A teacher’s immune system

I don’t have it!

After just a few days working with middle schoolers I seem to have caught a cold. Now I understand why my practicum teacher has a Costco-sized bottle of hand sanitzer within reach at all times. Ever since I started following a vegan diet a few years ago, I’ve been cold/sinus issue-free, but it looks like my plant-based diet is no match for the school building.

Sticking close to home today with a jug of orange juice nearby.

I still need to get up the motivation to do some research for an I-Search paper I’m writing for my methods class on project-based learning in the secondary English language arts classroom. Most of the research I’ve found deals with science and technology classrooms. Anyone know of resources dealing with English classrooms and PBL?

My not-so-secret thoughts

This is my attempt at an online confessional – sort of a personal exercise to work out my own ideas about teaching and to discover that elusive “philosophy” they keep talking about. My philosophy of teaching changes with every class I attend, with every discussion I have with a teacher and with every day I spend in a real school with real, live students.

A little bit about me…

My decision to pursue education came after I decided my dream of working in newspapers wasn’t quite what I imagined. I studied English in college with an emphasis in journalism while spending every waking minute I could as editor of my college paper or consuming media criticism, journalism tips and writing techniques. I wanted so badly to be a gum-shoed reporter, sticking it to the man and sniffing out stories in between coffee and cigarette breaks, but that just wasn’t what it turned out to be. I got an internship at a local business journal with the best editors and co-workers you could imagine – kind people that took the time to help you and nurture your writing and research techniques. I was eventually offered a full-time position there and savored it, but after a while I realized the world of corporate newspapers wasn’t what I imagined. I often found myself conflicted ethically with decisions made in the corner office while scraping two pennies together. I started to feel resentful and decided it wasn’t worth it. I admitted to myself, finally, that this dream just wasn’t working out. It’s a hard thing to do when your first job is your “dream job” complete with a wonderful boss and co-workers that become like close family.

So I decided to pursue something I felt I could be great at, but that I was too scared to consider in the beginning. I quit my job at the newspaper and launched into a teaching certificate program at my alma mater, Old Dominion University. To support myself I’ve continued writing at my old job, thanks to generous freelance opportunities from my editor, and started pursuing other gigs. Working freelance has given me almost everything I could have wanted – a connection with my dear co-workers, a way to keep my writing gears moving, income, and some great satisfaction knowing I can make it on my own. The only thing I miss is the health insurance, but I keep telling myself this is all temporary while taking advantage of hand railings, always looking both ways and wearing my bike helmet.

When I first decided to leave the media world, I felt like a failure. I was the one person in my group of friends with a job in their field right out of college. But I’m proof that we’re not meant to discover a singular passion to pursue for the rest of our lives. And truly, I don’t see the move from journalism to teaching as much of a stretch. I thought of my role as a reporter as one of educator – pursuing a story and attempting to explain it in such a way that a wide audience could learn from it. Isn’t this what we aim for in teaching? To trasmit or facilitate lessons in such a way that all of our students learn? Once I made this connection my feelings of failure melted away – I’d found a purpose for my journalism training in supplementing my career as an educator.

Thank you for visiting my blog. Even though I started this as a conversation with myself, I hope you’ll join and offer suggestions and ideas to make me a better teacher.