Childhood Dreams

The humankind throughout history has tried to learn and figure out the meaning of dreaming. The interpretations and true meanings of dreams has expanded and has varied over centuries and cultures. Many of the earlier studies were based on culture’s and the interpretation of dreams, but also used as a form of prophecy, inspiration, and guidance. Many people still believe this such, people today beliefs and theories have opened up to a more vast interpretation, they are made up of; dreams are rare brain activity, dreams allow people to reflect on themselves, or that dreams are too massive to be correctly interpret. Although, not a single theory has been proven to this day, science as of why dreams occur is still a mystery.

An American psychiatrist by the name of William Glasser once stated, “When you study great teachers…you will learn much more from their caring and hard work than from their style.” Teachers are a huge part of an individual’s life. From the time a person enters into preschool until the complete cessation of their educational career, the teachers and professors along the way each influence that student’s perspective and feeling towards the particular subject they taught. With daily interactions, teachers become a part of a student’s microsystem. They are often times the only other constant adult figure in their student’s life apart from the caregiver. Whether it is acknowledged or not, the importance of teacher cannot be overstated. Unfortunately,

Sometimes the smallest choices have life altering effects. For instance, deciding to pursue a career in education just like Professor Kleinpeter. Since the doors opened 17 years ago, Kleinpeter has taught Psychology at River Parish Community College. Before River Parish Community College, she taught at the University of New Orleans. Then, in the beginning of her career she taught Special Education for 15 years. It is obvious that Kleinpeter has plenty of experience under her belt, but all of these successes started with a choice.

I was really astonished when Zimmerman quoted that “nobody really knows how well professors teach or how much their students learn in college. It reveals to me that, Zimmerman actually knows the trick that administrators and faculty’s

As a young child I remember being asked the question: “what do you want to be when you grow up.” While I struggled with the answer for many years, in the course of deep reflection I found that I knew two truths about myself: I loved education, and I gained fulfillment through helping others. Developing and learning in the course of my four years at Loyola University Chicago, I discovered a passion to pursue a career in higher education.

He once told me of his father, a hard man, who came home at nights blackened by coal dust, and of his mother, a hardworking woman who seems always to have been a source of comfort. Not wanting him to follow his father and grandfathers and great-grandfathers into the tunnels beneath the town, his parents encouraged him to get a trade. And he did. He got an apprenticeship in carpentry and joinery at the local funeral parlour, building coffins for the dead.

Jobs are the essence of survival, and starting one’s own business is all the rage. Entrepreneurship provides more income for the economy, and it provides a multitude of jobs for Americans. People in America are drawn to the idea of beginning their own business, so they can build up their wealth with their own two hands such as Carnegie and Rockefeller. In addition, in the novel Cold Sassy Tree Will Tweedy’s grandpa E. Rucker Blakeslee starts his own business at a young age and grows to be quite wealthy. For example, in the book, Will recalls, “So when Grandpa built his brick store in 1892…” (pg. 22). Grandpa Blakeslee accomplishes a part of the American Dream as he establishes a life for himself in the town by building his own general store, the first and only in the town of Cold Sassy. Moreover, people are always in need for a job, and some are even desperate because having a job is on the road to a better life and one step closer to accomplishing the American Dream. For instance, in the book, a mill boy Hosie Roach who has no prospects of having a fulfilling life is offered a job at the general store. Will, the main character, remembers thinking, “…Hosie would of course quit school if he got the job” (pg. 344). Furthermore, the idea of quitting school for a job describes the lengths and sacrifices that people will go through in order to have a nice job and make a living for

There were teachers, students, workers, etc. who’d look down on them and say that they will never make it to a university and that they will never become someone in life. Although these students had hardly any help while attending college or universities they still found ways to make it without any petty excuse. They managed to continue going forward and receive the degrees and careers they were aiming for. Many even went above and beyond. One of the students he interviewed named Nicole said:

“Step 1, Earn a Bachelor’s Degree. Step 2, Earn a Doctorate. Step 3, Find Employment as a lecturer. Move up the ranks from there (How to Become an Associate Professor).” Dr. Settles journey to his current position lasted throughout three different colleges. His first start, started in high school when he took a liking to journalism and agriculture. He then went on to Angelo State University to pursue an animal science degree with a minor in Journalism. Dr. Settle enjoyed helping others so he pursed his masters in agricultural education and communication. From then on, he got his PhD from the University of Florida. Once he started on this particular track, this destined him to be a faculty member at a

Like many others from my graduating class, I left college and headed for the fast track world of law and finance. After two years crunching numbers, juggling real estate projects and emerging from Black Monday in October 1987 relatively unscathed, I realized I hated my job. Landing a teaching position at Fessenden School became a watershed event in my life. Looking back over the past years, I fully realize that teaching is an essential part of me. Michael Thompson, once said, "There are some teachers who are effective and know why, others who aren 't effective and don 't know why, and a third are effective, but aren 't quite sure why." After five years at Fessenden, I felt like the latter. Therefore, I decided to attend graduate school in order to become a more effective educator. Theory, practicum, and research aside, graduate school was an epiphany for me. It confirmed in me that leading a school was more than a choice; it was a calling.

The reason why people go to a college or a university is because they want to further their education. However, this cannot always happen because professors at many colleges and universities are less focused on teaching and more focused on research. The documentary explains that the reason professors are focusing on research more than teaching is because the professors want to receive tenure. Tenure is a permanent job contract granted to professors who accomplish extensive research under the name of the university he or she teaches at. As a result of wanting rewards such as tenure, professors are too busy working research instead of focusing on their students. Brian Strow, Assistant Professor of Economics at Western Kentucky

Throughout the numerous experiences I have had during my time at Benedictine University, I have learned different lessons and values that will prove important to my teaching career. The different courses, teachers, and schools that I had the opportunity to work with have helped me grow as an educator and provided me with the tools needed in order to be successful.

In the novel, Waiting for the Barbarians by J.M Coetzee, the magistrate’s progressive, non-linear dreams are a parallel to his growing involvement with the barbarians and his growing distaste for the empire. The great psychoanalyst, Sigmund Freud said, “The interpretation of dreams is the royal road to a knowledge of the unconscious.” In every dream there is a hidden meaning and when the reader starts analyzing the magistrate’s dreams he reveals that he is oddly attracted to the barbarians and knows he should not get involved and it will be a trial to get close to them.

As children, we absorb information and learn from experiences that mold us into who we are. Many individuals impact a child’s life, but the most powerful and influential role lies in a devoted teacher, a teacher provides growth to students as a gardener would to a garden of flowers. Each child can bloom into a thriving flower so long as you water their garden with optimism, love, patience, and guidance. Throughout my educational experiences I was lucky enough to have educators who poured their knowledge and optimism into me, and now I would like to reciprocate that back to students who are in the position I was once in. Balancing life and school is hard enough for a student, but a powerful and caring teacher can steer you in the right direction. In this autobiography you will read about my educational background, experiences that influenced my decision to become a teacher, and what I believe the role of a teacher should be in a student’s life.

As I take a look back on my life, I realize how great it has truly been. I had an absolutely amazing childhood and I am beyond blessed for it. I grew up in a home with two loving parents that have been with me through it all and now of days that is something to be truly thankful for. My parents taught me to strive to be anything that I wanted and that I could be anything that I set my mind to. These dreams changed throughout my life as I grew older and as I grew into the person that I am today.