Why Am I Doing This?

If you're a teacher and you have never asked yourself that question... you're doing it wrong.

I hope I ask myself that question frequently over the life of my career. There are a million things that happen over the course of a typical school day that can drain you, stress you out, drag you through the knothole. I'm not going to say that the students are never on this list, but most of my stress comes from adults.

Don't get me wrong--I love my coworkers. My school is the jewel of our district in part because of the incredibly familial atmosphere amongst the staff. My principal and vice principal? Everyone should be so lucky as to have bosses like them. When it comes right down to it, though, the adult end of the equation is definitely where a majority of the hair-pulling originates. Meetings, paperwork, personality differences... the kids are where the positive energy comes from. That's how the ol' batteries get recharged--the students are the sun for my solar panels.

So why do I teach? I don't teach because I want to be remembered. I do, however, teach for an incredibly selfish reason: I believe with all my heart that I can make a difference. If, in my entire career, I only make a difference in one life, it will have been worth it.

Why are you doing what you're doing?