What's Good in Education?
It’s the look in the eyes of the child who “gets it.”
By FLORENCE BASON
4ED, ProTeach (elementary education)
Pre-intern at Norton Elementary
In a world full of standardized tests and ever-changing standards, it is easy to understand why so many people view education as a tedious occupation. Luckily for those of us who have been called into this profession, we know just how wrong these individuals are.
The truth is, education is both a remarkable and a humbling experience. Each day we are afforded not only the opportunity to share our knowledge and wisdom with twenty sponges that soak up every word we say, but we also learn just as much from these “sponges” as they learn from us.
In the “real world,” each day builds upon the previous day. For example, if you have a bad day at work Tuesday, the boss will not only remember it on Wednesday, but probably remind you and your peers about it as well.
This is not the case in education. If you or any student is having a bad day on Tuesday, you can get through the day smiling to yourself because you know that Wednesday is a whole new day and everything from the previous day will be forgiven and forgotten. After all, the average student can hardly remember what they had for breakfast, let alone their teacher’s mood from the previous day.
The best part of education has nothing to do with test scores or being able to incorporate 10 standards into one lesson; it has to do with the look in the eyes of a child who has finally understood the information we have spent days upon days teaching. This look is what gets us through each day and is ultimately the main factor as to why we stay in education when so many of our peers are mocking us.
