I have always wanted to become a teacher. As a kid, I used to play school in my basement, teaching reading and math to my class full of American Girl Dolls. As I grew up, I started taking on positions and jobs that required me to work with children, and from those experiences I knew wholeheartedly that teaching was my passion. Now, I am in my third year of college as a dedicated member of my school's outstanding education program. My semester of student teaching is right around the corner, and my career as a full-time teacher will quickly follow that. Therefore, I know what a major in education entails. I know what kinds of characteristics a person must have in order to become a teacher. What I also know is that these ridiculous, degrading stereotypes of future teachers are just all-around inaccurate and false.
"They have a joke major."
Let's begin by quickly refuting this statement. There is nothing more infuriating than receiving, or overhearing, comments from students of so-called harder majors about how little work they think we education majors have. On top of the many papers, exams, (group) projects, and presentations that all of our classes require, our lives consist of creating lesson plans upon lesson plans. As stated by a friend and fellow education major at Marist College, Kiersten Fallon, "As a dual major in both psychology and childhood/special education at a liberal arts school, some of my most difficult classes in college have been in my major." The lessons we plan not only have to live up to our professors' high expectations, but they must be fit to be taught in actual classrooms. We must take into account the varying needs of every single student in a classroom and create extensive lessons that teach the required grade-level material in interesting ways. Lesson planning basically takes over our lives, but we don't complain because we love it. With that being said, saying we have a joke major is a joke in itself!
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"They're in it for the summers."
Actually, we're in it for the falls, winters, and springs, which will be filled with changing the lives of all of our beloved future students. Each summer will be used to reflect upon the previous school year and prepare for the next school year. We won't argue that it will be nice to be able to do this while relaxing on the beach with our families, but no, this is not what we chose this career path for.
"Anyone can become a teacher."
This statement needs some alteration. What it should say is that, "Anyone who works extremely hard to earn a bachelor's degree and likely a master's degree in education, takes and passes the numerous teaching certification tests, is ready to do everything in his or her power to help every single student succeed, and is willing to commit to becoming a role model for children for the rest of his or her life can become a teacher."
"They will be paid full-time salaries to be nothing more than glorified babysitters."
As an aspiring teacher who has also done a lot of babysitting, I am qualified to make what I believe should be a very obvious statement: Babysitting and teaching are not even close to the same thing. Enough said.
"Those who can't do, teach."
While this ignorant statement insults the intelligence and work ethic of every future, present, and past teacher in the world, we should try not to let it offend us. Those who believe that this statement is true obviously never had a teacher who positively affected them in any way. Rather than allowing this statement to upset us, we as future educators should work every single day to make sure our students do not feel this way. We must strive to have a great impact on our students, and we must work hard so that they can fulfill their potentials and live out their dreams. After all, without teachers, doctors wouldn't be doctors, lawyers wouldn't be lawyers, engineers wouldn't be engineers -- the list goes on and on.
Great teachers are driven, hardworking, patient, caring, passionate individuals who will stop at nothing to get through to their students. We education majors have chosen to take on this path of life, and while some people still choose not to recognize our hard work and talents, the incredibly rewarding experience that we will have as teachers will be enough for us.
