¶ … acorn and an oak tree is time, and the nourishment which the little acorn received over a period of time. When I stand in front of my first class full of students on their first day of class, I will see more than shining faces, and new lunchboxes. I will be standing in front of a field full of acorns, with the knowledge that I am the source of their educational nourishment for the next 9 months. I will hold the responsibility to add another growth ring to their educational career, and what they become will be, at least in part, due to the quality of the nourishment I provide.
My desire to enter the Masters in Education program at the University of North Colorado is rooted in my desire to become an integral part of the education system in our country. While the nation wrestles with demands of the No Child Will be Left Behind Act, and works toward returning to higher levels of academic achievement, the new ideas I can contribute as a teacher who has recently experienced the educational system can contribute toward rebuilding a successful educational framework. Many of the initiatives I have experienced were effective in the classroom, while others fell to the floor like orange and red leaves in the fall. These methods were full of color, but made little long-term impact of the lives of the students in the classroom.
The educational arena has changed in the last 10-year. Children have many more influences competing for their attention. During the past decade, the saturation of our modern culture with multimedia entertainment and a wide assortment of info-tainment has created an unspoken expectation in the classroom. As a new teacher, I will be challenged to compete with the commercial methods of informational delivery that has shaped our culture. As a new teacher, I will be better positioned to understand this challenge, and will look forward to utilizing the latest technologies together with old fashioned habits of hard work and dedication to the purpose to ensure that my students are able to grow strongly forward in their own educational careers.
