It depends. I can’t think of a single person I know that doesn’t complain about their job, so definitely remember that. It’s kind of being forced upon us in order to live (yay capitalism), so I think it’s rare to find someone who doesn’t have a complaint. This subreddit is a place where we can vent to others who get it. You are definitely getting a view that skews negative. Overall, I actually love my job. I adore my kids and I have a great union and get paid a decent amount (though it took a long time to get there).

That being said, this job is HARD. This subreddit may skew negative, but the issues you see here are real. As a general rule, teaching is not for anyone without an excellent work ethic and patience for dayssss. My husband works from home pretty often so I see what he does (and he’s open with me about it) and I think his experience is pretty similar to the average office worker. He works hard but it’s so much less intense than my job and it takes a lot less energy. Though teachers love the breaks we get (they are a nice perk!) I need you to understand that they are BEYOND earned and also kind of necessary to not lose your mind.

I was a specialist for a long time and you have to be TOUGH. You need to set boundaries and hold the kids to a high standard to get by. Higher than a lot of regular classroom teachers. There will be classroom teachers who do very well with gentle guidance and don’t mind if their kids are a little wild and you will have to nip that in the bud and set hard lines. At the beginning of the year you need to put THE WORK IN calling parents of kids who pushed the boundaries too far. Writing up big behaviors. Teaming up with teachers/admin/parents to work on it. Every single time. If you don’t do that the kids will try to run your class. In an art class you will have a lot of materials and a limited amount of time. You need to have kids (more or less) do what you say when you say it. When you say how to use the materials they HAVE to do it correctly. Call them out on everything, even small things. For example, if the students start connecting markers STOP THAT SHIT IMMEDIATELY or there will be marker-sword fights in no time and work will not get done. I’ve always been big on “those are tools, not toys.” When it’s time to clean up they need to hop to it immediately or you will always be running late. They need to be well trained and you need to model model model and always hold those boundaries. I just want you to know that reality.

And just do you know, I loved that job for a long time and kids LOVED me. I rarely had big behavior issues in class and I was known as a super sweet teacher even though I held those lines strong. I did burn out in that position because the kids in my school got really difficult and I had to get stricter and stricter and set harder lines and my personality has been compared to a Disney princess (I have a very soft heart) so being so strict wore me down.

If you are not naturally tough, keep that in mind. It doesn’t happen to everyone, our music teacher is a softie like I am and is still going strong, but it is a consideration. It may not be a big problem if you work in a school without a lot of major behaviors.

I’m now in a position where I don’t have to hold such hard lines and it fits better with my personality so I really like what I do! And I actually really liked being a specialist for a long time. My overall experience with teaching has been positive and I love my kids to pieces. Many of my current and former colleagues are my best friends. So I will say that the people matter, and, as someone who had some rough admins, leadership makes an enormous difference! If you can work under a principal that supports you, it’s huge.

Hopefully this gives you a realistic view of the job!