On the defensive

So I had an interesting experience this weekend. I went to a Halloween party and felt like I spent the entire night defending teachers. In my prior career in radio this concept has never been an issue. People would ask what I did for a living, I would tell them I worked in radio, they would think it was cool and then they would ask me about getting concert tickets! I was never really emotionally involved in defending my profession...until this past weekend. I am not even a teacher yet but I feel emotionally attached to the profession and those who say "teachers are whiners and are failing our kids." This was the response I received at the party when a couple was asking what I did for a living. First, they wondered why I was getting into the profession and then they began to complain about the state of education in this country. I felt I could hold my own pretty well but was in no way prepared to deal with this at a party where I was supposed to be having fun. Is this how it is going to be when we tell people we are teachers? Are we constantly going to have to defend this profession? It's hard to talk to people when all they know about education is that teachers "have summers off" and the latest stats the NY Times prints about failing math & science test numbers.

I was so angry Saturday night I couldn't sleep. How is it possible that people think teachers have such an easy gig? Have they ever set foot in a classroom of 25 six-year olds? Teachers are not just teachers. We are substitute parents, nurses, counselors, friends, mentors, nutritionists and so much more. We are supposed to teach not only reading, writing, math, social studies and science but also social skills, potty training (at times!), proper nutrition, manners, sexual education, hygiene...yada,yada,yada. It is extremely frustrating to me when people devalue this profession! I suppose this is part of what we signed up for, right? We are now the next generation of teacher defenders!!!