Chapter 1: Becoming a Teacher

Joyful         1. The first joyful thing I came across in the book was the intrinsic rewards of teaching. Teaching provides more than just financial support; it is a job in which one can gain internal satisfaction. Helping others understand new ideas and teaching them something new can provide a feeling of accomplishment and joy that cannot be felt in a majority of other jobs.         2. Another element that stood out to me was the stress the book placed on the difference an effective teacher can have on students. Often    times, teachers can influence and impact kids even when other people in their lives cannot. I find the fact that teaching is not only a job, but also a type of personal responsibility, to make a difference in children’s lives, and push them to their full potential very appealing.        3.   Throughout the chapter, all the current requirements and steps of becoming a qualified teacher are discussed. It was very reassuring to know that although historically teaching has not been strict on ensuring that teachers were qualified, current measures ensure that people entrusted to teach are qualified and certified to do so. All the different steps, including passing assessments and tests, completing a teaching education program and student teaching all attest to the fact that the quality of teachers is improving.

Non-Joyful          1. The first non-joyful element I came across was the idea that until recently, teaching was not considered a true, full profession. Teachers are entrusted my parents to shape and mold the minds of their children at least intellectually, which to me, seems like a decently important and large task.  Also, I find it very surprising that new teachers are able to enter the field without any specialized training in education, when teaching is such a large responsibility.          2.  Secondly, I was disheartened when I read that teachers are very much disconnected from setting of standards and rules in their profession. Teachers themselves would know the most about what standards and rules should be applied, versus an outside source with no personal connection to the classroom.         3.  As no surprise, the least joyful thing I read in this chapter was about the salaries of teachers, who make an average of $47,808 per year. To put this into perspective, teachers work around an eight-hour day, for ten months out of the year. If a teacher makes the average salary, he or she is making about $20 an hour to teach over 100 students (in most cases) lessons that will impact their futures.