Why I like to teach

I often have a lot of negative things to say on this blog, but I actually really do like being a teacher. Perhaps I would like to have more control over the content of my class, but I really do like being in front of people and communicating with them. I especially like the point of the semester where you can talk to your students about their lives and joke around with them. I think it takes awhile for me to become comfortable with my students because I try and put up a wall so that they don't think that I am their friend. I enjoy being friendly and getting to know them, but I don't want them to think that I am going to give them good grades simply because I like them. Many of my peers seem to think that it is ok to hang out with undergrads. I find this to be a bit weird. These kids are not my friends, they are my students and that is an important distinction.

While I am all for breaking down hierarchies in education I still think in a college environment one has to be very careful. I do not want to hang out with my students. I don't need the reassurance that I am cool. Perhaps it is a bit different in grad school, but still there are some walls that need to remain.

However, you can still be a mentor to these kids without being best of friends and I really like being in that position.