The best part of being here at Oliver is getting Facebook friend requests
from former students who have “Edinboro University” or “Lock Haven
University” under their names. Knowing they have gone to college and are
doing well is great. My first group of students at Oliver are now
sophomores, and there are so many kids doing really, really well. It is
especially gratifying when students who have not cared at all finally
start to come around and do something. I have a student who was all set on
dropping out of high school. Just this week he started opening the book we
are reading, and yesterday, he was spouting off the answers. Those are the
aspects of the job that make it worth it. Another aspect of the job I love
is when kids say stuff like, “You give us too much work” or “You expect
too much of us!” My favorite was, “I am telling the principal you have too
high of expectations for our class!”
I am going to reflect on my first year as a teacher here at Oliver; my
first year of teaching at a public school was at Valley High School in
New Kensington which wasn’t terribly difficult. The most difficult thing
for me was earning the right to be heard. There was such a high teacher
turnover here at Oliver, the students saw me as another white teacher
coming in to “save the black kids.” No one wants to be a charity case,
and it took me at least half of the year for them to understand that I
was a North Sider just like them. I saw the community high school as the
lynchpin of the North Side, and it was only after the students started
seeing me as an advocate for them that things in the classroom got a lot
easier. Everything that happens in the classroom (and in life for that
matter) all goes back to the relationships you have with your students,
co-workers, and other people. There is a reason Jesus was relational in
his approach to ministry; it works.
On the car ride home from commencement back in 2004, my dad asked me,
“What do you remember the most?” My answer was, “My time here allowed me
to get serious about my faith.” Praise God that I chose to come to Grove
City (and thank you to Coach Steve Lamie for recruiting me), because my
4 years at GCC helped me realize that there is nothing like following
after Jesus. Being a Christian affects every aspect of my life, and
knowing that we serve a God who loves and is just makes me want to do my
job better every day. Most of my students have been shown very little,
if any, love in their lives. So when they come in my classroom, I want
to make sure they know they are loved. For some of my kids, my classroom
will be the only church they ever step foot in. If they don’t learn
anything else, I want them to know they are loved. Also, I feel called
to seek justice. Most of my students have been cast to the outer fringes
of society because of their race, socio-economic level, or something
else. Even the school system has tried to hinder them, so I come to
school and teach at this school to make sure that every student receives
a quality education and not just the ones who can afford it.
I would say to get as much experience as you can whether it is working
summer camps, tutoring, whatever you can get. Getting an idea of the
kind of student you work best with whether it is middle school or high
school, urban or suburban, etc. Getting a feel for where your strengths
are is critical to being successful in your first teaching job. God
created you a certain way, and it is important to discover what He has
blessed you with as far as strengths. Any teacher will tell you this,
but ALWAYS, ALWAYS plan more than you could ever think you can cover. It
is always better to have to push something to the next day instead of
not having something else to do in a period. Kids can always tell if you
are well-prepared or if you are winging it. Classroom management gets so
much easier when you have activities that are engaging.
My advice is to be picky about the job you accept. Don’t accept a job
just because it is a job and will pay you. “Wait upon the Lord.” Certain
people are meant to teach in city schools, and certain people are meant
to teach in the suburbs. If you are not cut out for the city, and you
take a job just because they offer you one, you will get burnt out and
be jaded toward teaching. Teaching is such a great profession, I don’t
want someone to have one bad experience and to write off teaching as a
career! Pray about where God is calling you and what kind of students He
is calling you to serve.
More information about
Derek's graduate school experience
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