3 ms·
> I don't know if this is true - but that math major is probably a lot more likely to go work for an accounting firm at 60k a year rather than put up with the s
by throwaway729 10y ago
> I don't know if this is true - but that math major is probably a lot more likely to go work for an accounting firm at 60k a year rather than put up with the stress of teaching at 40k.
And if you think that's bad try getting a Computer Science teacher to literally shave six figures off their salary!
I hate to bad-mouth teachers, because there are so many people taking haircuts on their salary for altruistic reasons.
But my experience tutoring college math majors is exactly this. The low performers are nearly all interested in teaching, the high performers nearly all headed to either grad school or engineering/finance.
That's why you'll encounter a lot of super great humanities teachers but a lot fewer stellar STEM teachers.
- germinalphrase 10y agoI think we can acknowledge this without feeling like we're 'bad-mouthing' teachers at all. Depending on the grade level, content knowledge and expertise is only one part of a good teacher's skill set. Salaries are unequal, so that naturally reduces the prestige of being a teacher. It's also a traditional "feminine" job with strong parenting/caregiving elements that further chips away at its status for some. I don't judge anyone for seeing teaching as a "plan B"; however, the significant turn over/drop out rate of teachers would call into doubt whether it is as safe + easy a back up career as we culturally project.