Teaching by Abigail

Teaching by Abigail - December 2015 Scholarship Essay

I looked across the table at my middle school work-buddy and did my best to hide my frustration with myself when she didn’t understand what I was trying to explain. My mind raced as I tried to find a new way to help her understand this math problem. Suddenly, and idea sprang into my mind and it was out of my mouth before I could even process the thought! The world around me froze as I waited in anticipation to see if she would get it. Something clicked and her eyes lit up as she understood. My heart soared with pride for her accomplishment. This was one of the first times that I knew, without a doubt, that I wanted to be a teacher.
In ten years I see myself having many moments of hard work followed by moments of rewarding success with my middle school math students. I want to build my students’ confidence and let them know that if they put their minds to it, they will achieve their goal! They will succeed not only in my classroom, but in my fellow teachers’ classrooms as the students build their confidence in every part of their academic lives. I will not be “just a teacher,” but rather I will be an encourager, a confidante, a coach, a listener, and most importantly a role-model who inspires her students to do wonderful things.
My education will play a huge role in this great ambition. In order to become all of these things, I first have to learn the skills to becoming a teacher. I need to know how to better teach my kids and how to make their eyes light up with understanding. I have to learn the skills for working together with my colleagues to build our students’ confidence. Most importantly, my education will put me in the classroom with students so I can begin to understand how to relate and sympathize with children at a deeper level than “just being a teacher.”
All in all, in ten years I see myself changing the lives of students one by one by building their confidence in mathematics and applying that confidence to every area of their lives. My education will give me the necessary skills for accomplishing this ambition. These next ten years will be filled with hope, excitement, and anticipation as I wait for what is to come!