Teacher Torture

At the moment, I am trying to finish constructing a test for my ninth grade Old Testament classes. And if there is nothing I'd rather do, next to grading tests, it's making them up. I try to ensure that my tests are not merely a regurgitation of material; that, in fact, the students really have to think to generate good responses.

Here's the thing - how about I generate a good test so that my students can generate good responses! At the moment, I don't feel I'm doing a very good job with that. In fact, I don't feel I am doing a very good job teaching at all this academic year.

I have had a few careers in my 40+ years of life. I spent several years in corporate sales, obtained an M.B.A., went back into corporate sales, sensed my "calling" to teach, left corporate America, went to seminary and obtained another Master's degree, and now I'm teaching high school students. If you had told me when I was in college that I'd be teaching, let alone teaching Bible in a high school, I would have laughed in your face loudly and told you you were nuts (like you wouldn't have been able to figure out that I was thinking that about you through my "in-your-face" laughter). And now here I am. Writing a test on topics in Torah at midnight the night (morning) before it's due! And doing a pretty poor job at it.

I've heard the saying, "If you can't do anything else, go into teaching" (or something like that), like teaching is the "blow-off" thing you do when other jobs don't go quite right. In fact, teaching is probably the hardest job I've ever had. It's different each day. The students - adolescents - are different each day. The emotional energy required to pull it off each day, whether prepared or not, is immense. Not to mention having to be knowledgeable in my field, seeking to ensure I'm up to date on the latest and greatest. My God! (To say that is not taking God's name in vain, in my informed opinion.) No wonder I'm looking so forward to the Christmas holiday!

But first I have to get through this test...And the final exams the following week. For anybody out there who thinks teaching is a piece of cake - go visit a classroom someday. It is probably the most humbling thing I've ever done. Because if I ever think I've arrived, then I've done my students a disservice.

Teaching...the best profession (next to parenting) in the world.