Pros
Minimum starting teaching salary is $40,000. Recent college graduates make up a majority of the teaching staff at the schools, so the culture is high-energy and encourages professional development. Campuses are safe and secure and students are well-behaved because of the strict behavioral policies. 100 minutes of planning per day, hundreds of hours of professional development each year, and plenty of opportunities for promotion to leadership roles. As a recent grad, I can honestly say the benefits here are far better than anything else I've heard of, and there are always openings.
Cons
Working in urban education is never easy, so there are definitely challenges you wouldn't find in a suburban school; sometimes you have to be as much a mentor to the students as you are an educator. Expectations are high and there is a lot of feedback, so you have to be willing to take constructive criticism and you are expected to implement it quickly. Because of turnover in past years (Teach for America) the teachers and leaders are still working on developing stability in school culture.
