My Speech On Teaching And America 's Future

Teaching was very natural for me. I felt comfortable and confident working in all my classrooms. I was fortunate to have the support from all supervising teachers and they provided me guidance and knowledge as I continued to grow in the classroom. I couldn’t wait to go to college so I could focus on teaching every day and officially start my journey as a future

Fortunately for me, I found my calling at a young age. My career choices have ranged anywhere between becoming a neurosurgeon to a child therapist. It took me a while to realize they all had a common theme, helping others. Growing up with an absent father, I always hoped for a male teacher to see what grown men are like. I noticed early on that there is a lack of male teachers in the education system, making me start to consider the educational field. In 6th grade, I met my jazz band director and great friend, Greg Mckelvey. I met him over six years ago, and to this day he still checks to see if I am okay every morning. His example has shown me that I can help others in the same way. Subconsciously, my interests had shifted towards teaching.

Fifty percent of new teachers quit with in the first five years of teaching (NEA, 2015), with this number being so alarmingly high it begs the questions: Why do so many teachers leave after going through years of college for this profession? Were teachers not prepared for the job, through college training, what should colleges teach in order to better prepare teachers?

The risk of losing beginning teachers has been an issue in the United States for a long time. An immense amount of research has been conducted exploring why beginning teachers are leaving the profession. Fantilli and McDougall’s (2009) pointed out that beginning teachers have the same responsibilities and requirements as veteran teachers, but in addition to these factors, feel the additional pressure that most people feel starting a new vocation. As a result, beginning teachers spend “a disproportionate amount of time and effort simply to keep their heads above water” (p. 814). In the article Hello, Goodbye: Exploring the Phenomenon of Leaving Teaching Early, a qualitative study was conducted to explore why beginning teachers are leaving the profession. Through an interview process, former beginning teachers identified negative factors that influenced their decision to leave the profession. These factors included working with unmotivated colleagues, feeling isolated, feeling that they did not receive support or recognition from administration, dealing with administrative problems, and not having flexibility and freedom to decide how they teach in their classrooms.

An inevitable part of being a senior is the question “ What do you want to be when you grow up?”. Luckily for me, i’ve been sure of what i wanted to do since I was 6 years old. I’ve never doubted for a second that teaching is my future. I picture myself ten years from now, and I see myself standing in front of my class, a presentation queued up, and a steely look of determination in my eye.

Going into the teaching profession has been my passion for quite some time now. Although teaching can have many different stereotypes and misconceptions, I still choose to continue towards this career. Every job has it’s own stereotypes and misconceptions. I currently work at a school, which has offered me a lot of on the job training for my future career. My current job has allowed me to see the different stereotypes and misconceptions that come along with the teaching career field. I am fortunate to already be working in my career field so I can prepare for the future stereotypes and misconceptions when I am a teacher of my own classroom.

Bam! It hit me like a speeding truck. Two weeks in Cuzco, Peru had shown me what it is really like to be struggling in all areas in life. This specific mission trip showed me outside our borders there are people in need of basic necessities in life. I spent the better of two weeks learning about myself and the people I was determined to help. Teaching has always been a part of my life, however, after these two weeks, I learned that teaching is exactly what I want to do with my career. The students I was able to work with had not had a proper education, and my teaching them put them that much farther into a life they hadn't imagined ever having. The compassion and empathy I felt in my heart for my students had shown me that teaching is the right

In the speech “Remarks by the President in a National Address to America’s Schoolchildren” by Barack Obama, he encourages students to try hard in school because education will further their success in the future. President Obama uses the reasoning that with education students will have responsibility just like those around them to achieve high standards. Students must also try hard in school to get their work completed and not give up on their education and make going to college a goal of theirs. Students need to have responsibility, try hard on their education, and be aware that they have many educational opportunities.

I always thought I would be a teacher and I would make differences in lives and it would be the greatest experience in the world for me, yet being a teacher wasn’t enough, I had a need to expand my education. I decided that perhaps I needed a new career, however, I felt certain education remained my passion. I began to explore new areas of education and I realized I still want to be a member of a classroom, a school and curriculum. I aspire to guide those leading our classrooms.

I elected to travel the Road to Teaching to find happiness and fulfillment in my career. I currently work in banking as a loan assistant and while I am highly capable and successful in my current career I came to the realization that I was not fully satisfied with my profession. I simply do not love my job. I feel that my current job will never give me complete satisfaction. It was at the funeral of my high school mathematics professor, Mr. David Smith, that I realized that I needed a change. I did not want to become someone who is merely complacent with their job and settles for a career that is unfulfilling. I want to wake up most mornings excited to go to work and I believe that teaching is the right fit for me. I sincerely hope

My decision to be a teacher did not come easily to me. This choice was dependent on a reflection about what I was passionate about and how I could make a difference. I have chosen to become a teacher, as I believe teachers have the ability to provide future generations the stimulation for one of the most significant roles in life; to become a lifelong learner. Many teachers that I have had during my education have had a positive impact on my decision to grow and develop the skills that are fundamental to pursue a successful teaching career. My aim is to be a part of an honorable profession with the optimism that one day I will become an efficacious teacher who can provide future teachers with inspiration, as my teachers have provided for me. Through personal educational experiences and peer-reviewed academic literature, I am able to shape my approach to my pre-service teaching, as it will influence my future practice. As a teacher, there is not just one singular approach to educating students; there is a need for flexibility, diversity, adaptation and reflection.

With almost 4 years of teaching and tutoring experience I realized that teaching is an ideal profession to help others to determine and reach their potential.

This past semesters has been an eye opening experience that has changed my views on teacher. Ever since I was little, I have always wanted to be a fourth grade teacher. However after being placed in a second grade classroom my views have changed. I liked the idea of teaching fourth grade because my fourth grade teacher was my inspiration in life. When I was in Ms. Petro’s class I enjoyed being able to watch the students progress over time. Being able to see the drastic improvements in little children is very rewarding and that is why I want to continue to teach lower grades. I have learned that being a teacher requires a special someone, a person who knows that sometimes you will have to deal with tough situations leaving you exhausted and feeling like you are not able to help more. But at the same time, being a teacher allows one to be a visionary for the world and those who surround you.

The big question teachers ask me throughout my life is “what do you want to be when you grow up?” I never had an answer to that. Going into college I didn’t have a set plan as to what career I would like to pursue. However, I knew that I wanted to work with kids; I originally wanted to be a pediatrician. That career choice was based on my family wanting me to be successful, so I put my passion for working with kids and their passion together. As I began to focus on what I want instead of what others want, I changed my major to Early Childhood Education and chose the path of teaching as my career choice. I have high hopes for this career because teachers are always needed. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics(BLS), the employment rate for my career choice will increase by six percent from 2014 to 2024. In this world, education is valued and will help put people many steps ahead. The reason why I chose to be an elementary teacher is because I want to be able to motivate and inspire my younger generations.

I grew up on a small farm in a small town. My parents are both educators at the school I grew up in. To my surprise my parents were not thrilled when I told them I had a passion for education. Their first words to me were, “are you sure,” “don’t you think you are wasting your intelligence,” and “you’re not going to make very much money.” This was discouraging coming from the two people I thought I would look up to going into my future career. I was at a loss for some time, until I sat down with my grandfather one day after church. He asked me if I had decided what I wanted to do after college. To this I replied, I want to be a teacher. Expecting the same response as my