Looking Back: A Reflection on My Life as a Student

Autoethnography. A term I was not familiar with until a few short weeks ago. For class, I had to complete one, and it took one of my fellow classmates to put it into perspective for it to make any degree of sense.

A scrapbook.

Yep. This thing but school related.

More specifically, a scrapbook dedicated to my life as a student. The goal of the assignment was to reflect on past experiences a student in order to understand the type of teacher you are going to be. This is, largely, because what we experienced as a student molds our views on education and schools. I never put much thought into that, but then I realized that is really rather obvious and I just rarely considered the validity of that thought. But the reality is that I always said, “When I am teacher, I am going to do this and this because my favorite teachers did that and it worked for me.”

For the sake of this assignment, I focused primarily on my experiences as a high school student. I know many may say that college was the “best four years of my life” or speak to how influential college is for them, but for me it was high school that I credit for making me who I am today. This is not to say that I did not grow or be shaped by my experiences in college, as I did mature a great deal in those four years. But it was in high school where I started to become the person I am today.

The core idea of this autoethnography was to collect “artifacts” that shaped, reflect or relate to our experiences as individuals in democratic society, while connecting to education whenever possible. The basis of this assignment was to relate these artifacts to six domains: school, teachers/administrators, our friends/peers, the self, family and community. I had a great deal of trouble finding some, until a number of epiphanies hit me hard. High school yearbook, pictures, stories (with quotes from the classic “Billy Madison”) and my old soccer trophy (which I totally didn’t deserve) rounded out the items that guided this project.

Through this assignment, I learned a great deal about myself as a student and have a greater idea of the teacher I will become. As a student, I was told that education is important and that the more educated you are, the better potential you have to succeed. I was told that I had this potential since I was a child really, but was also told that the society I live in has hundreds of thousands opportunities before me, and it was up to me to find and take them. All I had to do was work hard, handle myself responsibly and then I can succeed. As a teacher, I aim to give my students these same life lessons and opportunities. I want them to be able to explore their options like I was able to and develop the skills and abilities to seize any opportunities that they see. That is what I feel is my job as an educator.

A brief reaction to "Teach"

The documentary, Teach, by Davis Guggenheim chronicles the lives of several teachers in a “slice of life” style direction, sampling some of the struggles they face as teachers as they briefly discuss their motivations for becoming educators, the struggles in their classroom and their hopes for the future of American education in the coming years. While not necessarily a startling film, it does present several realities about education in the United States, and subsequently dispels a few misnomers about teachers and teaching. In this regard, Teach is quite eye opening and is a highly recommend film for teachers, especially future ones, to view.

The accounts that Teach documents are similar, yet also very different. Each of the teachers experience struggles in the films whether it be because of struggling students, budget cuts, or even the extreme (but very real) case of child abuse and neglect. While these issues may have been dramatized for effect, these are all situations that educators will face. One could call it “the nature of the business.” Regardless, the difficulties presented in the film are very real and is something many people, to an extent future teachers included, do not realize that teachers face. Students can be difficult to motivate, control and connect with causing them to struggle in class. Curriculums can be limiting and inhibit individual teacher creativity. Budget cuts limit resources, teachers, and classes. And teachers are responsible to report child abuse, no matter how difficult it may be. Teach does admirably in bringing these harsh truths to light, revealing that the life of a teacher is much harder than people presume.

Fortunately, Teach does end on a high note. While the film feels grim at times and definitely makes one feel a wild torrent of emotions ranging from frustration to sympathy, Teach can also amaze and motivate. Amidst the images of adversity, they are images of hope. The documented teachers in the film are shown going out of their respective ways to tend to their students, providing the attention they feel they deserve. Regardless of the individual situation, the teachers make sacrifices for them. One stays after school to assist the student in his work. Another spends a fair amount of money on developing photos for her class. Another motivates students to speak out to the Board of Education due to impeding cuts threatening their ESL program. Another contacts the authorities because he suspects child abuse and is concerned for the boy’s well being. All these teachers go the extra mile for their students. In some cases, it is their responsibility as educators, but for the most part, there is no part of their job description to sacrifice so much for them. This film presents teaching as the noblest of professions as each of these teachers sincerely want their students to succeed, to become good people and hope that their education continues to push them forward on this path.  

One could say that Teach presents the image of the ideal teacher: selfless, mature, considerate, responsible and motivated by an intrinsic desire to do "good." They teach because they want to and the job truly feels rewarding at the end of the day, despite the difficulties they encounter. It sheds light on the plight of the teachers, but presents a blueprint on the type of teachers that the United States needs. Education has its fair share of issues, but with teachers like the those documented in Teach, there is light at the end of the tunnel.