Why Am I Here?
Why am I here...instead of there? Or there? The journey to becoming an instructional coach has been a long, winding road.
When I reflect on the steps that have taken me to this point, I am reminded of a quote by Edward Albee, a Pulitzer prize-winning playwright: "Sometimes it's necessary to go a long distance out of the way in order to come back a short distance correctly.” And so, in a sense, I am here because I have done just that.
My journey to becoming an educator began when I was a bossy 7-year-old who insisted on playing the teacher to my younger siblings. I created "lessons" in spelling, math, handwriting, reading, and even art. I wanted my brother and sister to know what I knew. I wanted them to join in my excitement for learning.
Fast forward a few years, and I found myself juggling grad classes, teaching special education, working from home (during maternity leave even!), monitoring IEPs, attending meeting after meeting, coaching, and just living in survival mode. Without boring you even more with the pathetic sob story, all of these things occurred simply because I wanted to teach. I wanted students to know what I knew. I wanted them to share in my passion for learning.
And then we fast forward a little further, and I am a middle school English teacher. Finally, I was thinking that I had made it to the position that I was made for. I could finally have time to effectively implement my weird ideas and out-of-the-box tools, techniques, and games. Right? Wrong.
I come to this current position as an instructional coach to:
Collaborate with other educators in order to achieve their goals, reach student achievement, and continue on this journey of life-long learning.
