I want you all to meet one of my favorite teachers, Mrs. Inez Joiner. I never had the pleasure of being in her classroom, but I would always come to assist during holidays and summers. I thoroughly enjoyed being with her in the classroom and meeting her students. She was a phenomenal teacher. I was sad to see her retire. She will be answering questions about her experience teaching and what led her down this path.
1. What made you want to be a teacher?
I had some great teachers when I grew up, and I had a few in the family. A couple of my aunts were teachers, so I guess it was something that I was around.
2. What was your path like to becoming a teacher? (I.e. education, training, etc.)
Once I graduated from high school, I went onto a college named Bradley in Peoria, Illinois, which was my home state. While at Bradley, I studied speech therapy with the intention of working in a school setting. Then, I got married and moved to Mississippi. I attended Delta State and graduated with a degree in Sociology. After that, my husband and I moved to South Carolina. I enrolled at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC. I worked on a master's degree in education. My career in education started from that point. I went through a program called Teacher Corps. I spend two years in that program and they trained me to teach.
3. What was your fave thing about teaching? Least favorite?
My favorite thing about teaching was meeting interesting children. My least favorite was, sometimes, not having all the equipment I needed for success.
4. What kinds of roles exist within the realm of education outside of being an educator?
There are secretaries, janitors, principal and vice principal roles, guidance counselors, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, etc. There are also people who work on the board, but they do not have direct contact with children.
5. Who was your favorite teacher? Why?
My favorite teacher was Mrs. Irene Green. I loved her because she was so engaging. I felt more like she was a mother or best friend or something. She was beautiful, to boot.
6. Do you agree that teachers should be paid more for the work that they do? Why?
I feel like they do so much more than what they're paid for, so yes. Teachers do a lot of work outside of the regular school hours and classroom. They prepare lessons, pay for things out of their own pockets, behave like parents, and so on.
7. What's was the hardest thing about teaching?
The hardest thing about teaching depended on the school. One thing I can think of is making sure that you taught the curriculum, while making it fun.
8. What were some of your struggles in your career?
Trying to make sure that my children enjoyed the learning, even though some lessons were not fun. For example, getting a student who doesn't like to write to engage in the lesson.
9. Did your training prepare you for the classroom?
I feel that my training did. I felt they did a good job. However, there are always things you don't know or aren't prepared for. All in all, I felt prepared.
10. If you had to do it all over again, would you?
Yes, I would.
11. What would be your advice to someone wanting to go into the field of education?
You are going to work with children, so make sure that you enjoy children.
12. What's something you wish you'd known before entering the field?
I wish that I had known how important testing is to most systems. They really want you to get those test scores up.
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