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community. Two key questions guide my reflections on my current identity as a
mathematics educator:
1. Am I “Teacher-y” enough?
2. Am I “Researcher-y” enough?
Here, I share my reflections on making sense of these questions, providing examples
of experiences that have informed my explorations of my own identity.

Dr. Amy Ray is Assistant “Teacher-y” Enough?
Professor of Mathematics Sometimes, I feel that I am not “teacher-y” enough for my chosen profession. I
Education in the
Mathematics & Statistics did not become an educator because I had an overwhelming love for children. This is
Department at Sam not to say I do not love children, but a love for children was not my main motivator
Houston State University. for becoming an educator.
She teaches mathematics I began my undergraduate studies as a business and mathematics double major
content courses for with plans to become a certified public accountant. However, during my sophomore
elementary, middle
grades, secondary, and year, I met with my accounting professor to discuss why I was having difficulty
post-secondary educators. connecting with the content in the class. He wisely asked me, “What is your favorite
She is the treasurer of time of the week? When are you most content?” I reflected a bit and shared that
Upsilon Chapter in Texas I was most content when I was working with the university’s defensive linemen
State Organization.
during their required mathematics tutoring hours over in the athletics building. This
aer066@shsu.edu honest conversation—and my change of major to mathematics and education—
jumpstarted my journey as a mathematics educator. From this experience and others
that followed, I discovered that I have a deep love for learning. I love helping others
develop this love for learning. More specifically, I love the learning of mathematics. I
enjoy helping others, particularly preservice teachers, develop a passion for learning
mathematics.
I wanted to make sense of my identity critique as a mathematics educator by
analyzing pervasive views of teaching I found when completing a “Popular Teaching
Quotes” search on Google Images. I had been first perplexed by similar varieties of
quotations when attending a pinning ceremony for future teachers at my institution.
I became deeply concerned about the expectations our future teachers were placing
on themselves. By digging deeper into the underlying and alarming currents of
these sayings, I hope to articulate some of my doubts about my own identity as a
teacher in mathematics education. Also, I seek to highlight the well-intentioned but
consequential expectations we place on educators as mediated by weighty goals.

Teaching Quote #1: “A good teacher is like a candle—it consumes itself to
light the way for others.” – Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (Wheeler, 2022)
While the metaphor of shared light as knowledge might be considered a positive
outcome, I am concerned about the depletion of the source (the teacher) that must
occur for light to be passed on. I am disturbed by the thought that we should be
consumed by our work. I am concerned that the martyrdom underlying Atutürk’s
metaphor is a reality for many educators: Should one have to give all of themselves
for their job?

Teaching Quote #2: “Teaching is a calling too. And I’ve always thought
that teachers in their way are holy—angels leading their flocks out of
darkness.” – Jeannette Walls (Walls, 2011)

52 The Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin: International Journal for Professional Educators