Here is another better late than never #SundayFunday post :) At least this one is only 5 weeks late and I'm making up ground! Here is more info if you'd like to join in the fun.
It's really no surprise that I ended up being a teacher. I had a very difficult childhood. I won't go into the gory details, but although my mother did the very best she could with the resources she had, she could not protect me from everything. My early life was filled with neglect, hunger, inadequate shelter & clothing and abuse. I was surrounded by illegal activities and poor role models.
At school, no one knew what I was going through and no one treated me differently. That is exactly how I liked it. I did not have the means to develop skills in areas like music or athletics, but I could take advantage of my free appropriate education. I quickly learned that if I worked really hard, I would excel, and that is exactly what I did. I loved the feeling of control that I had while studying and achieving success. It was the only place in my life where I could be rewarded for my effort and where I could decide my fate. This is probably why I decided to teach. I knew that there were other students like me and that I wanted to be a part of potentially the only consistent and safe aspect of their lives.
It was not until many years later, as a special education minor in college that I started to notice that I had many symptoms of learning disabilities. I spoke with my professor and she helped me to collect the needed educational records and schedule the necessary testing. I learned that I have a processing disability, namely dyslexia. It was nice to know that there was a legitimate reason that I needed (and still do) to put in 2-3 times the amount of effort as the average person to achieve the same results. Since I was never diagnosed in school, I learned to accommodate for myself. I use these skills daily to get through my day even now. My biggest benefit from having a learning disability is that I can relate to struggling students. I can offer suggestions on overcoming challenges that come from real experience.
I was fortunate to land a job as a long term substitute in the same district where I student taught. It was a great first year and provided the supports that I needed both professionally and personally that I needed to transition into adulthood. I'd probably still be in the same teaching position had the lady that I was subbing for not decided to take a second year of maternity leave before resigning. I had to take another job to gain benefits and move myself along as a professional.
I spent the next 13 years in my current position. I have been blessed to meet many wonderful people through my current role. If I had not changed schools, I may not have learned about hybrid learning or standards based grading. I also may never have been pushed to begin speaking at conferences and expanding my PLN to the #MTBoS. All of these ideas have improved my teaching tremendously.
And today, I find myself at another cross roads. I've had a challenging year filled with non-educators making the majority of the instructional decisions in my classroom. I'm currently weighing my options of A) powering through the year and hoping that next year will be better or B) moving on to a position where innovative teaching and learning is appreciated.
Wish me luck :)
