Excitement about teaching

Today in my pre-internship class we hosted two students who had just completed their semester-long internship. They were invited to the class to talk about their own experiences as pre-interns and as interns and to allow today's pre-interns ask questions.

It was a pleasure to see these two women who were so clearly excited about what they had experienced and what they were looking forward to as new teachers.

In these days of deconstruction where we seem to extend ourselves in looking at what is wrong with our institutions and our society it was refreshing to watch and listen to Kam and Andrea.

They both said that this had confirmed their ambitions - they felt they were teachers and although there was always a lot to learn they were looking forward to the challenges.

There are many things wrong with school. We systemically disadvantage certain groups of people both within school and society. Sometimes we do it knowingly and other times we don't realize what we are doing. School needs to be fixed. It needs to become a more equitable place. It needs to be safe for all students and teachers. It needs to be an agent for good in our society.

These are all hard things to accomplish. We are bound up in traditions and beliefs that constrain most of us from seeing what is wrong and how to fix it.

But I have hope when I witness the enthusiasm and excitement of my students.

They will change the system by being great teachers, loving their jobs and their students and working hard throughout their careers.

Now its our jobs as teacher educators to work with them towards that excitement, enthusiasm, competence and change