Wednesday, June 13, 2001
|
Wednesday, June 13, 2001 |
|
To teach, or not to teach: Will I be seen as 'legitimate'? By AMY RILEY To teach or not to teach. That is the question. When I first read about the Teach for Georgia program, the plan to put people with a college degree in to Georgia's classrooms with a provisional certificate, I was immediately interested. If anything, I figured, as a provisionally certified teacher, I might qualify for HOPE scholarship funds to go back to school to acquire the needed courses to be officially certified. Week by week, though, my hope diminished. Not only did it become apparent that you had to be hired by a district before being allowed to participate in the program, it seemed that most districts were not interested in participating in the program anyway. On top of that, the negative backlash was disheartening. Teachers were demoralized. Prospective teachers were demoralized. Teach for Georgia was on a collision course, and had failure written all over it. I found myself squarely between the horns of a dilemma. Teaching today is not easy. The fact that people still feel "called" to the profession is amazing, but these numbers are dwindling. The young people in college know that they can make a lot more money in the private sector. Most people will change jobs, and maybe even careers, numerous times before their retirement. Career teachers seem to be a diminishing life form. So when you have people who feel the tug in the middle of their life to alter their course and seek out a classroom full of young people, you might think that would count for something. The beauty of the Teach for Georgia program was that there was little or no out-of-pocket expense to get the additional training to teach. If the training was a condition of employment and provided at no additional expense, and one's previous income source was immediately replaced by a teacher's salary, the risk was more psychological than financial. But alas, Teach for Georgia is looking like just another pipe dream, which brings me back to my dilemma. I live to read and write. I have such a passion for language, literature and writing, and an affinity, I think, for understanding and connecting with teens, that I would really relish the opportunity to teach English in high school. Given that, unless I want to be viewed forever as "illegitimate" in the eyes of the educational establishment, I'll have to go back to school to become properly certified to teach. However, in the eyes of society, and outside of the educational establishment, an education degree isn't held in the highest regard. Even on college campuses, the college of education is seen by the other academic colleges as the stepchild of academia. I'm not agreeing or disagreeing, just observing. It may be a grossly unfair assessment, or it may be right on, or may be a little of both, but to argue about the truth of the perception does nothing to change the perception itself. I know what I've read in the past four years of course offerings in our colleges of education. I know what I've studied of the national debate over how best to educate children, and of the disparities that exist between parents and the establishment. I even wonder if the education college of today even remotely resembles the education college of yesterday that is held up as the gold standard and staunchly defended by those who are critical of the Teach for Georgia program. The fact is that I know nothing of what really happens in schools of education, and won't know unless I go there myself, but that is no reason, and should not be my motivation, for returning to school for an M.Ed. And given my personal history as a parent who challenged Chicago math in this county, would even an M.Ed. "legitimize" me in the eyes of this establishment? Only time will tell. Ultimately I guess the students would tell. Can I teach? Should I teach? Is my passion for language, literature, and writing, and my natural appreciation for the teenaged mind worth the sacrifice of money and time to get in to that classroom? Could I be wasting a chance to redirect myself in the middle of my life by seeking an M.Ed as opposed to some other degree program? Could my dilemma be at all a reflection of the choices so many others are having to make, and a contributory cause to the emptying of our education colleges? To teach or not to teach. That is the question. [Your comments are welcome at: ARileyFreePress@aol.com.]
|
||