The purpose of education is to share knowledge.

Some people might say the purpose is to

teach or to make students listen, but I believe that the teacher can learn from the students as the

students learn from the teacher. An open discussion will be more conducive to understanding for

both parties than listening to an instructor lecture for an hour. Furthermore, allowing teens to

share their thoughts and ideas with each other helps them perceive themselves in a new way as

well as see other perspectives.

A teacher is like a conductor in an orchestra. They lead, they guide, but they cannot force

the instruments to play or the musicians to be on-key. Similarly, the students have to want to

receive knowledge. That is up to them, but the educator can help inspire and motivate them. A

conductor choosing the same song over and over will not make a very fun orchestra, but

allowing the trumpet player to choose a song and the bass player to do a solo will help them, and

their fellow audience also have roles – these are like the parents and community. If the tech crew

does not provide support, it can make it more difficult for the musicians and the conductor to

play. If parents and the community are not supportive, then kids have a harder time participating

and the teacher has a harder time grabbing their attention and teaching. Of course, the conductor

can do something to help. They can provide information, like the schedule, to the audience and

tech crew just as an educator can keep parents and the community up to date on what is going on

in the students’ lives. It is important that everyone works together. There will always be high

notes and low notes, but we can all do our best to make a great show.

I belong to social and cultural groups that my pupils might not relate to. I am female,

white, and I have disabilities. Some of the kids in my class will relate to the color of my skin and

my gender. However, I cannot expect to relate mostly to only part of my class while others are

left attempting to form connections to concepts and cultures that are foreign to them. I can help
introduce new cultures and identities into the classroom by bringing short stories, poems, and

books written by and about authors that come from backgrounds and experiences that I have

little knowledge of into the curriculum. An example of this would be to create a lesson about a

Hispanic or Latinx poet and have an open discussion about what experiences they recognize and

what was foreign to them. In this way, I can learn about my students, my students can learn

about each other, and we can all learn about other cultures and identities.

Teenagers can find it hard to understand how Shakespeare can relate to their lives or their

futures. However, if I can tell them that Hamlet is a guy that hates the fact that his mom married

his uncle, it becomes instantly more relatable. In the same way, I can deconstruct their goals and

plans in order to show them the steps they can take now and how my class will help them get

there. Goals, like becoming a doctor, can seem so far away, even to a senior in high school, that

they are unable to see how English has any merit. But, if I can tell them that taking good notes

and being at a high reading level can help them in college, they start to think about how other

areas might relate. By reading a book about a minority group, do they gain information they can

use to relate to a future patient? Can research and learning how to format documents help them

make proposals or write a treatment plan later? If I break down their future into smaller parts and

areas to work on, they can see more value and work harder in order to reach a goal they did not

know they could even dream about working on until college.

By giving students permission to share ideas and voice questions and thoughts, I can help

them develop and grow independence, communication, and problem-solving. I am a guide to my

students. I will help them get where they need to be. I can manage my classroom by listening to

and learning from my peers and pupils. I do not have all of the answers. I will not ever have all
of the answers. Some questions have not been asked yet for me to answer. I hope to develop with

my students, over time, in order to be the best teacher I can be.