The Making of a Teahcer

 As far as I'm concerned, being a teacher means taking care of student needs. To me, it is obvious that students everywhere have problems and questions and fears and hopes and that any effective teacher should aim to listen and help students with those parts of their lives. The thing that I love about this age group of adolescents is that they are all trying to define themselves and figure out the world. As they journey to develop an understanding of how they fit into the world, there is no greater joy or job for a teacher than to facilitate that exploration. This semester has confirmed my beliefs that I am so ready to be a teacher of students and to enjoy the great privilege of observing kids work through the big questions of life.

The books and assignments from my courses this semester helped me to better understand the logistics of managing a classroom, incorporating technology and creating lesson plans that support the learning of all students. However, the thing that set my heart on fire for this profession were my interactions both in the classroom and in the field. Being able to share my passion for learning and see it reflected in my peers and in active educators was so inspiring and motivational and invigorating. The most brilliant thing I have ever done was decide to be a teacher because there is something so amazing about witnessing learning in action. The beauty of recognition dawning on the faces of students as they grasp a new concept or when you get to witness them growing as individuals is reason enough to get up every day at five thirty.

As an individual I have been known to be introverted and cynical but this semester I have learned that as a teacher I am optimistic and eager to speak to students about their ideas. Teaching is one of the very few activities in which I can be in a room full of people and not feel completely out of place and uncomfortable. So in spite of my lack of outgoing nature, I think I am ahead of the curve compared to those lively, charismatic people who do not really know themselves because I can undoubtedly look in the mirror and know I am looking at a teacher.

My ultimate goal in life is to be better for myself and for my future students by learning all I can and that goal has become the core focus of my observations in the world. How can I share this with my students? What kinds of students in what kinds of situations would benefit from this idea of text or image? Those questions have become an underlying heartbeat to my existence. My enthusiasm for teaching powers me through the days, but my hopes for students have often made me an overly ambitious, self internalizing softy.

I want so badly for every class to have a significant impact and I want students to care about every idea and learn every lesson they can. I am so invested that I often take it too hard when students do not care about a certain poem or I feel like I have failed them when they don’t comprehend my explanation. Furthermore, it is also hard for me to be stern when they need it because I am afraid of chastising them to harshly or making them feel unfairly targeted. 

My goals for professional development while student teaching are to toughen up and stop being so hard on myself when things don’t go quite as planned. Sure, I want every student to succeed but I need to understand be strict is sometimes necessary instead of allowing a class to get out of hand because I’m too afraid to be the bad guy. I also need to remind myself that not every student cares about my subject or about school and they are dealing with different issues and concerns and dreams that have nothing to do with me or my class. I will work to understand who my students are and where they are coming from and to care about the big picture first.

My subject and content are important but there a things that are necessary for anyone to lead a healthy life and those need to be ever present in my mind. Students could benefit from understanding archetypes and plot devices but learning to show and earn respect are essential to a happy and successful existence. My goal is to prioritize and remind myself that learning how to communicate and interact with others is more of an asset to my students than alliteration or Shakespeare. In short, my goals are to be forceful when I need to and always put the needs of my students before the learning objectives in a lesson plan.