I’ve been reflecting on my teaching progress over the last few years. I feel more excited and inspired about teaching than I ever have. I still get a buzz from standing in front of a class and watching as my students begin to understand what I’m explaining. I still love listening to students’ stories and learning about their lives. I still get excited about improving my teaching practice and striving to deliver engaging and challenging lessons to my students. I love the teaching profession, the chaos of the classroom and this constant endeavour to improve and redefine learning experience for students. However, I feel as though my understanding of the complexities of the teaching profession, the impact of school culture, leadership and politic climate has given me much more insight into the realities of the profession.
Looking back, it all makes sense – For me, starting work in the private sector then taking a position in an area of Sydney that most people would be afraid to even visit didn’t seem to make sense. To be honest, it seemed like a step backwards, but looking back it was the best professional decision I have ever made. It allowed me to see the disparity in educational outcomes and the need for quality teaching and passionate educators in all schools.
Don’t fight every battle – I have learnt that you can justify every battle and while some of them are important, many are not essential. Having to take on that extra playground duty, a unfair kitchen roster or the provision of two-ply toilet paper instead of three, doesn’t really matter. You only have a limited amount of energy, save it for your students.
Look after yourself – If you’re tired, uninspired and sick then your students will suffer. It’s as simple as that. It’s OK to be a little bit selfish sometimes; you can’t give your best to others if you are not looking after yourself.
Take pride in your work – At Uni I met a lot of incredible people who were aspiring to be scientists, doctors, lawyers and engineers. Most of them were young adults just like me and sometimes I felt a little discouraged about “just” doing education at Uni. But I knew that teaching was the direction I wanted to go in, I knew I was meant to do it. Teaching is a vital and incredibly rewarding profession, don’t let anyone try to tell you otherwise.
Do whatever you can to leave work at work – School can be a highly stressful environment and it’s easy to let the day spill over into home life. I was very newly married as a new teacher and my poor wife had to listen to every complaint and grievance I had left over from each day. Not to mention the marking and paperwork. Needless to say, things got pretty boring! Instead of bringing negativity home, resolve any issues as they arise and/or choose to leave the drama at school and enjoy rest, fun and life at home
There are many things that I would say to my first year teacher self. I would give him a clip around the ear, tell him to stop worrying about things outside of his control and tell him that it all works out in the end, so don’t sweat the small stuff.
What would you say to your first year teacher self?