I knew early on that children were part of my future. I also knew that I needed variety to keep me motivated and focused. By chance, I was fortunate to have chosen a career in teaching as opposed to becoming a secretary – two options I was toying with when leaving school. While I would have made a good secretary, I fear boredom would quickly have set in.
Teaching is my passion. Every day I am extremely blessed to get up each day, eager to see what the day will bring, how I will inspire students and what new thinking I might encounter. Every day, past and present students greet me with smiles and hugs, eager to share the latest new event in their lives. I am strict with routines but have extraordinary fun within those set boundaries.
Over the years, I have come to realise several things about being an educator. While ideas and approaches come in and out of vogue, the following four points remain pivotal to my beliefs:
- To teach something well, we must first experience it ourselves to understand it
- Emotional Literacy is essential for life
- Foundational skills are vital – not just reading, writing and counting, but listening, questioning and problem solving
- Philosophy and personal pedagogy underpin all we do.
Teaching is more than the students in our care, the subjects we teach and the colleagues we work with. For me, teaching is about inspiring those around me: staff, students, parents. Motivating others to see the endless possibilities that surround them. Not an easy task some days but a challenge I rise to every single day. It is through our personal relationships that effective learning environments are nurtured.
In a world that is ever changing, fast paced and is constantly connected, our personalities are changing. Somehow through all this chaos, we are rewiring ourselves to see the negatives first. We are forgetting that a coin always has two sides. All we need to do is flip it over and see a different possibility and be open to those thoughts. If I can help a student, colleague or parent to see the brighter side of a situation or to view a problem from a different perspective then I will be happy.
They say some of the 21st century skills employers require will be adaptability and the aptitude to solve problems in unique ways. How can you do this unless you are willing to see opportunities behind every set back? Setbacks are not final. They are intervals where we can begin again. Failing is part of success and it requires courage to continue. Being open to explore new options is central to the creative problem solving process. It is a skill required in everything we do, both now and in the future.
While I know I was born to teach for many reasons, I believe my capacity to see many possibilities is what inspires others. It gives hope, unlocks potential and improves mindsets beyond first perceptions. Along with daily personal connections, this is what galvanises my passion for teaching and fuels my beliefs as an educator. Yes, I was born to teach.
Passionate-Teacher 