Why I Want To Be a Teacher Reflection

[Cyndi Danner-Kuhn]

Remember that essay your wrote for your admission to Teacher Education, or maybe you have not applied yet. If that is the cast you will have to write an essay on Why you Want to Become a Teacher. Use this discussion to tell us why you want to be a teacher, what you want to teacher, who influenced you to become a teacher. We would like to see your passion. If you would like to do this as an AUDIO reflection and attach the file, that would be wonderful.

[Bryan Gilligan]

I actually decided to do an Audio file, I really need the practice :)

[Mary Gere Bridger]

This is a podcast of my "teacher essay". It talks about what kind of teacher I hope to be, but not specifically why I hope to be one. The truth is I love school. Always have, imagine I always will. I can't keep going on Uncle Sam's dime forever - someday soon he'll want that dime back. I want to be a teacher, because it's one of the few jobs where growth and learning is a good thing.

[Kelly Thomas]

This is the podcast of my Teacher essay.

[Lindsey Pierron]

Why do I want to be a teacher? There are many reasons that I want to become a teacher, starting with my love of children. I love working with children because when you are working with kids, every day is different. In the classroom you get the opportunity to watch children progress from the beginning of the school year until the end, and that is very valuable to me. Young children are so eager to learn, and gain more knowledge and they get excited when they learn something that really strikes a chord with them. I love being the person who helps children discover their interests and their academic strengths. I also want to become a teacher, because I am always trying to learn. I believe that when you teach, you not only learn from other teachers and administrators, but you also learn from the children. I think it is very powerful when I can learn something from a student or about a student that tells me something about their life and experiences.
I want to become a teacher so I can influence students’ lives. There are many unqualified teachers that are providing a subpar education for students in our nation. This is not fair to our nation’s youth. I think that students can have better success in the classroom if they have better teachers. I think teacher’s need to know the content that they are teaching, and also have the skills to communicate it effectively to the students they are working with. A person might have a Master’s degree in a particular subject, but if that person cannot teach that subject effectively, he or she should not be in the classroom. I believe that the nation needs good teachers in order to strengthen the education system.
I had a number of great teachers in my childhood that inspired me to teach. My fifth grade teacher was a lot of fun and made learning exciting. At the same time, she had high expectations for her students and knew how to spark our interest. My seventh grade English teacher was also an influential teacher in my life. She was very funny and definitely marched to the beat of her own drum. But she was very intelligent and knew how to establish a good rapport with her students. She taught the subject in a way that encouraged real learning, not just memorization for a test. She taught me more about reading, writing and grammar in seventh grade than many people learn throughout their educational experience. She made me want to do the same thing for students today. There are many reasons that I want to be a teacher, but mostly I want to be a teacher so I can make a difference in the lives of my students.

[Carlotta Patterson]

This is a hard question for me to answer. Teaching will be my second career. I have been a nurse for 15 years, working in many different areas. I did not ever find nursing to be fulfilling for me and found myself working as a choir accompanist and at-risk para at a local school. I found that I really enjoyed working with students and loved forming a relationship with them. You can really tell when they begin to trust you and see that you care about them and take that leap with you. That’s when they get excited and begin to really learn. Unfortunately what convinced me to try teaching myself was the time I spent in the middle school math room. The teacher was doing the absolute minimum and was obviously frustrated with the students who were not able to read the text book and complete the lesson without assistance. There were no manipulatives, no real life examples, and this teacher had a laptop with a projector and a smartboard in his classroom that he never turned on!! I was angry and frustrated and realized that I could make a difference in what I was seeing.
I hope to teach middle school science or math. Call me crazy, but I really enjoy this age group. I am intrigued by the idea of collaborative classrooms and I think this teaching style could work great in either of these subjects. I am also excited to use some of the tools we have learned in this class as students work together. I am excited by the possibilities that now seem limitless despite this tiny community that I live in. I am inspired by two of my teachers, both women who encouraged me and remain good friends today. Even more than that I am continuously encouraged by the teachers I have been working with and who are kind enough to answer my questions, let me observe in their classrooms and tell me that I am doing a great job working with their students.
The discussion asks about our passion. My passion is really the students and finding a way to teach them in a way that excites them about learning. I look forward to the challenge of finding the key to turn each student on to learning.

