Why are you going into education? You’re too smart for this. We need you to be a doctor or a lawyer. You would do so well there! We really need smart people to do those jobs. You’re smart, so that must be for you! I don’t want the smart people teaching my child. They’re better off doing other things. Never mind that you got into a really good school, love your classes, enjoy being in the classroom, and like helping your students. You’re smart, so you can’t be a teacher.

Why are you going into education? You won’t make enough money. Go into business or marketing or engineering. You’ll make so much more money than you would have if you were a teacher. And trust me, the money that comes from the profession is what makes it all worthwhile. Never mind that teachers know that they’re not going into the profession for the salary. Never mind that teachers would rather influence the next generation than have a huge salary. You won’t make a lot of money, so you can’t be a teacher.

Why are you going into education? You have to work a lot of hours. You teach a class, grade papers, homework and tests, make lesson plans and prepare for the next day’s class. Never mind that you enjoy making lesson plans and grading. Never mind that you like doing things that will make your class more exciting. Lesson plans that are fun and interactive with the students require a lot of effort. It takes too much time, so you can’t be a teacher.

Why are you going into education? Kids are horrible. They’re loud and sticky and have absolutely no manners whatsoever. Never mind that, considering you are going into a profession where you will literally always be surrounded by children, you probably at least tolerate kids. Never mind that you want to impact the next generation so that they aren’t quite as loud or sticky or rude. Never mind that you will teach them how to work well in society. Kids are awful, so you can’t be a teacher.

Why are you going into education? It’s such a hard field to get into. Schools are being cut left and right. You’ll never have a job. Especially if you’re going to teach the arts, because we don’t need those. Plus, the competition is way too high. Do we really need that many people going into education? Never mind that if there are children, there have to be people to educate them in order to further our society. Never mind that many students have nothing positive in their life past arts programs in school. It’s too much work to try to stand out, so you can’t be a teacher.

Why are you going into education? What do you mean it’s your passion? No one likes standing in front of a class for eight hours a day. No one likes sitting down and slowly teaching students to read and write. No one likes having to explain why a C to one student is their best work. Can’t they just get an A like the other kids? No one likes being creative and making an enjoyable learning atmosphere for students of all ages. No one likes wanting to allow other students to discover their passion in medicine or math or music. Never mind that you do. That can’t be your passion, so you can’t be a teacher.

Why are you going into education? We don’t need teachers anyway.