Sixth Post

Primary Elementary Teachers Chatboard
http://teachers.net/mentors/primary_elementary/

Topic I posted: Unexpected teaching experiences…
Dates Spanning: 11/05/08 - 11/11/08
I keep hearing and reading about how teachers experience things that they never expected to experience or were prepared to deal with. However, these comments are usually mixed in with other topics. Also, I noticed that the chatboards usually end up being a forum for teachers to vent instead of a forum to share encouraging issues. Therefore, I decided to start my own thread on the Primary Elementary Teachers Chatboard to specifically ask teachers about some of the positive/negative things they have experienced- but never would have expected to experience as a teacher.


Responses to the Question I Posted:
It was my intention to encourage teachers to really brainstorm about this topic alone. I hoped that when teachers posted, they each would have a few stories to share. That being said, I was flabbergasted not only by the amount of stories shared per response, but also by the amount of responses I received in less than a week! Apparently this was a hot topic to chat about because I received fourteen responses! All in all, the responses were great! I really enjoyed reading them. Although some of teachers described incidents that made me sad, most made me smile, laugh, and generally feel optimistic about the field of teaching.

Well, I guess I’ll start with some of the negative experiences so I can end this blog post on a positive note… I have to say, some stories were really shocking! For example, one teacher described having to deal with a parent who was on drugs and would constantly beg for money. (This story ended with the parent stealing the teacher’s money from her purse!) This particular post reminded another teacher of her experience with a parent who stole her purse during parent teacher conferences and then went on to steal the teacher’s identity! Other teachers explained how they never expected to experience so many children with problems such as ADHD, mild to moderate autism, etc. Some more common negative responses had to do with not expecting: to have such little time to complete the very long list of teacher responsibilities, to discover that other teachers can be catty and disloyal (all the while appearing to be loyal), that sometimes being a teacher also means being a parent, that administrative decisions are not always based on the students’ needs …the list goes on. One response, and unfortunately the last response, struck me hard and brought tears to my eyes because I wasn’t even expecting to read it. (It’s hard to imagine having to experience it.) This particular teacher wrote about how he never would have expected (and definitely was not prepared) to deal with the death of a student- or how to help his class. On a brighter note, I’m glad to say that a lot of the negative comments were also tinged with humor. For example, one person described not expecting how often six year olds need to use the bathroom and many teachers spoke about the private (and quite humorous) details that students reveal about their families.

Now on to the positive… I can’t quite call the positive responses “experiences” because most teachers didn’t give specific examples of positive, unexpected moments. Nevertheless, teachers still had many positive things to say about teaching. Many people gave negative (but often funny) examples but then ended their response to my post by noting that regardless of all the off-putting things and excessive stress, teaching is still the most rewarding job of all; that teachers have an opportunity to make a difference in the life of a child! Another teacher wrote that he/she thought it was wonderful that he/she could be teaching a future president, that his/her day is never the same, and that most parents respect and appreciate you. (I was relieved to hear the last comment!) Someone else said that children are funny and entertaining- and keep you young at heart. (This person also suggested taking the time to laugh with your students and to enjoy “the precious moments” that happen in the classroom- which really touched me!)


Useful Information for My Teaching Future:
The information that I received this week is extremely valuable to me for more than one reason. First of all, when I was reading the responses to my post, I could tell that teachers were really passionate about the things they wrote. I felt that some of their words were practically jumping off the page. I’ve come to the realization that whenever teachers are passionate about their input, the offered information is usually good- and worth the time to listen to or, in this case, read! Another reason why these responses are valuable to me is because they enabled me to conclude that no matter how many negative things I might experience as a teacher, I can be hopeful that the positive will outweigh the negative! There isn’t a negative experience that could outweigh the positive experience of impacting a child’s life. I’m assuming that this belief is what keeps teachers in the field of education. I will try to remember this when I start teaching and things get hectic or I feel overwhelmed!

I also decided that no matter how busy I am, I’m going to take the time to make notes on the unexpected, crazy, silly, sweet things children say and do! I want to be able to write a book so that others, outside of the field of education, can get a small taste of what teachers experience on a daily basis.