[Robin Berndt]

I desire to become a teacher because ever since I was a little girl I admired my teachers. The older I got, the more passionate about teaching I became. Whenever I had difficulties in school, my teacher could always help me out. I enjoyed school, and the learning process as teachers taught me things I had never known before. I want to become a teacher to help them learn more. Just seeing the look of accomplishment they express once they figure something out is total enjoyment for me and I love to come up with new ways to teach a concept to the students.
Piaget philosophy states that children will provide different explanations of reality at different stages of cognitive development. Cognitive development is facilitated by providing activities or situations that engage learners and require adaptation of assimilation and accommodation. Learning materials and activities should involve the appropriate level of motor or mental operations for a child of given age; avoid asking students to perform tasks that are beyond their current cognitive capabilities. Use teaching methods that actively involve students and present challenges.
Piaget is known for constructing a highly influential model of child development and learning. Piaget's theory is based on the idea that the developing child builds cognitive structures in other words, mental "maps," schemes, or networked concepts for understanding and responding to physical experiences within his or her environment. Piaget theory all so states that educators must plan a developmentally appropriate curriculum that enhances their students' logical and conceptual growth. Teachers must emphasize the critical role that experiences or interactions with the surrounding environment play in student learning. I agree with this theory because as I work with students that I have to think about their learning style and what level they are at to what I want to help them learn.
I would have to agree in the fact that students learn differently and learn at different levels. I want to have different ways to teach my students, such as hands on, lecture, and as a large group. You can do each of these with the mind set that everyone will learn something and at the end of the day each one of my students will walk out of the class knowing something that they did not know and I hope will want to come back the next day to learn something else that they did not all ready know or a new way of learning something.

[Trevor Duell]

Why do I want to be a teacher? The socialpsychologist suggest that people repeat questions so that they can stall for more time to think of a creative answer (aka a lie). But I certainly don't need to lie about this topic. I, like so many others, have had wonderful teachers in every phase of my life. My parents were the first and best teachers I will ever have. I have started to appriciate how much they taught me now that I am on my own. In fourth grade I had a wonderful teacher named Mary McBride. She was a firm but kind and highly motivational! In 8th grade I had Mrs. Ebert, who put up with my chinanigans to teach me how to write a decent newspaper article. In high school I had a wonderful and hard working band director that seldom went home. Now that I am in college I contine to have wonderful teachers that inspire me to give back all the time, effort, and attention that was given to me. Brad Dawson, Jeff Jordan, and John Huber are all ones that come to mind.
I want to be a music teacher because I believe that music is one of the most powerful forms of communication on the face of the planet. It can express what words cannot. It also proves to be an affective outlet for personal expression that can positively influence others. I believe that this is very important as school violence seems to be on the rise. I want to be a music teacher because I want to share my passion about this art form. I want to show others how music can change you life (if you let it). I shutter to think where I would be if I never learned how to play the trumpet (and for all intents and purposes will be learing it until the day I die). And I KNOW if I find myself saying something like that then there are many students who could fully benefit from a music education.

[Brock Funke]

When people ask me what my major is and I say, “Elementary Education.”, they often give a weird look and say, “Why?” Teaching elementary school, to me is the best job in the world. As a teacher you’re responsible for the students in your class to learn and become a functioning member of society. To me it’s more than that. Going to school everyday and getting to hang out with you people that love to learn, is hard to find in any other job. You get to become someone who these kids really look up to and follow your example. As a teacher you will be with the students more than they’re with their parents, during the school year. To me that’s a huge responsibility and a great chance to be a positive influence on their lives. Kids are the future; it’s as simple as that. I would love to become a teacher to give the students someone they can come to when they need a little guidance or just a set of ears that will listen.
I’ve had some of the greatest experiences and have been taught how to live my life in a positive way by a lot of teachers. We have a lot of teachers in our lives, but we take a little from each of them. The one teacher that influenced me to become a teacher myself was my 7th grade geography teacher and he was also my P.E and weights teacher in high school. I have never had a teacher that made the learning experience so much fun, yet constructive at the same time. He really knew how to get the most out of his students. He was intimidating at times, but once you got to know him you knew it was because he cared about each and everyone of his students. He let it be know to all of us that he would be there is we ever needed him, not matter what was wrong he would listen and see what he could do to help us out. All of the students looked up to him and had the up most respect for him, because he treated us the same way. He really showed me what kind of a teacher I wanted to be. One that keeps the classroom an enjoyable environment and positive experience, at the same time showing all of the students respect and letting them know he cares about each and everyone of them.
I’m hoping to teach kindergarten up to 2nd grade. I’ve been told I’m crazy for wanting to teach kids that young, but I enjoy it. I do believe it takes a special person with the right mentality to teach those grade levels and I know I can do it. I really enjoy it, because they like the experience of being at school and love to learn new things everyday. I can’t wait, its going to be a wonderful job that I will have no problem getting up for everyday.

