Hi! My name is Christian, and I am going to share with you the start of my teaching story. I have been teaching for 6 years. While I love my job, teaching hasn’t always been the plan.
I felt God calling me to be a writer when I was 16 using the verse Psalm 45:1. This is why my original degree is a BA in English with a minor in Spanish. The entire time, I was worried about finding a job. Writing for a living doesn’t exactly pay the bills for the majority of people. Finally, the Lord gave me peace about it. I was confident I would have a job when I graduated college. Little did I know, that job would be teaching.
I knew going into this job that my appearance would make things difficult. Let me explain. I have the face and height of someone much younger. While this is a blessing in many ways, I was going to be teaching high school, when at the same time, I was often mistaken for a 5th grader when substitute teaching in the elementary schools.
My path from freelance writer to teaching was nothing short of miraculous.
Three weeks before school started, the former Spanish teacher up and retired suddenly – something to do with the new safety procedures. Anyway, the director of the school district offered me the job due to my extensive and extraordinary knowledge of the Spanish language, as evident from my minor in Spanish. And by offered, I mean he called my mom (an education supervisor) and begged her to ask me to apply. That’s right. I was still very much considered a child enough that my mother would be the go-between for me and the district.
To say I did not want this job would be an understatement. To teach, or rather to spend hours poring over lessons only to be ignored and frustrated by 90+ students and then only be paid around $30,000 per year, was one thing, but then to do all this with teenagers? No thank you.
I had been to high school.
I knew what would be waiting for me.
However, I had been praying for a better job, and substitute teaching, occasionally getting a writing bid, and teaching English online at night just wasn’t cutting it. I knew this was the job God had provided, so I decided to try it out.
This is where my teaching story truly begins.
Two days in with very little Spanish knowledge, not enough books, and so many students that they sat in the floor, I was seriously regretting my decision. Nevertheless, I persisted, having signed a contract for one complete year, and something in my mind must’ve changed, because here I am six years later doing it all for the pennies it pays. I know I’m not alone either. Teaching has proven to be one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. It can be difficult not getting burnt out when you are under-appreciated with not enough pay, but I know at this moment, this is where God wants me to be, just as he opened this door for me all those years ago.
If you enjoyed reading the start of my teaching story, be sure to check out more. Under the “Confessions of a High School Teacher” tab, I’m going to mention some of the most noteworthy tales of my experience. Ironically enough, the first one took place on the first day.