Life is like a roller coaster ride when you are deciding what you want to do with the rest of your life. I had considered being an archeologist or an anthropologist; they always sounded like outstanding careers that would be absolutely fascinating. If I got lucky I could be transferred to Africa, possibly to find some new miraculous thing that has never been seen before. Although, it was not likely that this would ever happen. After deciding that this was not going to be my complete future, maybe a hobby, I looked at other possible careers. I thought that I could do well as an accountant because I enjoyed working with numbers. This also sparked the idea of a computer engineer, but sitting at a desk all day looking at a computer, casually walking around your cubical or office to find a piece of paper, also did not sound like something I wanted to do.
It didn't seem like I could find any other adventurous careers like the archeology-anthropology path that I first had in mind. I had always enjoyed being with children, and people in school looked at me like I was a nerd. But I really wasn't a nerd, I just worked hard for my grades. I liked helping people out in school and they seemed to understand my ways teaching them what they did not understand. Then in hit me, I wanted to be a teacher. The question was, what kind of teacher did I want to be? I liked to write, but I had no interest in reading. Science was out of the picture. I loved history, but I had been told that history was one of the more difficult fields to get into because of its increasing popularity. What about math? I was good at math, I enjoyed it. I loved all of my math teachers. So, why not be a math teacher? That was it, I decided and now five years later I am still content with my decision.
This seemed like one of the best choices for me because it felt right. Summers off! What could getting any better? Yes, that is a pure plus of being a teacher. But on a more serious note and after thinking about it, I could go on living my life knowing that I had made a difference in someone else. Sure, it could be a small effect, but it is something. Moreover, I have always loved the feeling when someone came back to me and said, “I got a 90 on that test, thank you for helping me!” It just made me feel good because I helped them get a better grade. I could get a lot of these similar words from my students if I became a math teacher. During high school, I have tutored a few people and that was a complete success. I had once tutored someone in geometry; I had taken the course previously and I did okay. I didn't do great, but I knew the material well enough to recollect in my memory, as well as using my old notes, to help him out. In the beginning of our sessions, he said that he had no idea what was going on in class or what he was doing and he was utterly failing. This was a shocker, I was worried that I was not going to be able to help at him. We worked on problems that he did not understand and to be honest, it was difficult. We worked through all of the problems together, sometimes it was hard for me too and that made him even more doubtful. I made him to do corrections on his homework, quizzes, and tests because I have found that it is one of the best way to help myself learn the material better. Angle, after proof, after angle was the key to his success. Overall, at the end of the year, he came to tell me that he got a 87 on his geometry final and his final grade was no longer failing but he improved to the mid 70's. His mom actually called me that night when she heard the good news and thanked me so much for all that I had done. I am hoping that when become a teacher, the student and that parent can be thankful for what I do.