There are jobs that people go to every day. They try to do what needs to be done, they pay their bills, buy what they need, and even what they don't. But, did you ever wonder if you didn't get paid for your job (and were independently wealthy), would you still get up and go to work every day?
Teaching is not just a job, it's a passion! It is something that you decide to do because you want to make a difference. Yes, a paycheck is necessary for most of us, and salaries are a little better than they used to be. However, teaching is definitely not a nine to five job! As a teacher we spend numerous hours staying after school, grading papers, designing lessons, working on new technology, and all the other thousands of things that teachers do. But, most importantly is the reason behind the passion.
I would love to hear from other educators to find out why they have made a career out of teaching. Please respond and tell me why teaching is a passion for you!
Thanks,
Dr. J
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2 comments:
Hi Dr. J,
I really enjoyed your post. I also work in the school system, but not as a classroom teacher. However, I know that what I do makes a difference and helps teachers teach better. It would be so good if everyone could find their "passion", or at least do their best in any job in which they find themselves.
Thanks!
While I don't teach anymore, I originally entered teaching as a secondary history teacher because I was passionate about the subject-matter and felt that teaching would give me a chance to share that passion. I actually remember polling my first class of middle schoolers and was dismayed to learn that history was consistently their least favorite subject. I blinked for a second, digested the information, and then told them that it was my job to change their opinion and make history "come alive" for them. It was more than a job back then, it really seemed like a holy crusade and I treated it as such. In fact, I was rather contemptuous of my departmental peers who were just going through the motions (I've tried to work on this character flaw in the ensuing years). Didn't they understand how wonderful our job was?!
While I have since moved to administration, I still miss designing history curriculum and helping students learn about the past. In fact, I was lucky enough to be dean of students at a school last year where a teacher on my team (a fellow history nut) would see me conducting classroom observations in his class and end up team teaching with me. I found that I would go out of my way to visit his class daily because it made me feel a little bit of what I used to experience in the classroom.
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