[Rayleen Shelton]

"Why do I want to become a teacher?" This questions seems to be asked a lot. I think people view teaching as an undesirable job, but where would the world be if it weren't for teachers. I love that slogan "if you can read this thank a teacher." Anyway off my soapbox...I decided to become a teacher because I want to be the person responsible for providing students with the knowledge and skills they will need to succeed in life. After graduating from high school, attending college, and going to work in a public school system I was embarrassed by how many teachers didn't use technology. I decided that I wanted to change this. After completing school I will be certified to teach 7-12 Business and Computer classes. My intentions are to incorporate technology as much as possible. It's important for students to become familiarized with the technology that they will have to use after school. Technology is ever evolving and teachers must keep up in order to educate their students at the fullest extent. Today's students are being raised in the technology age and need the incorporation of technology to keep them interested, not to mention they will need the skills to succeed later in life. I encourage all future teachers to experiment with technology in your classroom, even if you are not tech savvy. I guarantee you students will thank-you.

[Jess]

Here is my teachers admissions essay:
Passionate and effective are the two words that best describe the type of teacher I would like to be. My best teachers were the ones that made learning fun and entertaining, and that is how it should be. I want my students to come to my class excited and ready for the school day. Being an effective, positive and, most important, passionate teacher is what I will always be striving for throughout my teaching career.
One person that has influenced my thoughts on teaching is the Swiss philosopher, Jean Piaget (1896-1980). He said, “The principle goal of education in the schools should be creating men and women who are capable of doing new things, not simply repeating what other generations have done.” I agree with his thoughts on how teachers need to understand that each student develops at different times and stages and that each student needs to have information presented in a way they each understand. Also, his thoughts on how teachers needs to be as integrative with the students as possible to be an effective teacher has greatly influenced how I want to teach in my classroom.
Progressivism is the educational theory that I relate to the most. I believe that this theory best complements how I want to get to know my students and suit the lessons to their needs. The teacher is not just there to teach, but also to guide his/her students using his/her creativity in a way that they not only learn the subject matter, but are also interested in learning it. Like Piaget, I think that students are going to learn more from activities that get them involved and that they are interested in. I always learned more when the lessons were fun and interactive, and that is how I want learning in my classroom to be.
I know that striving to be the best teacher I can be will always be a challenge for me throughout my teaching career, but I am ready for it. Great teachers strive to be better every year. Using the knowledge of past and present educators will help shape me into the most effective teacher I can be. I would love to be remembered as being the most passionate teacher my students ever had.

[Karen]

Why I Want To Be A Teacher:

What a thought provoking question to answer. I remember as a child many years ago wanting to be a teacher, but the choices I made did not take me down that path until now. I started working in a grade school a few years ago and have really enjoyed working with the students. As a result of what I have discovered; the joy of working with students, seeing the light in their eyes when they grasp the content at hand and knowing I am guiding and encouraging personal growth in a child, I am once again embarking on that career choice.

I cannot say that I was actually influenced by one or two teachers in regard to wanting to be a teacher. I think looking back it would be a culmination of several over the years of my education. Each had their own distinct style and caring attitude that one way or another impacted me.

I believe in having high expectations for our students and finding a way to encourage them to reach for the proverbial stars. I hope to foster a classroom conducive to learning and to prepare my students for life outside of school. I want my students to be problem solvers and learn to work together in this ever changing world by using logic and common sense. I will strive to make sure that my students have the opportunities to be challenged and to succeed in all their academic endeavors. I do believe it is necessary to be organized, prepared and have a thorough understanding of subject matter as this is important to our students. It is imperative to have discipline and control of your classroom, but I feel that I also must be flexible to encourage growth in my students. I will strive to be the best teacher that I can be and will always makes an effort to learn, just as I expect my students to with my guidance and support. I feel it is very important that my students be in a nurturing environment where they feel secure and gain the knowledge they need in order to succeed.

[Pam]

Attached is the Audio file -