As an Early Childhood and Childhood Education Major, I am going to be responsible for knowing educational content for students ages birth to 12. If you’re not aware of how much stuff that is to know and be able to teach… it’s a lot. You need to know not only the material, but also how to present it in a way that makes sense to young children. You also need to know how to answer questions and keep kids engaged. Whenever I meet a new person and they ask me what I go to school for, I actually have an internal debate whether or not I should tell them I’m going for education. When I do tell them, I get one of two responses. Sometimes people will say, “Wow, good for you. Teaching is a promising future.” Or, I get one of the responses below. So here I am, trying to be an advocate for all of the tired, stressed, and overwhelmed Ed Majors out there. So if you see us covered in glitter glue and an extra large coffee in our hands, please do not say any of the phrases below. Sincerely, Future Teachers Everywhere :)
1. “You’ll never find a job!”
Well random stranger at the grocery store who is oddly obsessed with my future, I think that is my worry, not yours! Actually, there is always going to be a need for teachers. Maybe there won’t be the same need for them in New York than there is in Texas, but we will always be needed.
2. “Teaching Kindergarten is just babysitting”
As a hopeful future Kindergarten teacher, this one hurts. Kindergarten is the place where kids go to learn how to read, write, tie their shoes, make friends, follow directions, and cut paper properly. As a teacher, we are responsible for keeping track of 20-25 kids at a time, most of the time without any additional help. Sure, painting and gluing is part of the curriculum, but learning the letter names and sounds, counting, and how to properly hold a pencil is our main focus.
3. “You won’t make any money”
If all teachers wanted to become millionaires, there wouldn’t be a need for us. We’re not in this profession to make money. We’re here to educate the youth of America and make a difference in kid’s lives. The paycheck is nice, but the impact we leave is even better.
4.“How can you be around kids all day?”
Here’s a challenge for you: Go up to a 5 or 6 year old and ask them what their favorite color is and why. The answers you get are both hysterical and awe-inspiring. The creative minds of kids are fascinating. They’re innocent, smart, and hilarious. What would you rather be surrounded by- a group of middle-aged men in a business meeting or a group of 5 year olds during story time?
5. “Teaching is only good because you get the summers off”
False. Teachers spend their two months off preparing for the next year, going to training's, and/ or getting more certifications. We do not get to relax by the pool every day and stop our commitments. We are constantly working on creating new material and coming up with exciting ways to keep our kids engaged.
6. "People only go into teaching because they cant do anything else”
Maybe this statement is right. Maybe we aren’t cut out to perform brain surgery, or we aren’t able to sit behind a desk for 8 hours straight and not have any other human contact. Our dedication and passion stems from a place that we are in touch with, and we know what we are meant to do with our gifts. Maybe teaching isn’t your cup of tea, but that’s okay… we drink coffee.
7. “What’s going to happen when you get old and can’t handle kids anymore?”
Just because we are going to get older, doesn’t mean our love for teaching dies. Also, there are plenty of other things we can do in a school. A lot of teachers go on to becoming principals, special program directors, or even counselors. We don’t really ever slow down- until we hit retirement. After that, catch us all on a beach reading children’s books and trying to remember how to hold adult scissors again.
8. "Kindergarten is just an all-day arts and crafts thing.”
That’s where we’re going to stop you. We are going to teach a TON of material in ten months. Yes, that means that sometimes glitter glue is going to be involved. But that doesn’t mean that every day is going to be an episode from HGTV. Kids need the opportunity to creatively express themselves, and we need to be that outlet for them.
9. “How are you going to manage common core?”
With encouragement…that’s how. Common core requires us to teach things in a whole new way, expect the students to understand it, and then test them on it. We are here to help them in every way possible- no matter how stressful it gets. We need to be both a source of information and an outlet for a student’s frustration.
10. “You’re lucky… your day ends when the kids go home at 3:30.”
Wow. If only. We have meetings and projects just like every other normal job out there. We barely get a break during the day, so we bring our work home with us. When do people think we make our lesson plans for the entire week? While the kids are at lunch? Please. During that extremely short 30 minutes, we’re scarfing down food, grading yesterday’s homework, and trying to maintain our sanity (because let’s face it, we lose it once in awhile). Our day really ends when we pass out on our couch, covered in spelling tests and stickers.
11. “Teachers are all the same.
I mean, in a way we are. We all share a common love for our profession. But each teacher is different. We’re different in the ways we approach different lessons, the ways we interact with our kids, and the ideas we have to make things better. It’s important for the teachers to show diversity so we can set the example for our kids to know that being different is okay.
"A teacher is a compass that activates the magnets of curiosity, knowledge, and wisdom in the pupils."
-Ever Garrison
