by Byron Sanders
“I went to the doctor the other day. You know the symptoms: Sniffly nose, dry throat, fifty shades of cough, and a pounding head like John Key is yanking on my ponytail. The consultation went smoothly and the doctor prescribed me run-of-the-mill meds. Yet, I wasn’t happy. I wasn’t standing for just your average, everyday prescription. This is my health and my body. Of course, I’m not a qualified doctor, and nor have I spent years training and even more practicing medicine... But I do know my body, and I deserve better…”Now, before you start panicking that I might have some terrible disease, I want you to know that the above scenario is completely fictional. I don’t think I have stepped foot in a Doctor's Surgery in around 5 years and, knock on wood, I hope to keep it that way for many more.
You see, the real story goes like this…
I’m a teacher. I think I’m a reasonably good one. I normally teach 7 year old children – little darlings most of them. I began my work in education for all the clichéd reasons that one would expect to hear from teachers: “I want to make a difference”, “I enjoy helping children to achieve those ‘ah ha’ moments”, “children are fun to be around” “it’s a rewarding job” … Blah blah blah… The list seems never ending, just like the workload.
I had good intentions upon my entry into teacher training and to this day, those intentions stick with me. However, the sarcasm seems more pervasive these days. I guess that right about now you’re thinking – ‘this is all very well but what does a bad joke about Ponytail Gate, the teaching profession and doctors have in common’? Well, if teachers continue to be yanked, pulled apart and vilified in the media, someone’s going to need a doctor. Okay, so that sounded more sinister than it needed to!
But my point is this – teachers are professionals too.
The doctor in my scenario is a professional and doing exactly what hundreds, and possibly even thousands of doctors would have done had any patient with my symptoms been presented to them. They have dozens of patients to see that day and, for the most part, know that the treatment they are providing will have me right in no time. Of course, we all need to ensure we are getting the adequate care and attention from our medical professional, but I would hazard a guess that many people wouldn’t question their doctor’s every directive.
This, I would argue, is contrary to the experiences of many within the teaching profession: pulled apart by parents for not giving enough homework, giving too much homework, not teaching their children timetables… The list is never ending. Don’t even get me started on the tirade the government points at us every time the Minister steps in front of a microphone. 'Teacher hate' seems commonplace, but in my opinion, it’s unwarranted.
Recently, I have had the very rewarding and enlightening experience of taking 6 months out from my teaching career to complete some intensive postgraduate study. This has been an invaluable time to research, reflect and basically just regroup. The metaphorical dawn broke for me on April 25th (Pun intended, it was ANZAC Day dawn service). Just like many New Zealanders, I pulled myself from bed bright and early to pay my respects at our local cenotaph. Yet, the most eye-opening moment for me didn’t come from an inspiring speaker or the eerie last post. It came from the immense tiredness that I felt that morning. A feeling that was all too familiar and yet, was seemingly a distant memory. You see, ever since being on leave from my teaching position, I hadn’t felt that tiredness that had once seemed a daily reality. Don’t get me wrong, I still work hard. I’m at my office everyday around 8:00am, I read, I write, I attend all my lectures. I observe, I analyse, and I ensure that as many of my neurons as possible are earning their keep. Yet, despite the bags under my eyes (I am writing a thesis after all), I have not felt the overwhelming tiredness I once felt.
When July rolls around and I make my transition back to the classroom, you better believe that I will be complaining my butt off about how tired I am. Everyday. But… it’s all worth the fun I’m going to have. The positive influence that I know I make and awesome learning that is going to occur. Teachers ought to be given the credit, where credit is due.
What do you think?
To be honest I am so tired of hearing teachers whinge about doing a job you signed up for. Because that's what you're doing - whinging. You want to be treated like a professional? Than act like one. Is what teachers do valuable? Incredibly so. However so are the roles of many people and so once you start playing the teachers work "harder than most people work" you lose all sympathy as well as respect. Every professional I know from an array of industries experiences pressures, additional tasks, additional hours etc. What makes what you do any different? The reality is you're in a privileged position as are most professionals.
ReplyDeleteI'm currently doing grad study to get a career (hopefully). I'm curious to know what motivated you to return to study as a grad student when you already have that?
ReplyDeleteHi Exhausted Grad,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your question - I will try and write as succinct a response as possible while still trying to give you all my reasons.
I suppose the first point is that I love learning - always have and most likely always will. My own school and university experiences were positive (fun, informative and worthwhile). I have achieved well and, fingers crossed, will continue to do so. I had been studying part time for some years while working and was successful in gaining a Teach NZ scholarship.
Secondly, I am a very focussed, driven and ambitious person. I suppose I see post-gaduate qualifications in a ‘neo-liberal’ environment to be a requirement to succeed in an increasingly competative job market. I finished my initial teacher education with a bachelors degree not that long ago. However, already apparent is that the minimum qualification required for emerging teachers will be at masters’ level. I suppose in order to make yourself relevant, competative and ‘stick out from the crowd’ you need to collect as many feathers in your cap as possible.
Lastly, it is about opening doors and taking stock. New qualificantions enable me to access other job opportunites outside of teaching in a classroom. It has also given me a bit of breathing space from the school environment that can be very consuming at times. Perspective, if you will, ensures that we don’t become so engrossed in a career that is just that; a career. Teachers are infamous for forgetting that they are allowed to spend time with their own families, have a social life and play sport. You should be able to do all of those things without feeling guilt for not providing adequate and meaningful feed-forward to little Johnny’s writing for the day. I really enjoy my job (most of the time) so leaving, even for a short time, has been a challenge in itself. However, it has been a very rewarding experience itself.
All the best with your studies