Since deciding to come back to school and become a teacher I have had a number of friends and some family ask, "how long will you teach?" They've also asked if I aspire to greater things in professional life than to simply be school teacher. To these people I sense that teaching is seen as a fall back occupation and something I will do until I can find a better paying and more demanding job.
Along with these comments I also still hear remarks about the leisured schedule I will keep as a teacher. A day that finishes at 3pm, summer's off, etc. This reminds me of something my mother, who has been a elementary school teacher for over 25 years, has said many times: "If a teacher says he/she can pack up and leave everyday with no work at 3pm, he/she is not doing his or her job."
I'm not overly concerned about how others perceive my own career but I do feel that overall there may be a lack of recognition for the service that millions of teachers provide to society. Although there is value in fighting for benefits and better pay, I don't believe that most teachers are solely concerned with these issues. More than that I think they want to feel valued and respected for the challenging yet rewarding work that they do.
As I move in this profession. I want to recognize the many teachers and coaches that have inspired me in my life in school and beyond. They have ingrained in me to accept others, to lead by example and work effectively with others. I have many teachers who have been positive role models in my life, and I am beginning to understand the importance that these people play reagardless of the challenges and stereotypes they faced in their careers.
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"How long will I teach?" Sometimes, being surrounded by all these commtted classmates, I feel a little out of place when I think of my answer to this question. People talk of teaching as a "vocation" and I certainly think it is. But do I have the vocation to teach? My in-classroom experience has been too limited so far and I feel that I can't answer this question until I get in and do some real work. At this point, I confidently see myself teaching for the next two or three years. But I don't know yet whether I'll love the classroom or not - I don't feel as if I'm committing my life to classroom teaching. I'd like to get into politics for a while, or work for a think-tank or NGO, or do something completely different even.
Of course, as I've been learning this semester, "classroom teaching" may soon become a thing of the past. I'm excited about the way the field is developing, giving students and families more choice in their schooling, and holding teachers accountable TO THE STUDENTS for success. I can't help but recall the story that the principal at SIDES told us about the physics teacher who saw his class of 30 reduce to 2 in a week because they all left to go on-line. The existence of on-line learning and choice give students power and self-determination in a whole new way.
It's a perfect example of how media technology affects the social and political interaction of people. How will schools as state-run social institutions be melded and transformed by the power of technology? Will we see an increased fragmentation of society, as students explore all sorts of different areas without a "set" curriculum? Or will the diversificatiion of education enrich our society as a whole?
Perhaps this diversification, which has begun to blur the boundaries of where a school begins and ends, will also blur the boundaries between who qualifies as a "student" and who qualifies as a "teacher. It's that sort of thing I think I want to be involved in - the changing, dynamic face of social interaction in many different fields, in and out of the classroom, whether I'm an official "teacher" or not.
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