I am currently enrolled in the MAT program at Seattle Pacific University. I am interested in pursuing my teaching credentials for a number of reasons. I love science and I love teaching. I have already had the opportunity to teach children and adults in a variety of different settings. I am now in a position to formalize my training and would like to teach secondary level science.
As a naturally enthusiastic person, most times you will see me with a big smile on my face and an outgoing and optimistic outlook on life. I am fortunate enough to have a lot of patience, both with myself and with those around me. I enjoy looking for opportunities to teach in everything, be it educating a physician about a new pharmaceutical product, or explaining how the pipes and valves in the toilet work to my 4 year old nephews. I get excited about learning. I love to learn new things. I love to share what I learn with others. I am fascinated about how the world works, its all science! Biology, physics, physiology, the stars, the weather and the world around us, these are my favorite things to learn about, and the things I would love to teach.
My love of children goes hand in hand with my love of learning and teaching. One of my goals is to learn something new from everyone I meet. It doesn’t matter if they are old, or young, everyone has a perspective of the world to share.
I am a believer in giving back. I had a wonderful childhood spent swimming at the local pool, and then became a member of the board of directors of that pool as an adult. I have taught Sunday school at church, because I have been taught. I enjoy animals and helping others and have been a volunteer puppy raiser for people to benefit from service dogs since 1999. I have nurtured, taught obedience, loved, and then given up 5 dogs who have gone on to work with children and adults with disabilities.
One of the experiences that I learned the most from in the past few years was the opportunity I had host a 14 year old from a Third World country. In 2007 a physician in my area told me a girl he sponsored through his missionary work was coming to the Seattle area. She needed extensive surgery for burns over her face, chest and arms. She was scheduled to stay with a family who was unable to take her at the last minute. I immediately volunteered to help. My daughter and I became her family, staying at the hospital with her during her monthly surgeries, learning to eat rice with every meal, teaching her about our culture and learning about hers. We home schooled her in English and general studies, moving her from a 3rd to nearly a 5th grade level before her return 11 months later to the Philippines. I learned about teaching to her learning style, to listen carefully to her questions rather than just try to figure out why she didn’t understand. It was very rewarding to see both her knowledge and her heart grow.
I am very grateful for my family. I think they are part of the reason I want to teach. My mother was a biology major and then chemistry teacher who did some of her graduate work at SPU. She learned that a large part of teaching is learning to love and care about your students. I appreciate that philosophy as well as the emphasis given to morals and values that I believe I would receive in a program at Seattle Pacific University. My father was a chemistry major who after a year of Medical School followed his father and worked in the dental industry. I am amazed that my parents were able to raise seven children, instilling upon us a work ethic and sense of integrity that gave us each enough desire and determination to put ourselves through college. All seven of us have self-financed Bachelors degrees.
I had a four-year, full ride scholarship for gymnastics to the University of Washington; I returned it after my first two years knowing that an injury would prevent me from continuing to compete. I taught aerobics, swimming, and CPR and worked as a volunteer firefighter and Emergency Medical Technician to save money to go back to college. At that time I discovered I had a passion for the medical community and wanted to change my major to include the two things I loved: Teaching and Medicine. I knew I was reluctant to go to Medical school and devote myself for nearly a decade to another pursuit after being completely engrossed in gymnastics for the majority of my life, but I loved the science classes and wanted to keep my options open. I was able to complete my pre-med requirements and at the same time pursue my love of teaching, which is why I chose to get my degree through the college of education in natural sciences.
I have always enjoyed teaching. When I was a young teenager I was an international level gymnast on the US gymnastics team. I ‘earned money’ to help pay for my lessons by teaching elementary school children gymnastics. I received my water safety instructor card and taught both children and adults to swim while in high school and college. I graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in the college of education fulfilling my methods classes and one quarter of student teaching before I decided to go into pharmaceutical sales.
I didn’t teach immediately. I was recruited into the pharmaceutical industry. However, whenever we did introductory games at meetings and all stated our ‘fantasy occupations’, mine was always to become a teacher, to work with kids. I understand it is not all about the joy of the kids or the teaching, that there is diplomacy with the parents, and politics with the administrators that needs to be mastered too. I find I am excited about the rewards as well as challenges teaching would offer me, and I am looking forward to the opportunity to pursue them.
In the next 5 – 10 years I would like to teach secondary sciences. I would like to be like Mrs. C, the teacher I will not forget, who’s love I still feel, or George L., the gymnastic coach that still influences me. I would like to learn the methods that will allow me to teach from a position based on strong morals and values, helping to instill those characteristics in the youth of today. I am passionate about science and feel that I could be an excellent teacher. I have a favorite saying from Gandhi, “ Be the change you want to see in the world” and a favorite story about the child who refuses to let one starfish die because he couldn’t save them all. I’d like to be that teacher who makes a difference.
