I'm quite interested to know why there seems to be a rather negative perception of the teaching profession in some of these posts. I don't mean to get defensive because it is true that teachers are required to jump through various tedious government hoops, but golfpro, are you really such an authority as to know that anyone with a pulse can progress in the profession? As a teacher myself, it seems a rather snobbish and uninformed standpoint to me. Also, why should someone in their late 20s not be capable of heading a department? If they became a teacher at 22, that would have given them about 6 years in the profession beforehand - longer than most PhDs take! Though perhaps there is the assumption that teachers are too mentally deficient to have possibly learnt anything in that time...

If you read my post you'll find I was quoting other teachers. And yes you do sound (very) defensive. As a btw, I was chatting about this subject with a pal (who's happens to be a teacher). His school have a HoD (English) who's in fact 25. I wonder what you learn in 3 years in the profession.

I went the opposite way. I completed my PGCE (Biology) and enrolled in a phd in science education same year. Mainly because of tough job competition in n.ireland.
Teaching's cool though. And with a phd you'd be well in-line for promotions and stuff, if that's what you're into. Depending on your subject and the nature of your phd, having a good grounding in your subject, like proper expertise, would mean your planning takes a LOT less time because you're much more confident like subject knowledge, and eventually you get used to all the other bullshit.

Golfpro, I wonder what you learn in 3 years on a PhD? Maybe appropriate apostrophe use would be a good start.

thor. I would agree that in general that there is a negative perception towards the teaching profession, not just in this forum. I respect good teachers which from my experience of secondary education are few and far between.

I mean no disrespect to the profession by saying this but from my experience the profession is populated by people who just arn't very clever and make terrible teachers.

It's a career option I am considering but anyone I know in the profession has pretty much warned me away.

A joke which I think is kind of funny is that the three best things about teaching are June,July and August...

That was a tad petty, Thor.

Tut, I thought the spelling and grammatical bugbear was mine! As a thought regarding teaching (I do a lot of personal tuition - not a bit like teaching but hey!), surely at the end of the day, if you as a teacher have done your best and tought SOMETHING, you have done something worthwhile. Everyone remembers the crap teachers but what about the one who never gave up on you?

And please excuse my erroneous "O""

I am also thinking about teaching after my PhD. Having spent years saying it wasn't for me (both my parents are teachers), I am coming round to the idea after enjoying undergraduate demonstrating and a couple of other 'teaching' type roles. Someone above has mentioned the researchers in residence scheme, there is also a students associates scheme. For an alternative to the traditional PGCE, there is currently an 'inspire' course running at imperial college specifically aimed at phd/postdocs to go into teaching. you should be able to google these to find out more, but if you can't find them, let me know and I will post the web addresses. I for one am hoping that the imperial course will roll out to other unis up north by the time I finish my PhD!

Not only will experience on one of these schemes (or just contacting a local school to volunteer) look good should you wish to apply for a PGCE/similar, it will also help you decide whether you really do want to teach, or you have an idealised view of it. I have to say, my partner (also a teacher) and mum think I am misguided and will have better opportunities outside of teaching (both have lost their enthusiasm for teaching), but my dad is positively encouraging as he has loved every moment of his teaching career. If you decide after this experience that teaching's not for you, you will have lost nothing, and in fact gained so much in terms of skills and a different perspective. Keep your options open I say!

Amen, Roovic! Best of luck with your career!

Rjb, it's true that there are some pretty awful teachers out there, just as there are substandard people in every profession (academics included, dare I say it!). And, yes, perhaps there are teachers who really aren't all that clever, though I don't think these are in the majority. I flatter myself that I don't fall into this category, having gained a First in English, as did my brother and sister-in-law, who are also teachers. For some of us, good teaching is something we feel truly passionate about. I think that's why I'm so rigorously trying to defend the profession: The day you become cynical is the day you need to walk away because that's when you stop being good at it.

In answer to the main thread, yes be a teacher! Just don't be a mediocre plebeian fool! Burn, burn, burn like a firework shooting across the sky!!(ahem, sorry).

teaching can be rewarding, but there is a world of difference between teaching those who want to learn and those who don't. Teaching looks easy when you see a good teacher doing it, a bit like juggling I suppose -but merely having a doctorate won't necessarily be awe inspiring, and sometimes being really good at something is not a good starting point,unless you can understand why pupils can't understand what you are trying to tell them - as some of my friends have found out. Some people can walk into the classroom and just get respect, others have to work on it. the secret I think is to get the right kind of basic training, you wouldn't get sent into a lab to make up a solution with no basic training and the same applies to teaching, you need the groundwork. Walking cold into a classroom means you sink or swim, and so do your pupils, which isn't good for anybody.

I did a GTP (on the job teacher training) before working in industry and then starting a PhD. The teacher training was challenging, very demanding in terms of time, although I should say I enjoyed it because of the fantastic support I got from staff. After ITT I only did my NQT year and a few months before leaving for an R&D job in industry. I just couldn't handle student behaviour. Having been born and raised in Africa, the behaviour was such a culture shock for me. But if anyone is considering teaching, my advice would be go for it, the rewards are immense if its the thing for you, although of course with a PhD one would be over-qualified for the job.