Lessons Learned: My Job is Not About Me

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Mistakes are apart of daily life. Reflecting, being real about the past, and learning from where you’ve been is a catalyst for success in the future. This page will walk you through some pivotal lessons  I learned from my first year of teaching as well as the applications and aspirations of year two.

My Job is Not About Me

Last Year’s Reflection- I cannot tell you how many times I made poor choices based off of my insecurities or emotions with my class. I found myself often reflecting by asking myself, “When did I make the situations of teaching about me? Why did I decide to engage in the power struggle with a 4th grader? How did I let that situation escalate so quickly? Why did I put my pride over the well-being of my students? How did I make so many situations personal, and still stay sane?? Am I still sane???

The Lesson Learned- This summer I had a chance to step away from the chaos to understand the root of most of those challenging situations. Looking back there were many times where I handled situations calmly and “by the book,” but I let the emotions eat away at my day and steal my joy of teaching. In many of those situations I made teaching about myself, my emotions, my pride, my achievements, rather than about the students. Those are the circumstances where I forgot what teaching is all about, “doing what’s best for the kids you are educating.”

Aspirations for the Second Year– BREATHE! When I am tempted to engage in a power struggle with a student, I will take a deep breath and remember that it’s my job to teach the students differently. When I have to stop my class several times because they are not being their best selves or struggling to walk in line, I will stop, take a breath, and forget about it as we move on. My actions as a teacher speak so much louder than my words. This year I aim to show my students that they are the reason I am teaching.

3 thoughts on “Lessons Learned: My Job is Not About Me”

  1. ketaninkorea says:
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    I loved this post! It really reminds me that I need to check my ego at the door when I walk into the classroom. I’ve been teaching for quite a few years now, and I’ve made plenty of of mistakes looking back. Hell, I still make plenty of mistakes, haha!

    I’ve been teaching kindergarten and elementary ELLs for the past 7 years. I’ve had a few classes with students who just don’t listen or work in class – causing problems for other teachers, too, not just me. I’ve engaged in pitiful power struggles with my grade 4s or more recently, my grade 2s. My current second grade class is a group which I’ve never taught until this year. We didn’t get along initially and there have been plenty of times where I’ve just shouted at them to get to work and stop playing around (to no avail). The principal has talked with the class as a whole and things have mostly settled. My patience is tested daily, and I’m also challenged to find new ways to make my lessons engaging.

    Your post reminds me that all teachers go through the same struggles, and we can support each other in those times. So, keep it up!

    Liked by 1 person

      • ketaninkorea says:

        You’re welcome!! It is hard some days to find the good things in teaching. Teachers are human, too, and NOT superhuman (unlike what many of the positive teaching memes say these days). It’s important to reflect on our mistakes and find creative solutions. It’s also important to talk to someone (a colleague, friend, administrator) when things in the classroom become too much to deal with at times. My colleagues and I talk quite often about the struggles we have daily. We also talk with our administrators frequently, keeping open lines of communication. 🙂

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