Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Art Related Careers: Teaching

Art Careers: Teaching

If you think about it, almost everything that is made by humans starts with a sketch or some sort of concept represented visually: shoes, clothes, cars, buildings, websites, animations, etc. However, I wanted to write a little about my favorite art related career: teaching.



As a teacher, you can expect to work long hours; an ulcer or two is not out of the question. You have to do at least 3 jobs at the same time: customer service and reports, your subject area and professional development, and class management. This year alone I remember saying things like, “6th grade is too old to eat boogers,” “Why is your shirt covered with paint if we didn’t use it today?” and “Why did you bite him?”

On the other hand, the payoffs are the things movies are made of. You get to watch kids grow up to be adults. You get to help improve the next generation instead of just complaining about it. You get to watch that a-ha moment when someone learns something new. But the biggest payoff to me is the moments when you realize you have helped make an individual’s life better. This is priceless.

I can think of thousands of stories of great moments I have had hundreds of great students in dozens of great classes. However, for time’s sake, I have narrowed it down to 3 stories that really motivate me to keep going.  

I used to have a student who complained that she was from a family of poor immigrants and that she couldn’t afford college. She said her family wanted her to quit studying and get a job to help ends meet. Shortly after moving to Spain I received an invitation to her first art show opening. She said, “You were right! I finally applied myself and I got a scholarship! Thanks for believing in me and never giving up on me.” (I must add here that while it was my encouragement that inspired her, my sister actually helped her get her a writing award). I am glad she remembered me for something serious, and not for the goofy things I used to do like when I confiscated a student’s toy stretchy/sticky hand, sat down in my chair and proceeded to collect homework by throwing the little sticky hand around the room.

Lucky for me, my students tolerate my inherent silliness quite well. Once, a former student came back to visit me, asking me if I remembered pausing Harry Potter when the old witch was on, and shouting, “Look, it’s you in 60 years!” Lucky for me, she remembered a serious thing that I did too: I gave her individualized attention and helped her with a drawing that got her a scholarship. Her coming back to say thanks was a huge payoff for me.

One morning a 4th grade student came running across the parking lot to give me a big hug. Her mom said something to the effect of, “I don’t know what you’re doing but she’s never been so motivated!” In class, she would sit up straight and listen when I talked, long after her friends had drifted off to a comfortable REM cycle of snoring and drooling. Once she understood instructions, she would often get up and help others or translate what I said into Spanish for her classmates who didn’t understand me. She never asked for any recognition or extra attention for doing this. This is what motivation looks like.

She has some marks on her skin, and once I overheard her saying how ugly they were. I called her over to my desk and said I never wanted to hear her talk that way again; that she was a wonderful, unique individual, and the marks made up a part of who she was. Without them, she wouldn’t be herself. Hopefully, someday when she’s older I’ll run into her and her parents at the supermarket again and she will tell me she remembers me demanding that she be proud of who she is, rather than just the silly stuff (like me calling her Jackie Sparrow/Asparagus, or responding, “Can you go to the bathroom in my class? No, not in here! You’ll have to go to the toilet!”).  

These are just a few examples of what makes teaching so worthwhile. No matter how big our workload is or much we have to deal with from outside the classroom, it’s a small price to pay for having this privileged vocation. 




No comments:

Post a Comment