The Importance of a Teaching Career to Young Children

Teaching

Everyone at one time or another believes that the children are the future. The youth stands in front of the door to the future and knowledge is the key. Without this knowledge the world would be without a future. Now one might ask oneself, how children begin to acquire this information or knowledge. This is where the environmental surroundings and the people in the environment influence the child. Young childrens environment is very limited. It usually consists of immediate family.

One of the strongest and most important influences a child has in his or her life is the mother. The mother is the person they spend the most time with. From the time of conception to the period of adolescence, the mother is there to lead by example, discipline, and nurture the child. As a young child grows older meir entronment becomes more vasa When children begin to grow older, interaction becomes more dominant between brothers, sisters, neighbors, peers, and most importantly the introduction of school.

This is where the child begins the life long knowledge-acquiring quest. The environment of the classrooms can also have a positive affect as well as a negative affect on the students. (Cohen p.g.s 249-255) If the teacher takes the time to make the classroom say, Come in look around.

I am glad that you are here, the children will enjoy attending school to learn. On the other hand, if the teacher puts less effort into the message of the classroom, the classroom might say, Just sit down and do not talk.

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The children will automatically receive a sense of structural dominance by the teacher. The setting can make learning inviting or difficult. A well-adorned environment does not guarantee learning, though it can greatly enhance the childs learning process. (Fulbright p.g.103) Of course the children are not expected to learn only because of a positive environment, there to guide them is a well trained and certified professional cabriel. A teaching career is very important, interactive and influential to young children. The teacher is someone who molds the childrens minds filling it with knowledgeable information. (Orstein p.g. 253) Most young children tend to look up to the teachers when something in common is found, or if they enjoy the methods used by the teacher in the class. If the teacher has a positive attitude towards learning then the children will be influenced and inspired by that. But on the other hand if the teacher gets to work and just gives out assignments, the children will lose interest. Besides the classroom work and responsibilities teachers must have other traits that are attractive and fun for their students. Teachers may sometimes try activities or assignments that can be called 10 minute fieldtrips.

To be an ideal teacher it takes more than just your credentials diplomas and tittles. When you find yourself working with children, you can see how a little bit of human nature can help the children. Having a good sense of humor is one of those traits that will help the children become more comfortable and it grabs their attention. It lets children know that their teacher is a person just like everyone else. The ability to think as the students would is very helpful in teaching.A good teacher must know when to be serious and when there is spare time to have fun. Teachers must be prepared to deal with a wide range of diverse cultures, religions, ethnicities, personality types and ability levels. (Www.review.com A day in life) Another list of traits, without listing them by importance, is (1) warmth, (2) friendliness, (3) sense of humor, (4) democratic outlook, (5) responsible, (6) sturdiness, (7) adaptability, (8) maturity, and (9) knowledge of subjects. (Ornstien P.G. 2) In addition there must be a capability of treating each and every one of the students equally and fairly. One thing that most teachers agree on is grading papers. This is the one thing that is usually disliked.

The dislike of grading papers is due to the fact that it is so time consuming. (Www.review.com A day in life) In the amount of time it took to grade papers, so much more could have been done to prepare for another day of class. As a successful teacher, the characteristics of an effective teacher must be practiced everyday. The first characteristic is having high expectations for each and every one of the students. The second is the effectiveness of classroom management. The third is knowing how to design lessons to help the students reach mastery. The fourth and final characteristic is the constant and persistent education and growth of the teacher. (Wong p.g.s 2 – 270) In addition to all the tasks that must be completed with the individual classroom, there are tasks and administrative duties that must be completed. Administrative duties are anything having to do with the school as a whole. Some of these duties are volunteering in the school library, monitoring the children in the student cafeteria, playground and assembles.

Others are the participation in extra curricular activities with the students. A teacher may also be an advisor to the many school activities, such as the school yearbook, direct a school play, coach any sport, start a club etc. (Cohen P.G. 207) At times it may be required to chaperone a number of school functions, dances and or chorus concerts. Teachers must also be prepared and accessible to the parents of the students. Meeting with the parents or guardians of the students once per term may be helpful in the progress of every individual. On the other hand, sending a progress report home every month may be more efficient for the parents or guardians. It may be possible to meet whenever the teacher or guardians feel there is a need for a conference. Before enjoying the luxury of a teaching career one must first pay the dues. It is necessary to have a college degree to become a teacher. After five years of college a person can receive their Bachelors degree (B.A.) in a particular specialized area, a major. There is a wide verity of majors available to choose from. Some of those majors include Art, Music, Literature, Liberal Studies etc. Most student teachers take twenty- four to thirty- six credits in an area of specialization and eighteen to twenty- four credits in teaching courses. Once that is done the fifth year is spent student teaching. Student teaching is when they start teaching while they are still in training. Then they have started their teaching career.

