Understanding Teaching

The Day to Day Life and Career of a Teacher

No two teaching careers are the same. The way you teach and pursue your career is unique to you. By choosing a teaching career, you bring your full self to the school community: your personality, your experience, and your ambitions.

Teaching Enables You To

elevate your life, transform others’ lives

give back to your community

expand your career and work path

experience a diverse community of future Minnesotans, be a part of the solution for education in this state

"Anyone who does anything to help a child in his life is a hero to me.”

Fred Rogers (Mister Rogers)

"Better than a thousand days of diligent study is one day with a great teacher."

Japanese proverb

"There's no word in the language I revere more than 'teacher.' My heart sings when a kid refers to me as his teacher, and it always has. I've honored myself and the entire family of man by becoming a teacher."

Pat Conroy, Prince of Tides

"The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of satisfying it afterwards."

Anatole France

“To stimulate life, leaving it then free to develop, to unfold, herein lies the first task of the teacher.”

Maria Montessori

"In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something less."

Lee Iacocca

“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.”

Henry Brooks Adams

Teaching is One of the Happiest Professions

Myth 1

Anyone Can Teach

Wrong! The idea is nonsense - try organizing a child's birthday party or chaperoning a high school dance!

Myth 2

Teacher Preparation is Not Much Use

Wrong! Studies over the last 30 years show that fully prepared teachers are more highly rated and more effective students.

Myth 3

Teachers Don't Work Hard Enough

Wrong! Teachers have little time during the day for planning, locating materials, talking with parents, meeting individually with students, or grading papers, they do all of these things after school hours, typically well into the evenings or on weekends.

Why Choose Teaching