7.6: Case Study- What I Want to Be When I Grow Up
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When she was in elementary school, Monique knew she wanted to be a teacher. She loved school, and she loved her teachers. Monique enjoyed English as her best subject so as she got older, she began planning to become a high school English teacher. Monique graduated from high school and entered an associate degree program in education which was designed to help her transfer for a bachelors in English education. As part of an introduction to education class, Monique was required to observe in a high school classroom. Monique was excited about her observation and eagerly began her observation time by chatting with the students and the teacher she would observe. As she spent several days in that classroom, however, Monique began noticing doubts in her mind about this career. She wondered if she'd be able to manage a classroom of 30 high schoolers who weren't as interested in the subject matter as she was, and she realized the teacher she was observing rarely got time to finish her lunch every day because she had to work on lesson plans and create a lot of papers. Monique also saw the teacher working extra hours as a volleyball coach, and in fact, the teacher told Monique, due to how many English education graduates there are each year, she wouldn't have gotten this job if she didn't coach. Monique was worried because she didn't even like sports!
Reflection Questions:
1. If you were Monique, what would you do to address these doubts about this chosen career?
2. What actions would you take to explore your career interests and preferences?
3. What resources would you use to conduct research about the education field and/or other fields?