College Bound: intending to go to college ⇒
a talented college-bound artist.
When I was younger I had aspirations of being anything and
everything from a pediatrician, an astronaut, cheer coach, zoo keeper, and a
famous singer. My dreams and interests were entirely capricious and no matter
what they were for that brief moment, I had the full support of my parents. As
a parent now, I feel the exact same way about my son. Parents, natural
protectors and defenders, always want the best for their children, and I’m sure
l am not one in a million when I say that I believe my son can be anything he
wants to be as long as he puts his mind to it.
During my experience in the Educational program, I have
learned the importance of classroom management, inclusion for a variety of
students (gifted and delayed/disabled learners), strategies for cross curricular
instruction and an extensive list of other things. I’ve always believed that
the overall goal for ALL teachers is, or at least should be to provide students
with an education that is completely invaluable. We should be helping them in a
way so they can succeed inside the classroom and as functioning members of
society.
A part of being a functioning or contributing individual is working
or having a career. And what is it that is preached every day to our children
and students? That they must get an education and go to college. So what is the
purpose of this blog post? Well for some time now I have been completely
frustrated with the teachers around me. Now that I am student-teaching many
teachers will ask how it is going, if I am enjoying it, and what classes I am
teaching. My frustration does not come from the questions; it comes from the
responses I have received from at LEAST 3 teachers once I tell them that I am
currently teaching an English 4 class. Responses
that have varied from “Oh they are so hard to handle,” “I like AP/Honors
better,” and the most disgusting comment of them all “Oh those are the students
who are not going to college.” And then my immediate thought is “--UM, Excuse
me?!” YES! Teachers have really told me this and they say it without any
remorse (way to instill confidence in a future educator huh?).
What If I told you that I was once a student in an English 4
class, even though college was always on the agenda? I never believed that I
was not going to college just because I was not in an AP course and I’ll admit
that I did not always take my education as seriously as I should have, but I
had my parents there to get me back on track. Unfortunately, not all students
are lucky enough to have this kind of support and need their teachers (or just
someone) to help believe in them when they don’t believe in themselves. How can
we preach the importance of education, but in the same breath doubt their
ability to do so?
As a mother of a child who is delayed in his speech and
language skills this scares me. The possibility of my son’s future in the hands
of a teacher who doubts his ability to do or be something truly saddens me. We
have to remember that students are people first and they are someone’s child,
so let’s treat them like that.
