Teachers - What motivates them to teach?

i think it's the desire to educate people. if it's for the salary, why teach? teachers are mostly underpaid, they're very well-educated and can go to a higher paying job like office work. besides, if ever they do it for salary, they wouldn't last long. i dreamt of becoming a teacher someday when i was a kid, i enjoy teaching my little brother when he was small. and making him test papers, text books.. and even recess. just a thought. haha

both my parents are college professors. and i think they like to teach because there's something fulfilling when you're teaching. yesterday, we were at the mall and two starngers approached my mom and dad and told them that they were their students years before. my mom and dad had strange loks on their faces, because they cant seem to remember the strangers. however, i realized how important the work of teachers were: they live imprints on a students life, every year, every lesson, every lecture that they give. they are part of the lives of every student. :)

I think the monetary value of the work and the essence of the work itself goes hand in hand in motivating someone or somebody to choose the field of endeavor he or she wants.

Hi! I am majoring in art education and most of my former classmates already shifted for their desired course... Aside from the salary, I think what makes teachers motivated is their passion for teaching. I believe no person would have a strong motivation for something if one doesn't have enough passion that will drive him to be successful in his chosen field.