| Reflections On Why I Want To Be A Teacher |
| In the eighth grade, I remember my English teacher introducing me to many poems. I remember some of them well, for they left an impression on me, and I have read them many times since. Among them were Walt Whitman's "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer" and Randall Jarrell's "The Death of the Ball Turrett Gunner." These poems deal with the importance of the self, with life and what it means to live. I enjoyed these poems; they were filling a need in me. Looking back, that need was to answer questions such as "Who am I?" and "Where am I going?" I want to be a teacher because I am grateful for what many of my teachers did for me. They encouraged me to ask difficult questions. They provided me with the tools for gaining answers. Ultimately, they helped me to gain a positive image of myself as a learner and as a person. The tools for many of the successes I have enjoyed as an adult were first introduced to me by my teachers. My desire to teach is an acknowledgment that I have had good teachers. It is an acknowledgment that what I have learned is important enough to be taught again. |
 |