Career Goal by Beatrice

Career Goal by Beatrice - October 2016 Scholarship Essay

If the roles were reversed and I was a teacher instead of a student, I would be a math high school teacher. Incidentally, my major is Secondary Education with an Emphasis in Math. My career goal is to become a high school math teacher. My field of study is specifically math because I know there has to be a change with the way math is taught in classrooms and because I was inspired by my math instructors to pursue a career in their field.
My Algebra 2 teacher showed me the ins-and-outs of teaching by being the best instructor I’ve ever had. She encouraged me to complete difficult problems; I wouldn’t stop searching for the answer until I got the correct one. My teacher inspired me to strive to be the best student I could be; she allowed me to help other students. Tutoring my peers sparked my passion for teaching and my love for learning math: I aspire to be a high school math teacher.
To help me reach my goal of becoming an educator, during my senior year of high school, I applied to be a teacher’s assistant for my Algebra 2 teacher, who taught Algebra 1 while I was her assistant. Being a teacher’s aide was the first step to gaining exposure to math education. I was able to help a high school math instructor with tedious teacher duties. I graded papers, cut out interactive worksheets, tutored students, and organized the classroom. I enjoyed being a teacher’s aide, but I longed to be the instructor; being a math teacher would allow me to fulfill that desire.
I would choose to be a math teacher because math is important since it is applicable for most careers and for everyday life. Of course, not every occupation requires math, but teachers use math to grade, engineers use math to innovate, and cashiers use math to process purchases. Math is required to file taxes, to purchase things, to pay bills, and to participate in other everyday activities. I would choose to be a math teacher because certain aspects, such as money and compound interest, are applicable outside of the classroom.
Additionally, math has helped me improve my critical thinking skills and logical analysis of concepts. Math has allowed me to grow as a thinker and as a student because it engages my mind and opens my perspective to different methods of solving problems. Math creates critical thinkers and problem solvers, which is essential to human interaction. English and other academic subjects do this, but math allows for active problem solving through numbers and concepts, and aides in critical thinking beyond the classroom.
Teaching enables me to accomplish my life goal: to make a difference. I can assist students with discovery, I can help students overcome obstacles, and I can inspire students. My teachers have had a tremendous impact on my life: I hope to mirror that impact onto my students. Whether I encourage a student to become a teacher, to be a better student, or to respect others- I make a difference and impact their life.
Not only do I have a life goal of making a difference in people’s lives, but I also have a life goal of making a difference in the education system and in the way math is taught in the education system. The amount of standardized testing I have endured in my lifetime is outrageous. In math-based standardized tests, the objective is to get the right answer- it does not matter if the student fully understands the concepts behind how to reach the solution. I want to shift the system’s approach to testing and learning, but in order to do that, I need to understand how the educational system functions. A career in math education aids me in my journey to comprehend the system and to ultimately change it.
I would be a math teacher because I have a passion for helping people and for discovering new things. I have a drive to learn and to encourage others to learn. I would become a high school math teacher if I were no longer a student because math is the key to critical thinking, logical thinking, problem solving, and simple human tasks.