Why We Teach

Hey, Teachers!

What's at the VERY HEART 💜 of your personal teaching philosophy? What governs your decisions as a practitioner? How do you employ best practices without wavering from the core beliefs and values that truly motivate you in the classroom?

In today's teaching climate we can easily lose sight of our original enthusiasm and purpose: the stuff that brought you into the classroom from the get-go and has fueled your desire to teach. We're under pressure to keep the wheels moving, to churn out strong performance data and team-player relationships among colleagues. We often not supported by administrators. And we're depleted, demeaned, threatened, worried, burnt-out, concerned, silenced, and devalued. If we're new teachers, we're not sure we made the right choice. We're not sure what the future holds. 

But we're also many wonderful things too: knowledgeable, passionate, visionary, studious, diligent, careful, caring, thorough, expert, compassionate, unique, dependable, conscientious, discerning, professional, steadfast, thriving, humanistic, hopeful, and worthy.

In the current educational landscape, let's not forget the REASONS WE TEACH.

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Following are THREE TOP REMINDERS for every teacher.

WHY WE TEACH:

1. To guide students in becoming better, more fulfilled and productive human beings. 💫 Beyond the curriculum, mandates, performance data, testing, scheduling, grade level standards, and teacher evaluation hoops, we are here to support students. The most powerful memories our students will have are the ones of us and the lessons we helped them learn that had little to do with the content in our lesson planning or the assessments we used.

Never underestimate the power of your own personal storytelling in class, through the person you are and the way you approach instruction.

2. To demonstrate the power of a subject area that can ignite creativity and innovation globally. 💫 Whether you're PreK, TK, elementary, secondary, SPED, or online, you chose your niche for a reason. When you express your enthusiasm for the content, projects, assignments, and overall learning experience, you can't help but positively influence students! You CAN be source of motivation for students who may not have otherwise considered your field of expertise.

Even if students are apathetic, you will get further with your class when you visibly show excitement about the material you are sharing and intentionally acknowledge how worthwhile it is.

3. To contribute actively and willingly to the good of society despite the limitations of the profession. 💫 If we focus on everything that's wrong we'll miss what's right! In every classroom is a window of opportunity to reach kids and guide them to be strong and positively influential human beings. When we embrace the inherent power we hold within our own spheres of influence, we are working on actualizing the potential within ourselves and our students for the greater good of humanity.

Teaching is a life-giving effort. It is one of the hardest jobs in the world because it requires selflessness, intuitive awareness, and precise strategy to yield the outcomes that allow students to become who they are meant to be.

Revisiting WHY WE TEACH is essential to creating strong interpersonal and intrapersonal foundations in the teaching and learning dynamic, and to being a happy teacher. 🍎

Know your foundation. Know who you are as an educator and this will ultimately shine through everything you say and do. Authenticity comes from the assuredness of who we are inside.

The answer to "why we teach" is always personal but it is also what holds us accountable to the collective shared goals of good teachers in every setting and community across this nation.

FIGURE OUT BETTER COPING STRATEGIES. BOOK YOUR FREE DISCOVERY CALL WITH DR. SHEA