Drew: Lay off the caffeine, guy!
I won’t argue with your premise that there are folks out there who pursue education as a fallback because they DO exist in the music education profession. That being said, there are many “performers” out there who will never be good teachers for the simple reason that they cannot understand the “process,” lack the patience and necessary support needed to be a successful teacher. Please indulge me for a moment as I comment on a number of your talking points:
- There are relatively few programs that are built like the teaching scenario you imagine getting when you get out of school.
TRUE. But, this is true in ANY career right out of college. Finding the best job opportunity takes time and you need to work your way up. Nothing beats experience. You look like a relatively young guy … it takes time to hone your skills in any job. Also, there is a certain level of naivete that all college students experience approaching ANY job right out of college. 4 years out of high school does not qualify most 22 year-olds as having had sufficient life experience, right? P.S. There are few folks at the age of 22 who will find their “ideal” teaching job right out of the gate. No one should be in a hurry or imagine that their first job will be “the” job!
- Administrations often are not very supportive. this means that you will spend an awful lot of time fighting for your rights, money, dignity, time, rehearsal space, and so forth.
NOT NECESSARILY TRUE: Again, the support of your administration is often in direct correlation to the local school board and community’s support of the music program. Your comment here is offensive to many administrators who work very hard to fight for all aspects of their school and district programs. A good administrator thinks “globally” and music educators need to do the same. It’s OK to fight for what you believe in but stop the finger pointing … building SUPPORT for your music program comes with the job. If you rationalize that the lack of support for your program is the fault of your administration then you have a very important decision to make, either: 1. work collaboratively (colleagues, students, parents) to change that view or, 2. go somewhere else where there IS support for the music program. P.S. They don’t teach you this in college methods classes — you learn it by being pro-active and VISIBLE in your own district. P.P.S. As far as $ is concerned: a. salary schedules are negotiated through collective bargaining agreements between teacher unions and the school district; b. fighting for one’s dignity is a direct result of the way all educators MUST carry themselves, professionally. c. time and rehearsal space varies widely from school to school — you learn to be creative and make the best of what you have/don’t have (sorry, that’s life).
- Federal and state regulations are changing so fast in favor of eliminating arts in whole or in part, that the jobs are getting more and more scarce with each passing year.
AGAIN, NOT NECESSARILY TRUE: Are you familiar with the federal ESSA? Do you know about the NEW national standards for music that are currently being rolled out across the country? P.S. I don’t know what part of the country you are talking about but, there are shortages of good music educators in a number of places (urban, suburban and rural schools). The question is: are YOU willing to go where there is a need for teachers or, are you confining your search to one area?
- If you are fortunate to land a job, often times you will have to spend large portions of your day teaching outside of your art discipline.
AGAIN, NOT TRUE: Your local teacher contract defines the percentage of time that you could have to teach outside of your curriculum area (in some places here in New York it could be 1/5 of your teaching assignment). On the other hand, if you are from New York where music educator certification runs K (or “P”)-12th grade, you “should” be comfortable teaching in ANY area within music (classroom, performing ensembles, lessons, sectionals, music theory, piano, guitar, et al). I’m not a math teacher BUT, if a music position opened up and I wanted to work as a teacher, I wouldn’t turn down the opportunity even if it meant teaching outside of my comfort zone. Instead, I’d absorb as much as I could along the way to do my best to make the job work. That’s another part of the job — staying current. Music educators need to continually hone their skills — even those who have been in the profession for years. Teachers are life-long learners.
- A significant portion of your year will be lost to standardized testing and preparation for said testing.
LET’S GET REAL: There is TOO much testing. Period. “Significant?” Depends on the grade levels you teach.
- You will have a majority of students who don’t have the support of parents, don’t care about music and/or don’t realize the value of what only you are uniquely qualified to teach them.
Gee, I’m glad I didn’t have you as my music teacher! Again, you make so many general statements here. Part of the job of ANY teacher (music or otherwise) is to establish good communication lines with parents and the home. The ONLY way you raise awareness about the importance of music education is to again, be pro-active and visible in your school and community. Building parent support is serious work and YOU CAN succeed but like anything else, you have to work at it over time. As far as getting parents and students on your side in appreciating music (and all the arts), it takes TIME and never-ending hard work. My 40 years as a music educator and administrator tells me that you never stop advocating for music education! As a life-long teacher I guarantee you that while you may not have the appreciation of all your parents, you WILL be remembered by your students and even years later after they graduate, many will appear now and then to tell you how much their experience in your music class made a difference in their lives. That is one of the joys of being a teacher that you never realize until your job is done. You don’t go looking for it, either. It just happens — ask any retired educator (music or otherwise).
- You won’t get compensated what you are worth. (by a long shot)
WHO IS? If $ is the driving force behind what career you choose, then you are barking up the wrong tree as a musician or music educator. On the other hand, if you wake up every morning and get to do something you truly love and that is your passion; what is THAT worth to you compensation-wise? It’s not about the money if you’re a teacher, Drew.
You are allowed to have your own opinion, Drew. However, you are certainly not a “maven” of music education. Teaching is a life-long pursuit and those who make a career out of it (and there are certainly good and not-so-good music educators out there) know that it is very hard work. In ANY job, your happiness and success requires continued hard work, perseverance, staying current and anticipating the needs of your program, pro-actively. Your generalities aside, you sound like a nice guy but in the end, you miss the mark on too many levels.
Get away from your computer and spend some time talking to folks who can help you better understand our very complex profession. Good luck!