Should I Become a Teacher? 20 Reasons To Consider

There are many different roles in the education field, from teaching in a classroom to coaching on a sports field to working in administration. If you find yourself thinking about a career in education, you may be starting to narrow down your path and you may be asking yourself, “Is teaching the career for me?”

In this article, we explore some of the reasons why you may consider a teaching career and help you answer the question of “Should I become a teacher?”

Related: Learn About Being a Teacher

20 reasons to become a teacher

When determining if you want to be a teacher—as opposed to serving in another role—it’s important to consider the benefits and assess how these meet your career goals both short and long term. Here are 20 reasons to consider becoming a teacher:

1. Helping students succeed academically

Your role as a teacher is to educate students in specific subjects, which can help them master new challenges as they advance in their education. When students struggle with particular concepts, you can provide them with more specialized support and encourage them to improve

This support can lead them to get better grades. Helping them cultivate a mentality of trying and never giving up is also a way to promote diligence, as well as focus, for later in their academic career.

In addition to helping them in the classroom, you may also have the chance to recommend them for important opportunities that develop their strengths or pertain to their interests. And after they've left your classroom, they may ask you to be an academic reference should they pursue those opportunities on their own or apply to college.

Related: 9 Teaching Methods To Promote Success in the Classroom

2. Impacting students' personal lives

Being a teacher means setting a good example for your students to follow. You might be responsible for modeling effective communication, respect for others, empathy, sharing and positivity.

You can also instill a love of learning when you make class exciting, fun or engaging for them. And when you share your passion for giving back to the community as a teacher, you can help them develop that passion as well.

Another way you can impact students' lives is by helping them determine their strengths and interests and encouraging them to pursue activities that appeal to and develop those strengths and passions. This may be through tailoring lessons to various student interests, allowing students to pick the topic of projects and recommending they sign up for clubs or try out for activities.

3. Dedication to your community

As a teacher, you may also have opportunities to give back to the larger community through fundraising, charity events and volunteer work, often alongside students and other faculty. This is another way to be a role model for your students and promote a dedication to serving your community and making it a better place for all.

In addition, being a teacher is a way to serve your community as a whole since you're teaching future leaders and citizens. Using your platform as a teacher is a way to make sure the community where you live is respectful and knowledgeable in the future.

Related: What Is the Responsibility of Teachers? A Definitive Guide

4. Promoting education equality for students

If you're passionate about education equality, becoming a teacher may be a way to practice your passion in a hands-on way. You may have opportunities to work in a variety of districts, including those with less adequate funding and lower state test scores, and students with different learning abilities. In these teaching roles, you have the chance to promote equal education for all.

Related: 8 Qualities of a Good Teacher (Plus Ways To Improve)

5. Potential for a lot of fun

Being around children of all ages can be fun for those who enjoy interacting with children. Younger children do activities that are more engaging for their developing senses, like arts and crafts and music. Classes of older children can also be fun when you build a rapport with them.

6. Fulfillment from watching students learn and grow

School teachers are instrumental in helping children develop their minds, personalities and imaginations. If you're fulfilled by helping students learn new things, get excited about their favorite topics or overcome a challenge, consider becoming a teacher so you can be a vital part of their journey.

Related: 20 Important Rewards of Being a Teacher To Consider

7. New tasks and challenges each day

As a teacher, you may have a regular schedule that you follow with a few occasional meetings and/or events. However, no day is truly the same for a teacher because of the many opportunities to face new challenges.

You may be developing new strategies to approach classroom material, creating games to keep students engaged in unique ways and adapting to classroom situations you didn't expect. Having consistent challenges and new tasks can help you stay focused and practice your adaptability and creative thinking skills.

Related: What Do Teachers Do? (And How To Become One)

8. Lifelong learning

To maintain licensure, you may be required to take continuing education (CE) courses. You may need to take bachelor's- or master's-level classes in education to learn new best practices and study pedagogical theory, in age-specific education or in your teaching specialty.

In the classroom, you get to learn from your students almost as much as they get to learn from you. They may ask tough questions that you need to further research, or they may present information they learned on their own or for a project that you didn't know. These opportunities promote sharing knowledge between you and your students.

Further, depending on the school you work at, whether you work in a high school or at a college or university, you may have opportunities to conduct research. These opportunities allow you to increase your knowledge and often publish your findings to share your knowledge with your peers.

