On making the choice to be a teacher
If I could go back to the very beginning, I think I would have gotten into teaching earlier. I — We have hard days. We do, but I — I go home every day with just a sense of satisfaction that I've done something meaningful, and I love interacting with students. I love hearing them laugh. I love hearing them tell their stories. I love seeing them learn something new. A lot of teachers talk about that light bulb going off. Those are the moments I love in teaching. So if I could go back, I would have gotten into teaching right away, rather than waiting till I was 29 — so I would choose it again in a heartbeat.
Why Brandon made the choice to be a teacher
I teach 11th-grade social studies at Glendale High School. Primarily, I teach American government. And this is year 14 of teaching in Missouri public schools, so I've got a little bit of experience, and I enjoy it. I've been with Springfield Public Schools now two years.
When I think about what got me into teaching, I think about my community, I actually got into teaching a little bit later than a lot of teachers. So I went to school, and I got a bachelor's degree in history, and I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to do. So by the time I decided, I was in my late 20s, and I had to go get certified to teach. So I went to Missouri State and did that, and so I began teaching.
I was almost 29 years old my first year, and what motivated me the most was just a love of community.
I wanted to have a job that let me make a difference in some in people's lives. Teaching just seemed like a natural fit. Of course, I love history and — which is why I teach social studies. But I just, I just love the community I live in. And I wanted to have a meaningful job that let me invest in my community.
The best part of Brandon's job
Oh, the best part of my job is undoubtedly working with the students. I love it.
There are, of course, going to be some challenges with that, because you're working with teenagers. But I just absolutely love it. They're brilliant. They ask amazing questions, they have fantastic ideas, they have hopes for the future. And, you know, just every day they're funny, and I love the sense of humor.
Oh, the best part of my job is undoubtedly working with the students. I love it.
I love the camaraderie we get to build in the classroom, and the rapport that I get to build with students and — and then, not only just the fun part of it, I feel like I get to make a difference in their lives. So as they learn from me, I feel like I am helping to equip them for, you know, a shot at a great future.
What being a teacher is really like
When I got into teaching, I did expect at least the class periods to go the way that they do. I didn't realize how much extra work. I say extra, it's not extra work, how much effort has to go in behind the scenes before we get to the classroom to be prepared for every lesson. The most challenging aspect for me is just the sheer amount of energy it takes to be an effective teacher. I know you hear teachers talk all the time about how much work they have to do outside of the classroom, and to be a good teacher, you do have to do that.
You know, the kids are 20-something years younger than me. They have a lot more energy sometimes than I do. So I have to come in every day, whether I feel energetic or not, and understand that I'm here for them.
Teacher pay 'is definitely a topic of conversation'
Teacher pay is definitely a topic of conversation, especially amongst Missouri teachers. SPS pays a lit — a lot better than a lot of the surrounding districts, and — and I think for me, one of the biggest concerns I have with teacher pay in Missouri is that it's so heavily dependent on property taxes that when you get out into rural districts or smaller districts, they really have a hard time paying teachers.
Which means that they have a hard time competing for teachers. Most teachers have a sense of purpose. I mean, we don't get into teaching because we think we're going to make a lot of money. We don't get in into it just because we think it's an easy job. But we really do get into teaching because we genuinely care about our students, and I don't know that that always gets communicated well.
I'm not sure if we do a good job of telling that story, but why do, why do most teachers get into it? And I think it's just because we we genuinely care about kids. We love these kids. We want to see them succeed, and their success is our success.
What success looks like — for teachers
And so I guess one of the questions that maybe you could ask is: What does success look like? And success for me looks like kids setting goals and being able to achieve those goals.
And we don't always see that immediately, but when we have kids that come back — I call them kids — When we have now-adults that come back and talk about their high school experience, they always want to talk about a teacher that made a difference in their lives.
And to me, seeing successful adults talking about the impact that school made for them — that tells me that we were successful.
