to teach and the dream of someday owning a luxury home and driving an expensive car.
These students should weigh the invaluable good they can do as a teacher when mapping out what professional path to take.
But there are also more tangible reasons for becoming a teacher, chief among them being an almost guaranteed job.
Many University students graduate, then spend weeks or months sitting at mom and dad’s house searching for a job while schools are in dire need of new teachers.
Students who earn degrees in areas other than education can sign up for Teach for America or work toward their certification while teaching in high-need areas. Both are ways for professionals to get their foot in the classroom door after finishing their studies in something else.
The marketplace is overflowing with opportunities for noble men and women willing to lead the unsung life of a teacher.
We salute students studying to become teachers and encourage all others to consider joining them in answering this important call.