Section 6: Getting an IDT Position and Succeeding at It

         My current job position is an 8^th grade math teacher and had been so for the past 6 years.  I really enjoy teaching the content that I’m teaching. Math was always my favorite subject in school.  In the past six years I’ve realized that many students really do not like math, and I think that it’s because they do not understand it.  My goal is not to make students love math.  It’s to help them understand math and in the process learn to like math.  I am currently enrolled in MED-Curriculum and Instruction.  I chose this path because I want to be able to make a difference in education and help choose better materials and forms of technology that classroom teachers can use to teach their classes.   After I graduate, I want to work in the classroom for a few more years, maybe even teach at the high school level or teach college before I move into curriculum.  I think that it would give me the necessary experience that I would need to work with all levels of teachers to help promote success in the classroom. 

         According to the WorkMatrix^TM I am I the right type of work which is the first level service.  Second level service comes in at a close second place.  I really do enjoy where I am in my career path right at this moment.  I learn something new every year and get to work with brand new group of students every year.  I do one day hope to make it to the second level service working on training trainers. I would rather develop instruction.  Location is important to me.  I used to work about thirty minutes from where I live which is not that far, but after a few years the drive took its toll on me especially after tutoring students after work getting them ready for state assessments.  I just found that the extra drive became tiresome.  I currently live less than one-third of a mile from my workplace, and I’m enjoying it.  I would like there to be opportunities for promotion in my field so that if I would like to move up in a few years that would be an option for me.  I would like to continue to work in the education economic sector.  I think that it’s important to educate our future leaders. I believe that I’ve taken a majority of the classes that are available in order to be successful in the path that I have indicated.  I have learned many skills that are required for working in the educational sector. I would like to take more college level math classes so that later I could teach college courses.

In my experience, it’s better to join organizations before you get out of college. The main reason is that usually if you do, you are more than likely able to get a student discount of some sort.  You also get a feel for what the organization is all about before having to pay the full price.  The organizations that would best benefit my learning are ISTE.  I am attending ISTE this summer for the first time.  I think this would help me because I love technology, but sometimes it’s hard for me to incorporate all of the technology that is given to us into a classroom setting.  I’d like to see what types of technology that other teachers are using in their classroom and take back ideas to my own classroom to use.  Another conference that I’d like to attend this year is TCEA (Texas Computer Education Association).  I’ve been to it at least three times.  I haven’t been able to attend but I’d like to go and see what new types of technology are out there and how they are being used by teachers all over the U.S. As teachers, it’s important to continue learning new ways to incorporate technology into our classrooms because let’s face it, most of the time our students know more about how to use technology than us.  We have to find a way to grab their attention and keep it.  I think that technology is the way to do just that.