Veteran Teacher Interview Essay

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Interview #1
Catherine Sanders, Farmers Branch Elementary 5th grade (Veteran Teacher)
What would you say are the positive aspects about the teaching career?
For the truly passionate, it is definitely worth it. I never taught for the money (great riches will never be there). I teach because I want to make a difference...I want to touch lives,,,I want to show kids that they have worth and potential. I want to combat all the bad and negativity out there. I could go on and on. Am I always successful? No, sometimes I don't know, sometimes I find out later that I made a difference. But when I am it is a feeling that is worth more than money or fame or anything else could buy.
What are the negative aspects?
It is long hours, definitely not a 9-5 …show more content…

There will be days when you will wonder if this is the right place for you, but you just have to keep yourself focused and remind yourself why you decided to do this in the first place.
What makes a good teacher?
Patience, a lot of patience. Your first year teaching will be a year full of learning and a lot of mistakes, so you have to learn to be patient with yourself. Also, and you know this as well as I do, kids require a lot of patience. You have to be patient enough to explain things several times, answer the same questions repeatedly, and work with kids that don’t really care about participating in class. I say a patient teacher that doesn’t give up on her students or herself is a good teacher.
How is work-life balance as a teacher?
You will have to take a lot of your work home with you or stay late at school to finish grading and plan for the next day. I was lucky enough to inherit materials and supplies from the teacher whose job I took over, but even then, a lot of my time is spent planning and re-planning lessons and making sure I have the supplies I need for those lessons. I think for a lot of teachers work and life tend to intertwine and it’s hard to separate them.

Interview #3
Kathryn Blanton, Lewisville High School Killough (Algebra II and Geometry

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