9. Chances to be creative

You're often able to be creative as a teacher when you make lesson plans and try to find new ways to help students engage with the material. You can also be creative when decorating your classroom or office to make sure it showcases your personality and creates a comfortable learning atmosphere for your students.

Related: 12 Effective Teaching Practices and Their Benefits

10. Incorporating engaging technology in the classroom

If you like technology or are interested in finding new technological ways to solve challenges, becoming a teacher may provide you with the opportunity to work with tech in the classroom. For example, you may be able to try out new instructional software or devices and integrate online activities, games and media into the class’s curriculum. You can also teach students how to use technology responsibly and to complete tasks like research.

11. Strong professional network

When you work at a school as a teacher, you can build a strong network of like-minded professionals who have a similar passion for helping students succeed. You also have a built-in support system to handle your challenges in the classroom.

You can even collaborate together on ways to better engage students and promote learning. In many cases, your fellow colleagues may become your personal friends.

Related: How To Become a Teacher in Training

12. A variety of subjects

When you become an educator, you have many different subjects you can specialize in, including:

• Math

• Science, including specialties in chemistry and biology

• English and language arts

• Foreign language

• History and social studies

• Art

• Music

• Theater

• Physical education

Related: What Kind of Teacher Should I Be? Choosing a Teaching Specialty

13. Different grade levels to teach

In addition to subject matter, you can also specialize in teaching a specific age group and grade level, such as:

• Early childhood, including preschool and pre-K

• Kindergarten

• Elementary school

• Middle school

• High school

• Postsecondary, including community college, technical college and university

14. Earning a competitive salary

Teachers can also make a competitive salary, with certain factors affecting how much they can earn. These factors include level of experience, teaching specialty, certifications, level of education and geographical location. Here’s a look at the average national salaries for different types of teachers:

• English teacher: $51,508 per year

• Math teacher: $51,674 per year

• Middle school teacher: $61,320 per year

• K-6 school teacher: $61,760 per year

• High school teacher: $61,820 per year

• Science teacher: $63,463 per year

• Professor: $79,640 per year

For the most up-to-date salary information from Indeed, click on the link(s) provided.

Related: 10 Teacher Careers: Requirements, Salaries and Duties

15. Regimented schedule

Most schools have a strict schedule they follow daily, with certain periods being dedicated to certain subjects and/or classes. Depending on the grade level, subject and where you teach, your work schedule is likely to be the same, or similar, every day.

Many teachers find having this regimented schedule helpful for planning purposes, especially for lesson planning, scheduling meetings with students, parents and faculty and for personal activities after work. For teachers with children, being on the same or similar schedule is also beneficial.
16. Paid holidays off

In addition to long breaks, many public schools and universities offer bank holidays off, too. These include Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day and Veterans Day.

17. Long vacations

Many school districts provide students, teachers, and staff members long periods off for holidays and breaks, like in the summer, spring and winter. Having long, paid vacations throughout the year can be great for planning personal events, taking time to prepare for the next school year, pursuing other passions or continuing your education.

18. Job stability and availability

A teaching career often provides steady employment and availability for educators of any experience level. Per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment growth for K-6 school teachers, middle school teachers and high school teachers is projected to grow by 4-5% between 2021 and 2031, with yearly job openings for each type of teacher in the tens of thousands. The bureau attributes turnover due to retirement of veteran teachers.

For postsecondary teachers, meanwhile, the statistics bureau projects the job growth rate to grow by 12% for that same period of time, faster than the national average. However, job availability may vary by grade level, subject and geographical location.

Related: FAQ: What Are the Qualifications To Become a Teacher?

19. Consistent skill development

As a teacher, you’re constantly developing your communication, leadership, organization and time management skills through lesson planning, leading lessons and collaborating with faculty and parents for student success. You can develop those and other skills when you take on additional duties and responsibilities at your school.

For example, you might run a student club or organizations, host events, plan field trips or conduct student counseling. Additional skills you may be able to develop as part of your role as a teacher include budgeting, event planning and project management.

20. Preparation for another career path in education

In the future, you may be interested in school administration, counseling or even education-focused civil service, and starting your career as a teacher is great for gaining some of the most relevant experience you can for those roles.