What I Assume, Imagine, or Think I Know: the Value of Elementary Education

What I Assume, Imagine, or Think I Know: The Value of Elementary Education

The study of elementary education is extremely valuable, important, and a necessity. Majoring in education helps a student develop a wide range of skills that will benefit them in every area of their life. Education majors learn to communicate, listen, speak, think critically, and be a support system for their students, their families and the community around them. Once the student has graduated they then have the option of what age level and subject they would like to teach. They also have to option between private and public, special needs or gifted.
Education majors better themselves by acquiring a broad base of knowledge and an ability to place one’s self in another’s shoes. Teachers expand their horizons by learning and exploring every subject though a child’s eyes. The teacher must continue to come up with new strategies to help every student reach their full potential. To be affective with this, they need to not only know the traditional subjects (math, science, English, history) but they must also be familiar with psychology, sociology, human relations, and ethics.
Our children are our future. Every society needs to educate their children to allow their community to continue to grow and better benefit their people. Education is a fundamental building block to every community. By educating these new little minds, they will help us to hopefully overcome racism, hunger and poverty. Knowledge is power.
Finally, the study of elementary education will be valuable in every area in a student’s life. A person never stops learning throughout their life time. Teachers master the concepts of relationships, communication, critical thinking, and patients – all areas that affect us in our everyday life. They learn to think “out of the box”.
What I did
To explore my major more in depth I completed many forms of research. I based my research off of a few questions I wanted to answer. * What makes this discipline a worthwhile pursuit? * What do I learn from this discipline that I don’t learn from most others? * By studying within this discipline, how do I better myself? * How do I improve my life and the lives of others? * How do I make the world a better place?
My research helped me to discover the obvious and some of the less obvious answers. I wanted my results to be un-bias and the best way I determined to do that was to go to a variety of sources. My first source was my past and present teachers and professors. I though back to past experiences and how they affected me as a student. I looked at their teqnique and how each one of them helped to shape the person I am today. Everyone has a teacher that stands out to them, one teacher who changed their life. Mine happened to be my high school physics teacher. My second source was my father. My father is not a “teacher” but in the military he has had the opportunity to guide many young men and woman. I found him to be an important source because he gave me an insight to another side of teaching. Third, I went to my aunt. She is an elementary school principal and was a 4th grade teacher for many years. She knows better than anyone what being a teacher truly means and what it takes. She makes a different in her student’s life every day. I believe that I still have so much to learn from her. Lastly, I turned to the internet. The internet helped me to see education from a more general aspect. It also helped to open my eyes to a world view. It also showed me our different cultures view education differently. I believe the combination of these source have helped me to create non-bias answers to the questions I listed above. They have helped me to discover the answers that not everyone thinks of. Hopefully by the research I have done, this will help me to be a better student and master departments skills. What I found
Teachers are one of the most important groups among the America society today. They are the second most influential person for knowledge in a student’s life (second to their parents). They help their students to reach their fullest potential. By guiding them, “teachers help to form religious leaders, world super powers, and everyone else in between.” Due to the world’s education system we have increased the knowledge of our doctors to create safer and more efficient ways to operate and new strategies and equipment to better prepare them for whatever they may come across. The same is true for all professions who are continuing to make advancements. Ultimately, everything starts with a teacher. If you think about it, everything you do in a day someone taught you. As a young child we start to lean shapes, colors, numbers, and letters…..all building blocks for our future profession. There is a saying, “give a man a fish, he will eat for a year. Teach a man to fish, and he will eat for a lifetime.” By teaching we are molding the minds of our future and producing productive members of society
There is more to teaching than just math, science, english, and history. Effective teachers must learn to relate and form a bond with their students. Good teacher’s posses an ability to drive their students to new learning levels. Everyone has a teacher who stands out in their mind. Mine was the high school chemistry and physics teacher. I developed a bond with him that pushed me to want to do more, to want to succeed, and to push myself. He was able to do this through trust, compassion, accountability, and respect. Not many other professions require you to build a relationship with the product. By becoming a teacher you are not only teaching but becoming a role model and a friend. I spoke with my aunt who is an elementary school principal. She describes becoming a teacher is a life-changing decision. Teachers can and do make a real difference in the lives of children. They experience fulfillment as their students grow, learn new skills and express their individual strengths. Like so many other professions requiring honor, and courage, becoming a teacher isn’t easy. Teaching is difficult, wonderful, exhausting, fun, stressful, enlightening, and rewarding beyond compare. When she was asked if she would choose the same career if she could live her life over, she immediately said yes. Teaching requires enormous patience, and there is no ready-made formula or how-to book for good teaching. Studies on effective teaching demonstrate there are nearly as many successful styles as there are successful teachers. Teaching is not just an opportunity to earn a paycheck it is tremendous responsibility. Educated, motivated, dedicated teachers make a tremendous difference in the lives of their students. Each school year, hundreds of students depend on an individual teacher to help them fulfill their potential and make the most of their lives.
No one is perfect but by becoming a teacher you are choosing one of the noblest professions you can. By becoming a teacher I am being given an opportunity to touch my student's lives and hearts. A teacher not only building their future but is helping to form lives. A good teacher never teaches only her subject but also molds the entire personality of a person. “Although, teaching is a difficult job, the promise of betterment of students' lives is more than enough to satisfy the mentor's sweat pouring even at night time. Every drops of teacher's tear and sweat is a manifestation of heroic exploits of teachers for the students cleared path in their journey for their future. It is then after the realization of one that each effort of teacher deeds are milestones of their success after encountering failures in the family just to embrace another family- diversity of learners. May someday students will realize the love we shared for them selflessly every school year.”
I want to become a teacher because of everything and more that I have listed above. I want to make an impact of a child’s life and have a child make an impact on mine. I want to share everything I have learned and help to develop our community’s young minds. I feel as though there is no better way to give back, than to give to our children. They are our future.

Works cited
Harris, Patty. “Re: Help with paper.” Message to Ktistie Harris. October 3, 2010. E-mail.
Harris, Tim. “Re: Help with paper.” Message to Ktistie Harris. October 3, 2010. E-mail.
Teachers among the most noble professions. Gosanangelo, 2007. Web. 3 October, 2008. * http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2007/may/09/teachers-among-most-noble-professions/
Kelly, Melissa. About.com. Secondary Education, 16 October, 2010. Web. October 3, 2010 * 712educators.about.com