Don't Blink

All of a sudden it is April 23rd: the last day of student teaching. While this week has been another whirlwind of a week for a variety of reasons, I find myself thinking about how far I have come in just the few short months that I have been at Big Spring for student teaching.

Specifically, I remember the anxiety I felt when first entering student teaching. I was in a completely new area, I had minimal confidence in my abilities as an educator, and ultimately I was entering uncharted territories and I had no idea what was in store. Before just about every lesson that I taught, especially in the first few weeks, I was so nervous. I second guessed a lot of the material I was presenting and a lot of the activities that I was doing - basically I had little confidence and didn't know if what I was doing was "right." With the help of my fantastic cooperating teachers, slowly but surely I gained more confidence. With my new found confidence I also started to have fun and get creative. I started developing lessons and creating lab activities, and overall I got bolder with my teaching. I starting tacking on new responsibilities, taking more initiative with FFA, and anticipating where help might be needed both in the department and with the students. I started to feel like a real ag teacher.

That growth wouldn't have come about, however, without the challenges that pushed me there. I struggled so much with balancing work and my life, many times getting overwhelmed by what felt like a never ending to-do list. As mentioned previously, self-doubt was another aspect that I struggled with. It was (and still is for that matter) so hard to feel like I am competent and doing the right things. I was blessed, however, to have multiple ag teachers as mentors who were able to help me through these feelings of self-doubt. Finally, the biggest, and most obvious challenge, was adapting to COVID and the challenges it threw at education as a whole. I was constantly adjusting lessons and adapting to different formats. I had in person learners, synchronous learners, and live-stream learners, different populations all rolled into multiple classes, making for a very muddy situation that was very hard to navigate. 

Through all this, though, I came out on the other side stronger and more sure of myself. I feel like after tackling all the challenges that student teaching threw at me, I am ready for what year one as an ag teacher has in store. I owe so much of my development to my cooperating teachers, SaraBeth Fulton and Sherisa Nailor, as they were always there to lend a helping hand and were dedicated to my progression as a young teacher and as a young woman. I also owe so much to the students at Big Spring (who I am quite sad to leave, I might add). They were a fantastic group of kids who made the bad days better, the good days brighter, and ultimately, helped to solidify my love for this profession. 

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As I look back fondly on my transition from college student to ag teacher and all the highs and lows of student teaching, the first line of the ag teachers creed comes to mind:

I am an agricultural educator by choice and not by chance. 

There is no way that I am in this profession by accident. Through my short time in student teaching, I have further my love and passion for education, agriculture, and most importantly, developing students. Though I am sad to leave Big Spring High School, I am so excited to embark on the next chapter of my life and soon have a program of my own where I can continue in this career that I love so very much.