I am a student-teacher. I get up before the sun every day, put on my Teacher Clothes involving black pants, a semi-wrinkled shirt, and close-toed shoes, and try not to spill coffee on myself before heading out the door. I unlock my classroom, scurry around to get things ready for each of my 6 classes of the day, and try to avoid eye contact with anyone before the final bell for class to start rings at 7:46 am. I am not a licensed teacher yet so some may question my credibility but I assure you, you see a lot of stuff in just two months in a classroom.
I always knew I wanted to be a teacher and for some reason, even before I was in high school, I knew I wanted to teach at the secondary level. Now, as a new and rising teacher, having my patience tested every single day, I still know this is what I’m meant to do. So I’m going to tell you a little bit about why I hate high schoolers and yet still love what I do.
1. Each day is broken into 8 segments which makes the day go fast but on the other hand, 6 of those 8 segments are filled with countless pesky teenagers all eager to ask the same question over and over because they won’t listen.
2. Every day is filled with something new which means it never gets boring. For example, simultaneously trying to keep Willie and Lisa off each other in the back corner while Jeff in the front row wants to sing his rap music out loud and the group on the other side of the room is so far deep into their phones that they don’t know what time of day it is.
3. I enjoy showing off my teaching skills during observations and evaluations because it is a chance for someone my age to see my hard work. Then a student tests my authority and patience by throwing paper airplanes to his buddy in the front of the room. Why? Because simply sitting still and listening is too difficult.
4. Lastly, the students earn the grades they deserve and I like seeing improvements based on the feedback I give them, but I really hate when they are enabled by their parents and then I get a nasty email about how much of a saint their student is.
Overall, teaching is a roller coaster and sometimes all I want to do is jump off the ride but I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t know for sure that it is what I’m meant to do, constant maximum stress levels and all.