Currere Narrative
Currere Narrative
Venus P. Rehs
Because I am not currently a teacher, writing this piece is a little difficult for me. I have not had any experience with substitute teaching either. The goal of this paper is to reflect on curriculum choices I have made in the past, how I intend to make future choices and the values and goals that guide me in making these curriculum choices. Because I have never had my own class room and lack any significant experience to draw from, I need to pull from the limited field experience I have had or from the observations I have made while in someone else’s classroom. I would love to be able to say that there was a teacher in my past who shaped my views on teaching, someone that I hope to emulate or who inspired me to be a teacher, but that simply is not the case. I did not have that “moment,” and I did not always know that I wanted to be a teacher. The decision to become a teacher came much later in life for me. After getting my bachelor’s degree in Zoology in 1998 and not being able to find any science related work, I began working for an industrial supply company in data entry and later in marketing. I spent 11 years there before I was laid off. During those 11 years, I often said “If I could do it again, I would have been a teacher.” I could share my love of science with students and hopefully inspire them to love it, or at least like it, as well. Finally, I decided that I could do it again and chose to get my feet wet in the academic world by starting with one class. One week into the semester, I got laid off from my job. With some help and encouragement from my mother, I took this as a sign and immediately upon leaving my place of employment, I drove to Kent State, added three more classes, and applied for financial aid. As I near my student teaching semester, it is time to start thinking much more seriously about the most
Venus P. Rehs
Because I am not currently a teacher, writing this piece is a little difficult for me. I have not had any experience with substitute teaching either. The goal of this paper is to reflect on curriculum choices I have made in the past, how I intend to make future choices and the values and goals that guide me in making these curriculum choices. Because I have never had my own class room and lack any significant experience to draw from, I need to pull from the limited field experience I have had or from the observations I have made while in someone else’s classroom. I would love to be able to say that there was a teacher in my past who shaped my views on teaching, someone that I hope to emulate or who inspired me to be a teacher, but that simply is not the case. I did not have that “moment,” and I did not always know that I wanted to be a teacher. The decision to become a teacher came much later in life for me. After getting my bachelor’s degree in Zoology in 1998 and not being able to find any science related work, I began working for an industrial supply company in data entry and later in marketing. I spent 11 years there before I was laid off. During those 11 years, I often said “If I could do it again, I would have been a teacher.” I could share my love of science with students and hopefully inspire them to love it, or at least like it, as well. Finally, I decided that I could do it again and chose to get my feet wet in the academic world by starting with one class. One week into the semester, I got laid off from my job. With some help and encouragement from my mother, I took this as a sign and immediately upon leaving my place of employment, I drove to Kent State, added three more classes, and applied for financial aid. As I near my student teaching semester, it is time to start thinking much more seriously about the most