Why Teach?
Guest Blogger Stacey Weber-Feve shares her “Why” on Getting in front of the Class and Sharing Her Passion …
Why I Teach
For some of us, teaching – no matter the discipline – is in our blood. It is a calling, and we cannot imagine being anything other than a teacher. However, for most of us, I think teaching is part calling but mostly a very happy accident. After 20+ years of classroom teaching and almost 5 years of KHY teaching, I am still not sure where I fall. You will likely easily believe me when I tell you that I was that kid who on the first day of summer break wanted to play school and be the teacher. Yep, that was me. Our public library was the best place on Earth and Office Depot a close second. My father was an elementary school teacher, my grandfather taught mechanical engineering, and a great-grandmother was an English teacher. So, maybe teaching is – quite literally – in my blood? But that is not why I teach.
Teaching is both the most wonderful and the most dreadful experience. Sharing something that you love with others is one of the greatest joys in life, I believe. The love that you can give and then feel in return from your students is intoxicating. Yet, it is you – alone – pouring your heart out and opening yourself up to criticism and potential disappointment in every single class. To teach is exhilarating and soul-satisfying. To teach is making yourself vulnerable and growing a thick skin. To teach is discovering that nothing else in life can make you this happy and give you the same sense of personal accomplishment. But that is not why I teach.
I teach because I want to learn; how to be a better instructor, a better communicator, a better person. I teach because I want to connect; with you, your family, your friends. I teach because I want to be an indirect change-maker; helping students better their lives, cultivate awareness, and expand their knowledge and perspectives. I teach because teaching allows me to find and be the best version of myself. And I am not alone in these feelings and aspirations. Many of my colleagues would say the same, and they would also tell you that they never saw teaching in their futures. Good teachers are never truly born; they are made. Sure, through some trial and error (it’s called innovation), but mostly through dedication, compassion, and hard work. That is why I teach.