This is a cross-posting of something I said in a forum on RateMyTeachers.com.
The question was:
heyy my name is Talia and I’m 15, I attend St.marys secondary. A question that alot of my friends asked is why would teachers want to get up so early just to teach? So if you are a teacher please tell us whats you’re favorite part of teaching and why, oh and besides the money. 😀
Here’s my reply, which generated quite a few positive comments:
Obligatory money comment: I took a more than 50% pay cut to become a teacher. I’ve never even thought of going back.
Why do I teach? I love working with teenagers. I love their idealism. I love their attitude. I love the way they demand that I make their time in my class worthwhile, even if they’re only there because it’s a required class. I love the genuine excitement when they master a new concept or skill. I love it when we discuss something that most of the adult population would find too difficult to even begin to contemplate and the kids say “Wow, that’s really simple.” I love their expectation that everything they learn is supposed to somehow help them make the world better once they’re out of school. I love watching (and helping) them learn social skills to use with their peers, knowing that they are practicing the skills that will improve their lives for years to come. I love the kids who appreciate what I do, because they motivate me to keep doing it. I love the kids who only appreciate what I do when I do it well, because they help me to see the difference between what’s good and what’s crap. I love the kids who almost never appreciate anything I do, because on those rare occasions when they appreciate something, I know it’s really outstanding. I love the kids who face incredible challenges in their lives and still manage to come to school, come to class, and get any work done at all. I especially love it when they let me see into a little piece of their lives and give me an opportunity to help them overcome some of those challenges. I love knowing that anything I do may make a difference that I may never be aware of in someone’s life.
And besides that, I’m not even remotely a morning person. Anything that can make me look forward to getting up at 5:00am must be worthwhile, right? 😉
