Mrs. Mlsek by Jamie

Mrs. Mlsek by Jamie - July 2014 Scholarship Essay

It seemed like an ordinary day for me, as a substitute teacher. I arrived at the school I was assigned to for the next three days. The class I was substituting for was a Special Education class. To my understanding I would be working with students that may have special needs, but was not sure to what extent.

The bell rang and the students piled into the classroom. They were talking, yelling, and goofing around. I did not see what made this class different from others. Within ten minutes we were able to begin class. I introduced myself and explained what would be happening the next three days.

One thing I noticed about this group of 7th graders was they had short attention spans. A few students talked out of turn and began being disruptive. Students did not want to do their work and they were challenging my role as a substitute. This class seemed to be more than I could handle. But we carried on throughout the day.

As I walked to my class for the second day, I noticed many shocked faces on campus. Fellow teachers and even the secretary were surprised I came back for another day. They thought since the first day was difficult there would be no chance I would return.

Throughout the morning I heard nothing but great things about Mrs. Mlsek. She had a challenging group of students, but she managed and taught them to the best of her ability. From what I was hearing about Mrs. Mlsek, I learned she was retiring and it was going to be a great loss to the school. This made me wonder if I would ever meet this great teacher.

During the day the class seemed calmer than the day before. They entered class, sat down and allowed me to take role right away. I told the class that I would be speaking with Mrs. Mlsek later that day regarding the assignments we are able to complete as well as their behavior. This was not a lie. I did leave a detailed note for her at the end of each class, knowing that she would be in at the end of the day to review them. This got the students attention because they knew Mrs. Mlsek would be checking in on them.

At the end of the day all of the students left for home and I stayed behind to complete my note for Mrs. Mlsek, when a woman entered the classroom. I had never seen her before. I said “Hello, my name is Mrs. Rico. I am the substitute for this class, can I help you?” The woman replied “Hello Mrs. Rico, I am Mrs. Mlsek. I have heard great things about you from my colleagues and I wanted to meet you in person to see how class was going.” Wow, I could not believe it. The other teachers around campus had spoken to Mrs. Mlsek about me. What did they say? I asked myself. Nevertheless I told Mrs. Mlsek that in fact she did have a challenging class but they were a great group of kids. I showed her the amount of work they had completed and she could not believe I was able to grasp the kid’s attention long enough for them to complete an assignment, let alone multiple ones.

We began to talk to one another. During our conversation she told me something I had never heard before. She said “Mrs. Rico, as you know I have been teaching for many years. During my time I have seen many substitutes, but none like you. I noticed you took the time to actually teach my students. I could see what you wrote on the board, the math problems, history words, etc. Mrs. Rico you are a natural. You were born to teach. You also got the students to do assignments as I asked. No other substitute has done that.”

As I glanced at the clock I noticed that we had been talking for over three hours. During this time I learned that many of the students faced challenges every day before and after school that some people never experience in their lifetime. As I was listening to what Mrs. Mlsek was saying I took a step back and tried to put myself in the student’s shoes. Each coming from a background that I could not imagine. At that moment I cried. Mrs. Mlsek told me about her students because she wanted me to give them a chance. To try to understand them better. After our conversation, I did.

I have never been told that I was a natural. I just always knew I wanted to teach. She also told me that teaching is one of the most challenging careers, but it is also one of the most rewarding, teachers can make a difference. She believed that I could and eventually will make a difference.

I believe that when she walked into the classroom, it was fate. She encouraged me to pursue a career in teaching. It was during our conversation that I realized I found a mentor for life. Mrs. Mlsek inspired me, because she is very compassionate about teaching. She made me realize that it is important to be a positive role model and how influential teachers can be to their students.