{"id":19452,"date":"2023-08-29T08:50:04","date_gmt":"2023-08-28T21:50:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.educationperfect.com\/?post_type=article&p=19452"},"modified":"2023-11-13T20:37:40","modified_gmt":"2023-11-13T09:37:40","slug":"idiots-or-idealists-can-teachers-make-a-difference","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.educationperfect.com\/article\/idiots-or-idealists-can-teachers-make-a-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"Idiots or idealists: can teachers make a difference?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n
\n
\n

Why do we teach?<\/span><\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

It might sound a little like a cliche, as though teachers are this rare breed of idealistic individuals who enter the profession with a self-sacrificing mindset, prepared to give everything of themselves and subsume their personality into work. They do, but the reasons why we teach are a little more complex. It\u2019s the prospect of making a difference\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>having a stable career that is relatively recession-proof that is attractive. It is the flexibility of holidays, the relatively family-friendly lifestyle, and the benefits of being able to immerse ourselves in a subject that we love. Teaching is a remarkably diverse career and one where you are surrounded by colleagues with similar education, expertise, and interest.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\"\"<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n

Can teachers really make a difference in the lives of students, or is that an idealistic dream? Head of Writing and ex-teacher, Poppie Johnson, takes a deep dive into her career and looks at what truly influences students.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

Yet for all of that, there really is the ability to make a huge difference in students’ lives. For every teacher that enters the profession for practical reasons (what else do I do with an arts degree?), there is another who remembers that \u2018one\u2019 teacher at high school who made them look at things a different way, who helped them when they were lonely, or who paved the road to a future that seemed out of reach. What we discover on the journey is that where we are most effective is not always in the classroom, whiteboard marker in hand, leading an impassioned discussion on poetry a la\u00a0Dead Poet\u2019s Society.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

I started teaching in my early twenties for a combination of these reasons. Arts degree; tick. The desire for a \u2018career\u2019; tick. Apprehension about the length of an eight-hour work day\u00a0plus\u00a0<\/em>lunch; tick. My degree in English was fairly useless, and teaching became an interesting option. If nothing else, I would have a qualification that would allow me to travel, and teaching abroad seemed like a decent option to have. The additional year of study seemed more worthwhile than an honours year, so off I went to gain my Post Graduate Diploma in Education.<\/p>\n

I worried about the actual content of what I would teach; what resources would I have to create? How would I choose my texts? What would I choose for each level? How would I teach senior students, some of whom were only four or five years younger than I was? These questions were somewhat answered during my training, but there was always the backstop of an associate teacher, someone to support in lessons, step in for behaviour management, or provide resources and ideas about what to teach next. The course was already pre-determined, and so the choice, and that ever-frightening freedom, were removed in many instances. To my surprise, I loved the interaction with students, and I had a great first placement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

Entering my first job nine months later, I was prepared but nervous. I was working at a small country school with a great reputation and a fantastic outdoor education programme.<\/p>\n

\n

My Head of Department had been there for 33 years, still smoked out of the windows of his classroom (don\u2019t tell) and rotated a wardrobe of short sleeve Aertex shirts with khaki shorts and sandals.<\/p>\n