My Experience as a Protege by Pam Shen

After taking an almost ten year hiatus from academia after high school, I made the firm decision to go to community college and hopefully pick up my education where I had left it in a state of formal stagnation. I knew that I wanted to teach, but wasn’t sure of the level, location, or method that would work best for me. Since I had always gotten straight A’s in English with minimal effort, I became and English major almost by default. I worked full time and went to school almost three years, which gave me a taste of what many of my future students have to contend with. When I decided to go to CSU Hayward, a large part of my decision was the fact that the state universities are known as "teaching schools"—meaning that they produce future teachers. Although I "could have gotten into UC Berkeley" as one of my fellow community college graduates bitterly told me, I chose to go to CSU Hayward because I wanted to learn and I also wanted to eventually teach. I opted for Hayward over San Francisco State for the most obvious reason: the commute.

I got my B.A., and went on to get my M.A. since a professor had informed me that I could teach at a community college with one. This immediately appealed to me—here was a chance to try and replicate my own immensely positive experience for other students. When I heard about the mentor program I was ecstatic: here was a chance to "get my feet wet" without being literally thrown in swimming, as many graduate students had been before me—with varying degrees of success. I liked the idea of being able to test-drive my own teaching aptitude as well as my teaching ability while still remaining under the protective tutelage of a (slightly) more seasoned teacher. The mentor program not only provides a "safe" and non-threatening way for potential teachers to see what teaching is like, it also creates a learning community in which all participants benefit from each others’ experiences.

After having been mentored, I feel positive about having gotten the experience that I have, emphatically devoted to helping students improve their writing, and sure that I want to teach. I have no doubts that teaching is not only a calling but also a cause. What I question, however, are the methods by which we teach, the subject matter that we choose to teach, and the ways in which we work within the class dynamic both in and out of the classroom. I believe that those of us lucky enough to teach should take our jobs seriously, and I think that our students know whether or not we do.

What I like best about the teaching experience I have had so far is the one-on-one conferencing with students. Being able to communicate with my students on a personal as well as an intellectual level is both rewarding to me and, I believe, beneficial to them. Because individual attention may not always be either possible or appropriate, however, it is important to include as much of this type of instruction in the classroom as often as possible. Although nothing can replace the one-on-one conference or tutorial, there are ways to incorporate this type of interaction—this type of communication and exchange of ideas—through carefully planned and thoughtfully wrought classroom activities. Frequent in-class work either in small groups or pairs or even as a whole group often facilitates the kind of interaction and the level of thought and effort that is present in tutorials. I am lucky to have gotten very good responses from the students I have worked with in tutorials, as well as in class. While I may not know exactly why I have gotten good responses I understand why students benefit from one-on-one instruction. Individual attention allows students to express concerns in a less revealing way than in class, and also gives them the time and motivation to focus on their own personal problems with writing or study habits. I have seen students whom I have worked with improve their writing and study habits, so I must be doing something right. I do not even begin to assume to take full credit for these students’ successes, but I believe that my methods are a large part of the equation.

I have had some trouble this quarter, in certain situations and for various reasons, and I have experienced some frustration and anxiety, but this has not altered my overall impression of myself as an instructor or of the teaching profession as a whole. I can only hope that in my future teaching career I may continue to grow and learn and become increasingly aware of a world in which I am still a newcomer. I want to understand what I should do in the classroom as well as what I should not. I also want to be able to make a difference for my students, much like certain teachers that have and continue to make a difference for me. In many ways, teaching is a lot like learning—just when you think you know all there is to know along comes a new and challenging situation. When I first decided that I wanted to be a teacher one of the main motivations was to have a job that wasn’t static, but rather constantly evolving and challenging and ultimately rewarding. I am learning that my initial idea of what it would be like to be a teacher is in many ways even better than what I had hoped for.

Copyright © 2000 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
McGraw-Hill Higher Education is one of the many fine businesses of The McGraw-Hill Companies.