--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Teaching is hard. It takes a lot of…" description: "\"Teaching is hard. It takes a lot of skill. Not everyone who tries can do it well. We need to admit that and act accordingly. We should reward and respe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/betsy-devos-7178_education_teaching-is-hard-it-takes-a-lot-of-skill_2485578.jpg" --- # Teaching is hard. It takes a lot of skill. Not everyone… ![“Teaching is hard. It takes a lot of skill. Not everyone who tries can do it well. We need to admit that and act accordingly. We should reward and respect great teachers by paying them more, and we should stop rewarding seniority over effectiveness.” quote by Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/betsy-devos-7178_education_teaching-is-hard-it-takes-a-lot-of-skill_2485578.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/betsy-devos-7178_education_teaching-is-hard-it-takes-a-lot-of-skill_2485578.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/826/betsy-devos-7178_education_teaching-is-hard-it-takes-a-lot-of-skill_2485578.jpg) > “Teaching is hard. It takes a lot of skill. Not everyone who tries can do it well. We need to admit that and act accordingly. We should reward and respect great teachers by paying them more, and we should stop rewarding seniority over effectiveness.” [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Teaching requires skill; quality should be rewarded over seniority, and pay should reflect performance. **In simple terms:** Good teaching needs skill and fair pay. Key Takeaway Pay for performance. Themes education fairness pay equity Mood thoughtful critical Type policy educational When to use this quote - school budgeting - policy reform - teacher unions Key Concepts teacher evaluation performance‑based pay professional development Questions to Reflect On - How can we objectively assess teaching effectiveness? - What incentives best improve teacher performance? A Different Perspective Measuring teaching quality is complex. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Act Accordingly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/act-accordingly/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great/) [Great teachers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-teachers/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Respect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/respect/) [Reward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reward/) [Skill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skill/) [Teachers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teachers/) [Teachers Paying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teachers-paying-910332/) [Teaching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teaching/) [Teaching Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teaching-hard-910333/) ## Related quotes > [“most Americans said teaching was a hard and important job, but many of them, including teachers and teaching professors, didn’t seem to believe it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-ripley/most-americans-said-teaching-was-a-hard-and-important-job-but-many-of/) [Amanda Ripley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-ripley/) > [“I've come to suspect that whenever any ability is difficult to learn and rarely performed well, it's probably because contraries are called for -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-elbow/i-ve-come-to-suspect-that-whenever-any-ability-is-difficult-to-learn/) [Peter Elbow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-elbow/) > [When you're teaching a hard concept and the students all have puzzled looks on their faces and then suddenly you can see that 'aha'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anant-agarwal/when-you-re-teaching-a-hard-concept-and-the-students-all-have-puzzled/) [Anant Agarwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anant-agarwal/) > [Teaching's hard! You need different skills: positive reinforcement, keeping students from getting bored, commanding their attention in a certain way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/teaching-s-hard-you-need-different-skills-positive-reinforcement/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Teaching is hard. It takes years to master the technically demanding work and a lot of effort to do that work well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bennet/teaching-is-hard-it-takes-years-to-master-the-technically-demanding/) [Michael Bennet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bennet/) > [ “\[Teaching\] was hard. Some of the kids were needy and vulnerable and depressed, with faces of dubious, aged concern, rumpled foreheads, downcast or shuttered… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/teaching-was-hard-some-of-the-kids-were-needy-and-vulnerable-and/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [I need to stress that I could not be more supportive of great teachers and great teaching, no matter what kind of delivery vehicle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/i-need-to-stress-that-i-could-not-be-more-supportive-of-great/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [“ACTION WILL BE YOUR LEGACY “He who has a vehement desire for posthumous fame does not consider that every one of those who remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-eschenroeder/action-will-be-your-legacy-he-who-has-a-vehement-desire-for/) [Kyle Eschenroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-eschenroeder/) > [The best thing about working with kids is that they are so open and honest that you sort of know where they stand and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-willis/the-best-thing-about-working-with-kids-is-that-they-are-so-open-and/) [Emma Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-willis/) > [It is only all too easy to understand the requirements contained in God's Word ('Give all your goods to the poor.' 'If anyone strikes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soren-kierkegaard/it-is-only-all-too-easy-to-understand-the-requirements-contained-in/) [Soren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soren-kierkegaard/) > [One has to define very clearly what one's objectives are, determine in advance how much one is prepared to pay to achieve that objective…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zbigniew-brzezinski/one-has-to-define-very-clearly-what-one-s-objectives-are-determine-in/) [Zbigniew Brzezinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zbigniew-brzezinski/) > [The saints are a part of this Unique Accidental Occurrence compared to man who is a mere Image reflected in the Mirror of Knowledge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sorin-cerin/the-saints-are-a-part-of-this-unique-accidental-occurrence-compared/) [Sorin Cerin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sorin-cerin/) > [Whenever you are to do a thing, though it can never be known but to yourself, ask yourself how you would act if all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/whenever-you-are-to-do-a-thing-though-it-can-never-be-known-but-to/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [There were various aspects of Sun Tzu's approach that appealed to Ho Chi Minh: a) to learn to understand both the enemy and yourself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-duiker/there-were-various-aspects-of-sun-tzu-s-approach-that-appealed-to-ho/) [William J. Duiker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-duiker/) > [“That we can prescribe the terms of our own success, that we can live outside or in ignorance of the Great Economy are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/that-we-can-prescribe-the-terms-of-our-own-success-that-we-can-live/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) ## More by Betsy DeVos > [Government likes committees... a lot. Committees kill all the really good ideas and generally all the really bad ideas. They produce middle-ground mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-likes-committees-a-lot-committees-kill-all-the-really-good/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [Social justice and economics are both issues to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/social-justice-and-economics-are-both-issues-to-me/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [Federal law must be followed where federal dollars are in play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/federal-law-must-be-followed-where-federal-dollars-are-in-play/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [It shouldn't matter what type of school a student attends, so long as the school is the right fit for that student.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/it-shouldn-t-matter-what-type-of-school-a-student-attends-so-long-as/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) > [If you can't get cell phone service in your living room, then your particular provider is failing you. 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Any good military strategist will tell you that a battle plan rarely survives past the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-tends-to-stifle-innovation-and-it-abhors-improvisation-any/) [Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) [Explore all 94 Betsy DeVos quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/) ## More Education quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [“In school you are taught to obey and not to think straight for your own good. 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(Hilda Doolittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-hilda-doolittle/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“I only began to enjoy studying after I got through the educational system and became a so-called member of society. 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