Carrier Experience

Is it necessary for a teacher to have actual career experience? Out of 180 students, 90 said yes and 90 said no. So why is this? Well to begin with, many students don’t think it’s very important. “I don’t think it matters,” said senior Carl Patton, “but I think it would help.”


Principal Turner believes that “it is important, but not crucial.” To become a teacher, you have to take classes and go through a sort of training to learn how to properly teach and become certified at a specific grade level. Although it is clear that every teacher has their own unique style, they have all had the same basic training. Due to this training, every teacher is more than qualified to do what is necessary for their job.

Some students like senior Josh Calvin believe that “Since they had that job before, it’s easier for them to prepare you for it.” Most students agree with this rationale

Sophomore Diana Rodriguez agrees saying that it is “not necessarily important, but it would be helpful because they actually know what’s going on from hands on training.”

Many other RHS students, like senior Sergio De La Rosa, believe that it is better for a teacher to have been in the career field that they now teach. “I think it would be great,” said De La Rosa. “It would make it easier.”

Other students have a more negative interpretation of these “experienced” teachers. “It’s nice having a teacher who knows what they’re doing,” said sophomore Enjoli Smith, “but it could also be bad because when the teacher tries to explain new information. They don’t go into as much detail as they need to because they think that students will get it as well as they did, even when it requires more explanation.”

It is true that some teachers may occasionally get ahead of themselves, but most students believe it has nothing to do with the amount of experience they have.

“Teaching is an art,” said Principal Turner, “and it’s really hard if it’s not a natural gift.” The students of RHS are lucky enough to have more than enough teachers with this gift. They have made it clear that whether they are answering yes or no to the question of experience, the results are conclusive: Rangeview students believe that their teachers are more than capable of doing the job.

-Kristina Smith