Good question! I was talking about this with a friend last night (who taught in Japan for two years and then in Sudan for about three months, before going off to do far swankier jobs), and we agreed that we both find teaching surprisingly enjoyable when we're actually doing it, but somehow there is a persistent dread of it the rest of the time. I don't know why, and it doesn't make sense, but there you go.
To elaborate a bit, I am currently working two jobs - my university day job, and three evenings a week at a private language school. The teaching at the university really varies - some of my classes are great but all of them have some trouble-makers (or just slackers) and if they're in the mood to play up I end up having to do discipline and shouting and ARGH I absolutely hate that, especially because it's a university, not a school, and I'd rather not have to teach people who clearly would rather not be here. However in my evening job I genuinely enjoy my classes, as they are full of people who have paid out of pocket to be there (as opposed to the university, which is full of spoiled rich kids whose parents have paid out of pocket) and really really want to learn, and we have a great time. So yeah, I guess in conclusion I would say that I really enjoy the bits of teaching that are about teaching, and I really really hate the crowd-control aspects.
That said, although I do enjoy it, I don't find it particularly intellectually stimulating or challenging (English language teaching, anyway - there are almost certainly other subjects that I would find far more interesting to teach) and would hate to have to do it for the rest of my life.
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Date: 2009-10-24 06:23 am (UTC)To elaborate a bit, I am currently working two jobs - my university day job, and three evenings a week at a private language school. The teaching at the university really varies - some of my classes are great but all of them have some trouble-makers (or just slackers) and if they're in the mood to play up I end up having to do discipline and shouting and ARGH I absolutely hate that, especially because it's a university, not a school, and I'd rather not have to teach people who clearly would rather not be here. However in my evening job I genuinely enjoy my classes, as they are full of people who have paid out of pocket to be there (as opposed to the university, which is full of spoiled rich kids whose parents have paid out of pocket) and really really want to learn, and we have a great time. So yeah, I guess in conclusion I would say that I really enjoy the bits of teaching that are about teaching, and I really really hate the crowd-control aspects.
That said, although I do enjoy it, I don't find it particularly intellectually stimulating or challenging (English language teaching, anyway - there are almost certainly other subjects that I would find far more interesting to teach) and would hate to have to do it for the rest of my life.