As I start this new blog on issues related to education, I reflect on my own background in teaching. A friend whom I met in Paris in 2001, Grant Baker, when we were students at l'Universite de la Sorbonne, through Central College in Iowa, and now an ESOL teacher in the Baltimore, MD, area, suggested that I create a blog on issues related to education, in order to further dialogue about issues related to teaching and learning.
I have entitled the blog, "Teaching: a Craft, a Calling, and a Contribution to the Future of Humanity."
First, teaching is a craft because it involves specialized techniques, materials, and training, varying widely on the discipline that one teaches;
Second, teaching is a calling, since teachers who strongly wish to influence their students' lives for good, and who have a passion for education, are best suited to this profession;
Third, teaching is a contribution to the future of humanity, since it shapes future generations, giving them they tools that they will need in the future, and impacting the way in which students see themselves and the world.
The first subject that I would like to raise as a conversation topic:
"How did you decide to become a teacher? Just 50 to 100 words."
This is an example of a testimony of about 50 words:
"I decided to become a teacher because I love learning, and sharing my knowledge with others, particularly my experience with the French language and French and Francophone literatures and cultures. I also enjoy my interactions with students in the classroom, learning about my students, and assisting them in the process of learning and expanding their horizons."
This is an example of a testimony of about 100 words:
"In addition to having a predisposition that favored a love of learning and sharing knowledge with other people, the turning point that led me to enter the teaching field came to me as a sophomore in high school, when I took three years of French. The cultural activities that we did in class reinforced my love of the language classroom, and I knew that I wanted a career that would allow me to share my love of French with other people, eventually as a college French instructor."
Please feel free to share your response below, in approximately 50 to 100 words.
Merci,
Michele
