Friday, May 9, 2008

The Philosophy of Transferring Knowledge

I could sit here and tell you that I want to teach because my mom was a teacher. Or that I've had a long generation of teachers in my family. I could sit here and tell you I want to do it because teachers get 3 months of paid vacation time (June, July, August) or that I've always wanted to be one since I was a child. But to tell you the truth if I chose to tell you those things I'd be a very good liar. It would be a crime to give you THOSE reasons why I want to, with sincere fervor to become an educator.

There are so many things happening in the world that every day essentially is history in the making. Teaching like drawing, like conducting lab experiments, like computing math equation is a real occupation. And sure, everyone can be a teacher...BUT not everyone can study well enough in the field to be very good at it. Therein lies the difference. I would gladly fall victim to that difference if it means I am able to harness able, capable minds into the world.

I chose to teach history because its like clay. It's multi-faceted. You can mold it to teach math, science, and hey even religion! You can use it to make students more aware of the box they reside in, allow them to be concerned with those who've occupied that box as well as make ready the same box for use in the future. It's a study of people and things...EVOLVING...changing...revolutionizing. For some people studying history is knowing it...for me teaching history allows me to become part of it. This is the message I want to convey to my students who probably have never had the chance to look at the world & its events with a more open mind, with a more meaningful passionate desire to know more and BE more.

I'm sure you've heard it before. People saying they want to teach because they want to make a difference in the world. Heck, I bet I've relinquished that philosophy a million times in many of my academic essays. But now in my senior year, ready to be launched as a fresh, new out of the box educator...I can say that I no longer want to make a difference. I want to make sure I create, build, facilitate, real-live CHANGE. I want to be a mode of transportation between the history that existed years ago and the history that continues to propel us today. My philosophy of teaching does not only encompass making a difference, but exemplifies BEING the difference. I firmly believe if we have to start somewhere it might as well be in the confines of the four corners of my intellect & the intellect of those I teach. Because then maybe we have a bigger chance against the odds of students not succeeding, of students becoming inactive participants of society who really do not know any better.

My philosophy is to transfer knowledge the best way possible. To teach & to learn unlike anyone else has done before.

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