I have a degree in Marine Science but as I look back over my life and class assignments (that I have kept since middle school) I have always wanted to be a teacher. I was honored to be nominated by my peers as the Teacher of the Year to represent the school in the district and after completing a long and arduous application I was selected as 1 of the 5 district finalist. Many of the applicants wrote how there parents (former educators) influenced their career and how they looked up to an educator. My store was very different, I wrote of the disappointment and anger that I felt toward a specific educator that told my mother,"That I didn't have the ability to comprehend English III at this level (honors)". See said those words to my mother at an open house as I stood next to her. Those words still burn my ears to this day.
As I contemplated going back to school to become and educator I vowed to always believe the following: All students deserve an education, My purpose in life is to educate, I must meet my students needs, I can make a difference, and you reap what you sow.
I feel that being an Educator is a God given gift. Many enter this occupation but don't last because they are not called.
A teacher has the ability to tear down your self-esteem or boost it. I always try to encourage my students. With their disabilities, they have enough of put downs. You are truly an overcomer.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read your comments, it resonated in me the reason I also became a teacher. My mother was my inspiration. She only had a basic education at the elementary level, however, she believed strongly that without an education, your dreams evaporate. She used to tell me that I was going to be a teacher. When I decided to go back to school in the United States, I am from Mexico, one of my first instructors told me that I was not going to make it because I didn't speak English correctly or could write good enough for him. That lit the fire in me to prove to this man that I could do it. I have been very successful ever since. I was also teacher of the year at my school in 2009. I feel, as you do, that teaching is a gift and that I owe it to my students to do my best for them. This class has taken me back to those feelings of insecurity I felt when I decided to go back to college and begin my career as an educator.
ReplyDeleteCongrats to you on your nomination; a teacher can make or break a student. Sometimes students need someone just to believe in them. I am sure you are already Teacher of the Year every year in the eyes of your students.
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