MOTIVATION

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If teachers are becoming less interested and fewer teachers are applying, then why did America’s current crop of teachers become educators in the first place?  Some  say that they wanted to become teachers because of their love the kids and desire to have a positive impact on their lives. However, some teachers chose this job for the content area, and they really enjoy teaching their subject matter.

“My own kids entered the teaching profession because they like to work with young people,” said eleventh grade English teacher Mrs. Carol Bartlett. “They enjoy the idea that they may be making a difference in children’s lives.”

Physics teacher Mrs. Alice Flarend said that she is an untested area, so she doesn’t have to deal with the insanity and stakes of Keystone or PSSA testing.

“I worry little about the small stuff and focus on the big content ideas that I hope my students will carry with them past my class,” she said.

Although teaching has been a very promising career with many rewarding benefits in the past, it seems times have changed. Many teachers at Bellwood-Antis claim that if they would do it all over again, they would not choose this occupation. Reasons included the profession growing more difficult because of the lack of respect from the students, government regulations, the overwhelming workload, and salaries simply not meeting these demands.

Dr. McEnroy said it’s not just Bellwood but almost every state.

“Educators are tired of fighting the fight. It gets old, and it’s a never ending grind,” Dr. McInroy said.

Fewer people are becoming educators, he said, because there are better-paying jobs out there.

The state of Pennsylvania has been losing educators drastically,  and Dr. McInroy feels the reason is politics and money. The northern states used to be more wealthy and have more educators he said; however, that has changed over the years. Now, the southern states are more wealthy and have more educators than the northern states.

“We spend $10,000 per student, while the southern states spend about $25,000 per student,” said Dr.Tom.