"I have come to believe that a great teacher is a great artist and that there are as few as there are any other great artists. Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit."
--John Steinbeck
Let me tell you something about being a teaching candidate: it's frustrating. Not only do I have to deal with mindless bureaucratic crap on a daily basis, as well as sometimes mediocre assignments and even mediocre classmates, but I also have to constantly defend my career choice to everyone from my family members to the random idiot who happens to sit next to me in one of my non-education classes. Here's a few of my favorites so far.
1. "Oh, so you're getting your Mrs. degree."
Yes. Because clearly, I am deeply concerned with spending four years in college to find a man so I can settle down, push out babies, and Lysol countertops for the rest of my life.
Honestly, I am probably a lot more intelligent than whichever champion came up with this gem and I know for a fact that I can run circles around you in a debate or any intelligent conversation. So let's cut the sexist bullshit, shall we, and talk about how messed up this statement is? First, there are a lot of male teachers. Some of my best teachers have been men (I'm looking at you Chesser, Keithley, and Mr. Echols). I understand that there's a whole host of stereotypes and problems that male education students face, but let's not compound that by assuming that all teaching candidates are women. Second, I really don't appreciate your failure to take teachers seriously. Although I would expect a statement like this to come from someone completely uneducated and ignorant, chances are that you have at least a high school degree, so it looks like your teachers got you somewhere in life. Third, the whole idea of a "Mrs. degree" is just so wrong. I can't even. If a guy can come to college and major in anything he wants without people thinking he's just in it to find a wife, I don't know what should be different for me. Please.
2. "Education is such an easy major."
I get it. I don't have to solve complicated problems, spend hours in a chemistry lab, memorize complicated formulas, or any of that. From your end, you probably think I spend a lot of time coloring and cutting out paper. What you don't understand is that there's so much more to it than that. For high school teaching candidates, we are not only taking an entire major's worth (33 hours at Mercer) of education classes, but also majoring in the subject we hope to teach, be it English, math, biology, chemistry, or history. I probably have double the graduation requirements you have. And on top of all that, we also have to juggle fieldwork and volunteer experiences. The average college student cannot handle these kinds of requirements.
Additionally, a lot goes into education classes. You think anybody can teach (I'll get to that) but I have to be an expert not only in English Literature, my field of study, but also adolescent physical and emotional development, social issues that affect education, legislation that affects education, rules and regulations of individual state's education departments, teaching strategies and techniques, teaching theory and specialized topics, like teaching children with disabilities. My study is not limited to just one subject, and since the field of education is constantly changing, I am constantly having to update the information in my mental filing cabinet.
3. "Why are you at Mercer if you just want to be a teacher?"
This is one of my favorites. I have no idea how many of my family and friends privately believe that I should have gone to community college or state school, but I know you're out there. Even my parents have sometimes expressed concerns that I am putting myself into a lot of debt "just" to be a teacher. After all, every education program is the same, right? Wrong. What you have to understand is that I think about my students every day, and not just the ones I'm working with presently. I think about my future students every day. I pray for my future students every day. This might seem excessive to someone who's not a teacher, but for me, every aspect of my life and of my college experience is preparation for being the best teacher I can be. It's only fair to my students, current and future, that I put in the work to becoming the best possible teacher for them, and I want to do that in one of the best programs available for teachers. Additionally, I truly believe in the Tift College of Education and the values it promotes among teaching candidates. Yes, I am sacrificing a lot. Yes, I think it's worth it. Another note on this is that the just becoming a teacher statement irks me. See #2. Teachers put in a lot of work. And teachers are also really important.
4. "Anybody can teach."
Wrong, wrong, wrong. I have had way too many experiences with someone just selecting a teaching career because they think it's easy or because their first career didn't work out. I've had "teachers" in front of my classrooms who don't actually have a degree in education, but somehow ended up there because they are highly sought after for their chemistry degree or whatever. Let me tell you- not just anyone can be an effective teacher. Skill in your subject area is important, but there's so much more to it than that. It's true, that some people are naturally gifted teachers. I consider myself one of them because being in front of a classroom makes me happy and I'm comfortable there. But raw talent and energy isn't enough, either. You need a full understanding of the profession to be an effective teacher. See #2.
5. "Teaching isn't worth it."
This is possibly the most convincing argument that people generally make against my career choice. They point out that teachers get paid a really sucky salary, that they spend a lot of time off-the-clock working on things for their students or their classrooms, that they get treated really badly by students, parents, and administrations, and that state legislatures frequently screw them over. This is all really true. Sometimes I do pause, because I know that teaching is hard. I've been in it since October with my little Friday elective class, and even that stresses me out the wazoo on a frequent basis. But it's definitely worth it. When I see my kids master a skill, that makes it worth it. When I see my kids enjoy a lesson, that makes it worth it. When I engage with them about some of the biggest issues facing our world and feel astounded by their intelligent and creative solutions, that makes it worth it. Ultimately, it's all about the students. I always say that you don't sign up to be a teacher for the fun, the awesome salary and benefits. You sign up because you're ready to go to war and fight battles in the classroom that no one else is willing to take on. I'm battling for my students, current and future, on a daily basis, for their confidence and self-image, for their education, for their futures, for their kindness and compassion, for their innovation, and for everything in between. Any measure of success makes it worth it. I teach because I want to be a world-shaker, and I want my students to be world-shakers. Call me idealistic (that would be #6 if I had time to extend this post), but I truly believe these things. I love what I do, and I do what I love, and that's good enough for me. In fact, it's perfect.
