Working with Elementary students was a lot more difficult than I originally thought that it would be. I am the youngest of my two siblings and all of my cousins and extended family are older than I am, so I really do not have any experience working with children. My educational concentration was in Secondary Ed. The students, although they were, at times, adorable.... were very hard to control. I'm a very passive person, so, it was hard for me to discipline the three kids in my volunteer group. They eventually would get really into the activities and become really excited when it would be time for me to take them for group, but, overall...I still feel confident in the fact that I will never teach Elementary Ed students.
I am actually going to delay getting my teaching cert. as I just learned that I am eligible to graduate next year. I'm going to go to grad school asap next May and then, after getting my Master's, I'll get my certification.
When I do eventually become a teacher, I would like to be one of those teachers that is very stern, yet fair to their students. I want to have a very clear-cut, structured learning environment, but, at the same time- I would like my students to be really comfortable to ask and say anything. The classroom should be the perfect balance between fun and formal. I'm really looking forward into future possibilities. I would love to teach at a community college or at any other outlet of adult education. Either way, I can't wait until I can get a real teaching job and pay my bills doing something that I love instead of working black Friday's in retail.
It sounds like you made a sound decisions. The prospect of a classroom being both "clear-cut, with structured learning" and a "stern" educator, and where students are "really comfortable to ask and say anything" is interesting. It might be challenging as well but it will be important to reflect regularly on your practice and what works or works less!
ReplyDeleteI'm in a similar situation in my family, I'm the youngest of 7 kids so growing up I didn't get a chance to be around or work with young kids. When I first started working with them at camps a few years ago, and even now, it's hard for me to be the one "in charge." That is certainly one of the things I need to continue to work on. It's great that you got to be in the classroom with such a great model of what a good teacher is and it sounds like you gained a lot from the experience.
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