It’s 7:55 a.m., and I’m walking to math class when I run into a guy I know.
Him: "Where ya heading?"
Me: "Math class."
Him: "What math are you in?"
Me: "3911. It’s for education majors."
Him: "Oh you’re an education major? Wow, I just don’t think I could do that."
Me: "Yeah well, I really just love kids. I think I’m meant to be a teacher."
Him: "And you’re OK with being just a teacher?"
What did he mean — just a teacher?
Unfortunately, I hear comments like this all the time. "She’s just a teacher." "Her classes are so easy." Or the popular quote all teachers and education majors know so well: “Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach.”
Personally, I think that’s just a whole bunch of BS. I want to be a teacher not because I can’t excel in any other field, but because I feel I’ve been blessed with the ability to be a positive influence in the lives of children.
If not for teachers, who would educate the next generation? To all the people who degrade those who want to teach: Who do you think is going to teach your kids?
I actually overheard a girl talking to her friend the other day about switching her major. She specifically said, "I think I may switch to something easy, like education." Why do people think that majoring in education is easy?
What if I throw you in a room full of 20 5-year-olds and say, "All right, your job is to teach these kids to read." How easy does that sound? (Hint: it's not.)
Teachers have the opportunity to introduce children to an entire world of knowledge. They form the minds of the future.
It brings me so much joy when I am able to observe in a classroom and listen to a group of 5-year-olds tell me about the seasons or the letters of the alphabet or about patterns and counting. They are excited to learn and understand things. They thrive off the lessons their teachers create for them.
I can’t wait for the day that I get to step into my first classroom filled with a group of smiling kindergarteners and lead them on the path to an amazing future.
Until then, I’ll be here standing up against every person who says, "You want to be just a teacher." Hell yeah, I want to be just a teacher. Maybe I'll even teach your kids one day too.
This story first appeared on the author's blog and is reprinted here with permission.