Most people would think that the hardest part is over when the Bachelors Degree has been received. Teachers who have just started in the education career field usually plan on staying in teaching for at least five years or more, to then move up to an administrative position. Most teachers end up giving up after the first two years. (www.review.com) Those who do make it through the first five years are more likely to enjoy a longer career. Then there are those teachers who stay teaching for ten years or more. These are the more dedicated and devoted individuals. These are the type of teachers who still find the same interest in teaching as they did when they barely began to teach. (Wong P.G271) Most people find teaching to be very rewarding. As the years have past by, the number of teachers actually teaching is shrinking. There are currently 3,300,000 individuals in the teaching field. (www.review.com) There is a bit of a shortage. Forty five percent of those are males and fifty five percent of those are females. The average amount of hours worked is fifty-tive to sixty-five per week.

The average starting salary is $38,000 a year. After five years the salary can move all the way to $50,000 a year. Then after ten to fifteen years the average salary is $65,000. (Www.review.com Career Profile). In the year of 1995-1996 the average starting salary was $24,507. Primary and secondary education teachers averaged $37,643. Salaries varied widely from district to district. An example is in Connecticut the average salary for a teacher was $50,938; but in South Dakota the average was barely half of that, $26,369. (Microsoft Encarta teaching) There are as many monetary rewards as well as the rewards from the students when becoming a teacher. When interested in a more rewarding salary, there are many associated careers that still involve working or some kind of interaction with children but get paid more. By earning a postgraduate degree it may enable advancement to higher administrative career positions. (Microsoft Encarta Teaching) One example is becoming the principal at a school.

A principal organizes and manages the schools faculty and ensures that the schools goals are met. Board members are elected or appointed officials who make the decisions of what courses the school shall offer. They also decide on things such as what textbooks will be issued and used during that year. There are also many areas in desperate need of more teachers. One of those is the ESL (English as a Second Language). Others include mathematics, the sciences, and special education. Obviously if these are types of teachers in need, then there are going to be many rewards to try to get more people to work in that field. One of the most common rewards offered is going to be the income. Some of these areas are suitable for people who do not mind or who enjoy working with children who have special specific needs. (Www.review.com Past and Future)

Whether a person changes to one of the above careers for monetary preference or situational preference, they are still helping and teaching children. No matter what a persons preference is, if working with children is what is important, and then there is always room for change in this career to keep up the teachers enthusiasm. In any career of education the teacher must be very organized. Knowing before hand what is going to be done or taught and how it is going to be done is a very important and useful skill. There are a lot of things that can help a teacher. One of those things is an organized lesson plan. (Cohen P.G. 82) A lesson plan is basically an outline of what is going to be taught. A lesson plan can be made for one subject. It can also be made for the whole day of learning. It can even be made for the whole week, month, and school year. To give a better understanding of a lesson plan, below is a very brief example:

Lesson Plan

Objective: To teach the students what fractions are, what they are used for and how to read them.

Age: 9 Materials list: Pencils, paper, math books, math paper, beans and spaghettis, and worksheets. Opening Statement: Today we are going to learn about fractions. Can anyone tell me what a fraction is?.

Check for Understanding: After introducing a knew idea it is necessary to check if everyone understands it before going on. Activity One: First you want to give them an assignment as a whole class working together. You want to tell them what to do step by step so that they do not get confused.

Check for understanding: You want to check if everyone did what you wanted them to do. If they did not, help them do what you wanted them to do. Answer any questions that any of them may have. When you feel that everyone is on the right track then you can move on.

Activity Two: Then you get them started on another activity. Walk them through it. Now try to make them do it on their own. Check for understanding: You check to make sure that everyone is doing what you want them to do. You answer any questions they might have.

Conclusion: It is always very important to link the en of your lesson back to the beginning to ensure that you have not lost your initial objective. (Azzari Creating the Illusion of Space On a Picture Plane) This is a very basic example of a lesson plan. This is not the only type of lesson plan. There are many others to choose from. All lesson plans pretty much follow the same outline. Most begin with introducing the subject of the day, assigning an activity, checking for understanding, and taking it back to the initial objective of the lesson. There are many uses and purposes for lesson plans. The main purpose is to keep the teacher organized enough to keep the lesson flowing.

When a lesson is organized it is easier for the students to follow and understand. In helping the teacher it helps the students as well. It can also be used to look back upon when giving absent students their homework assignments. If the teacher tries to fulfill some or all of the characteristics of an ideal teacher, then chances are a successful professional will flourish. Finishing school does not mean that the learning process has come to an end. As teachers educate they learn as well.

Everyday the challenge of maintaining the learning process interesting but to the point is a never-ending process. No matter what changes occur in the world, education will always be necessary. In this world there will always be a need for education and educators. We can only hope that the way of education improve in the years to come. Since teachers have a major influence on the students, teachers must be careful with how they present themselves on an every day basis. We want the best educators out there to get the best end product out of each student. Being an educator takes a lot of effort; but the rewards are endless. In preparing the youth of today we are preparing for the future of tomorrow.