As a
freshman in high school, I had my entire future career plan figured out. Well,
at least I thought I did. I may not have picked a college yet, or even decided
on a major, but I knew what I wanted to do. I wanted to help people. As I began
to near the end of my high school career, I had decided that the best way for
me to help people would be to become a psychologist or a marriage and family
therapist. I believed my path was set, and I enrolled as a Psychology major at
South Dakota State University. I absolutely loved my classes; however, the idea
of becoming a psychologist became less appealing the longer I was in the
program. Even with my losing interest in becoming a psychologist, it took me a
while to actually consider becoming a teacher. My mom was the FACS teacher at
my high school and even though she was a phenomenal teacher, I wanted to be
independent and do something different. I didn’t want to become a teacher just
because she was one, but the longer I was out of high school, the more I
realized that my dream of helping people paired with my desire to guide and
develop others and my passion for psychology fit the definition of a teacher
well.
Although
I may not have recognized my potential for teaching within myself, through high
school and college, I chose jobs and extra-curricular activities that allowed
me to take on the role of an educator. As a violin instructor, swimming lesson
instructor, orchestra teacher’s assistant, summer-long camp counselor, and
bible study leader I was able to help students of all ages grow in their
skills, confidence and knowledge. I was able to lead students in finding the
potential inside of themselves that they didn’t even realize that they had.
Helping students find this potential is one of the main reasons that I felt
called into the world of education. Another reason that I want to be a teacher
is because of how rewarding it is and has been to help students be successful.
I love seeing students’ confidence build as they are able to complete a song
without making a mistake, celebrating with them as they are able to finally
float on their back for a full five seconds and encouraging them as they learn
how to resolve a relational conflict on their own.
As a
future educator, I absolutely understand the value of the information and
knowledge that students will learn and gain in my classroom. However, I also
believe that along with quality instruction, students need somebody who is
going to see their potential and help them to be successful and make accomplishments,
no matter the size or apparent significance.
I hope that by becoming a teacher I can not only be this person to many
students but also help students to integrate classroom content into their own
lives, become excited about learning, and value their classroom as a safe place
to be themselves and learn. In order to do this, I plan to reflect these
beliefs not only in the classroom but also outside of it, by attending my
students’ extracurricular events.
With
my new and focused plan of becoming a teacher, I know that I will be able to
fulfill my desire to help people. Every day I will be able to help students
learn new knowledge, develop their skills and build confidence in who they are
and what they can accomplish. Teaching is a career that is extremely important
and rewarding, and I am very excited to begin this journey as a future
educator.