Bored Panda reached out to Lisa McLendon, Ph.D., for a chat about working in education, and what qualities it's important for educators to have in order to be successful at their jobs. She is the William Allen White Professor of Journalism and Mass Communications and the Coordinator at the Bremner Editing Center at the University of Kansas.
We wanted to get Professor McLendon's opinion about what drives people to work in education in the first place.
"Good teachers love to learn and are always learning new things," she told Bored Panda. "But it’s not just about learning—it’s about wanting to share what you’ve learned with others; it’s about believing others can learn things too."
The professor also shared her thoughts about the qualities that are important for educators to either have or develop after taking up the job offers.
Professor McLendon said that a love of learning and a joy in discovering new information, as well as gaining new skills, is very important. What's also essential is cultivating curiosity in oneself, as well as in your students. "Asking questions is how we get to new knowledge," she said.
And finally, humility always helps, especially paired with a deep sense of curiosity. "Knowing that you don’t know everything—but figuring out how to find out what you don’t know," is important, the KU professor said.
Meanwhile, we also wanted to get to grips with how educators might inspire their students to excel. Here's what Professor McLendon told Bored Panda: "Being able to show, not just tell, students that learning is a lifelong process. If they see you learning, and being excited about learning, it shows them a process with results. 'Wow, I didn’t know that!' is a great thing to tell students. So is, 'I don’t know—let’s find out!'"
Moreover, having confidence in your students also works wonders. "Knowing that you think they CAN do something will help students be able to DO it. Sometimes a simple, 'You got this' gives them a needed boost."
Many people feel that teachers are underpaid. And in many cases, they can be. Stats show that teacher pay has, in fact, been declining over the past decade in the United States. However, from 2020 to 2022, there's been a small uptick: teachers earned 11% more than the average salary across the US. On average, they made just over $65k. The vast majority of Americans (80%, in fact) feel that teachers are still underpaid for their efforts.
According to Business.org, the most lucrative states to work as a teacher in are California and Pennsylvania, earning over a quarter more than the average salary. Meanwhile, the worst states to work in, at least in terms of finances, are Arizona and Washington DC.
Working in education can sometimes feel like you’re juggling half a dozen or so different jobs. You’re expected to know your beloved subject inside and out, keep up to date with the newest research, be able to clearly and concisely pass along this knowledge to your students, ALL THE WHILE keeping everyone from causing complete and utter chaos in the classroom.
That’s on top of grading papers, attending parent-teacher meetings, and taking your students to see the nurse when they (inevitably) get hurt. We can’t stress enough just how versatile and adaptable of a person you have to be in order to do well as an educator. Patience, discipline, and empathy are just the tip of the iceberg here. Meanwhile, you’re responsible for literally shaping the minds of future generations. So, no pressure!
Some teachers let off steam by talking about their day with their friends and family. Others take to their hobbies or share their experiences on social media. By learning to laugh at themselves and their own situation, they tackle any feelings of exhaustion and exasperation head-on. And you never know—what you post might accidentally resonate with someone else who’s been in that exact same position. There’s a lot of potential here for friendship, camaraderie, and finding ways to deal with unorthodox challenges at school and college.
With how kind many teachers are, it’s no wonder that they often put the needs of others ahead of their own. While it’s absolutely admirable, it’s also a one-way ticket to Tired Town. Educators have to remember to take care of themselves, first and foremost. This way, they’ll be in a far better position to pass on their hard-earned knowledge to their students.
During a previous in-depth interview with Bored Panda, British primary school teachers Tom Rose and Jack Pannett shared their thoughts about some of the issues that educators face, as well as what to do when you’re feeling completely overwhelmed. In their experience, one of the biggest challenges that any educator might face is the fun-but-dreaded school trip.
"School trips are very challenging, especially for newer teachers, because of the constant changing of locations or 'transitions' as teachers usually refer to them as," they said.
"Many teachers fear PE for the same basic reason, which is: not having a safe confined space to teach (as they are used to when they are in a classroom). The extra pressure of trying to impress the parent/carer helpers is another thing that gets in the way of many teachers doing their job too, which is again much more obvious with less experienced teachers," teachers Tom and Jack told Bored Panda.
"Beyond the transitions and dealing with the other adult help, you then have to deal with the many unexpected things that crop up along the way, such as the transport issues, sudden changes of weather, stumbling across a bee's nest (that was Tom in Bushy Park) amongst many other potentials.”
