Page 36 - Mag89-4_2023_forFlipbook

Personal Reflection/Anecdote

home-life issues and needed love, mental health support, and assistance with social situations. Our
university students do, too. Many of our university students work full-time jobs to pay bills while also
attending a full load of classes and participating in 50-hour practicums that take them to school sites for
observations and teaching duties. These students are expected to learn, travel, and work . . . and then
teach their own group of students and support the students’ growth simultaneously. When looking at this
through the lens of positionality, it is almost as if we are asking too much at times. We see these issues
even more as we move past the global COVID-19 pandemic and into a state of “normalcy.” Students
have the same types of problems (on a different level) and need the same types of support.

Conclusion
What have we learned so far? Teaching is about more than academic content at every age. There is
still a focus on relationships and on creating moments our students remember. While our courses have
strict accreditation requirements, our strength as educators allows us the ability to model our university
classrooms after how we would
teach in our K–12 classrooms.
It isn’t about the accreditation
requirements. It isn’t only about
the course objectives . . . but
rather about how we instruct
a new generation of teacher
leaders to instill connection,
community, and a love of
learning in students. Through
our reflections about the last
few years, we have realized that
university students still need
the love and care from their
instructors even as they become
young adults. If we want our
future teachers to care about
their students and their well-
being, it is crucial that we model such caring behaviors with them in addition to modeling instructional
strategies. We have a renewed perspective on this profession, and we are looking at ways to prepare
our students to avoid the burnout and dissatisfaction that others have experienced in the last decade or
more. Students of every age need teachers who are caring, compassionate, and motivated more than
ever before as they recover from the setbacks of the pandemic. One thing is certain: We still love this
profession, and we are in it long-term.

34 · Volume 89-4