In my adult life, I have had the
pleasure of being both an educator and what seems to be a career student. Through all of this, I have witnessed the best
and the worst of the American education system.
I have been exposed to individuals who have been viewed as underachievers,
some as overachievers, the individuals who was totally lost in the education
world, the educators who cared, the educators who did not care and even the
nasty business side of academia that few witness. The individuals I have come in contact vary
in demographics and range in age from 14 to 65 years old. I would like to think that my shared personal
story, particularly this one, provides knowledge of hope to individuals who
desire to be the educators that make a difference in the business based world
we live in.
Early in my military career, I embarked on
a special duty as a trainer. For the
first time in my career, I felt that I found a job in which I was truly satisfied
with what I did on a daily basis; thus fueling my desire to want to do more in
the educational field. When I had just
finished my bachelor’s degree, a close friend advised me to take a job as a substitute
teacher. This way I would be exposed to various
levels of the education system; thus assisting me in truly finding my calling; where
I wanted to be in the educational arena.
After doing this for over a year, I had completed my first master’s
degree; this now allowed me to teach higher education in colleges and
universities. During the time of my self-explorations
of becoming an educator, I was also a student; gaining as much education I could
to support my experience level and credentials.
I was able to have empathy for both the students and the teacher; which
gave me a unique perspective on teaching.
The first knowledge sharing point of this story is; once you find what
you love; find way to overcome obstacles to achieve your professional career
goals. However, there is another knowledge
sharing point to this story.
This is where my story takes a
turn. Too often, I hear the horror
stories and complaints from students about how teachers only teach one point of
view, theirs. I am lucky because I have
the unique experience of being both the student and the teachers at the same
time in my life; giving me an understanding of how they feel. What I have learned is education is about
teaching individuals to thinks with purpose.
I often share a story that was given to me from Dr. J. Jeffery Tillman, Director
of the Graduate Program, Wayland Baptist University. “I am not very strict on questions that are
opinion based. You can tell me the sky
is red and I will not say you are wrong.
What I do expect is for you to defend your answers with factual evidence
from the textbook and history, not just your opinion alone.” Because of this phrase, I now share these
words with every class I come in contact with, “If you leave my class and
answer questions that are posed to you with the words, Professor Washington
says…, then I have failed you as a teacher.
My job is to teach you to think, not regurgitate information I provided
to you word for word.”
Because of these same few words, I am
very dedicated to my students, no matter what level they are on. I am now 46, and have been teaching since
1999; and every year I learn how to become a better educator. This brings me to the second knowledge
sharing point of this story is; remember that teaching is not about
memory. It is about opening a door for
someone so they can learn. It is about imparting
knowledge and skills to a learner, which they can use in their life.
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