Learning to learn, learning to teach by Ruth

Learning to learn, learning to teach by Ruth - August 2024 Scholarship Essay

In the field of education, there is no single typical path to take. I always thought that there was one, but my coworkers and mentors have shown me that there are as many ways to arrive in education as there are educators. As a teenager I thought I may end up in this field, but as an adult I ended up taking quite a meandering path, just to find that I had been right about my destination after all.

After high school my family’s financial situation made it difficult for me to attend university. I worked hard to put myself through a large chunk of an AA degree at a local community college but keeping up with my education and fully supporting myself proved too challenging at that time. I stopped attending college and hoped I could go back when I was older.

In the meantime I had a wide variety of jobs, but found myself working in education in different forms time and time again. Through some luck and, of course, a lot of hard work, a local private middle school made an exception to their policies and gave me a fulfilling and enriching job without a degree. I have been so grateful for the opportunity to develop and learn there but, while it’s impressive how far I’ve gotten without a BA, it is clear that I have reached a wall. If I want to achieve more in the field of education I will need to complete this step in my own education.

My next big educational goal is to throw myself back into a learning community where I can grow alongside others who are as passionate about teaching as I am. Getting my BA will show that I have the dedication to match my education to the experience I have been gaining. Thank you for your consideration!