I ..... Am a Teacher!!

I am a Teacher! How often do you hear those words spoken with pride?

"So ... what do you do for a living?" " Well, ummmm, I'm a teacher."

It is said almost as an apology, yet it is one of the most important, if not THE most important, professions in the world.

I am a recently retired teacher. I will never forget the first time I heard the words "I am a teacher!" said proudly. It was 1984, I was in my 2nd year of teaching and the words were spoken by an escapee from a mental institution who was a substitute teacher in the movie "TEACHERS". Somehow, he intercepted a phone call requesting a substitute to come to a certain school at a certain time. So he showed up! They gave him a US History class to teach and he was wonderful. He dressed as Abraham Lincoln and recited the Gettysburg Address. He had students pretend to row across the Potomac while he played George Washington. He enjoyed the classes and the classes enjoyed him. When it was finally discovered who he really was, officials came to take him away. With men on each side of him carrying him out, he proclaimed, "Unhand me! I .... am a TEACHER!"

I cried.

I .... am a TEACHER. And sadly, that is why I retired. I taught High School Math for the past 22 years, the last 11 years for LISD. I love teaching. I love my students. I strongly dislike what education has become. In my last year of teaching, I felt like a robot. I had to do the same exact things every other Geometry teacher in my school was doing. Preferably on the same exact day. There was no room and no time for a teacher to be creative in his or her approach. Doing things differently was frowned upon. Preparation for the upcoming TAKS tests was paramount. And the Texas Legislature seemed intent on punishing educators at every turn. The joy in teaching was gone for me.

So, I retired. But I am too young to be retired. I'm only 45, and I still want to teach. I have a gift. I can teach. I can teach Math. I can teach teenagers Math! And I am good at it.

So, I will be teaching some Math classes to Homeschoolers on Wednesdays. And I will be tutoring Math in my home at night. And I will be trying to think of some other ways to use my talents to help young people learn, and enjoy, Math.

I never wanted to be, I never planned to be, yet I come alive when I am asked to be ... a TEACHER.