I am currently reading The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscape of a Teacher’s Life by Parker J. Palmer (1998), for one of my classes in the Single-Subject Credential program at CSUSM. I chose the book from a list suggested by the teacher, without knowing anything more about it than the name; but so far I am very happy with my choice. The author is clearly a “teacher’s teacher.” He speaks directly to the teacher’s heart and has deep insights into the craft that I have chosen to pursue.
I came to teaching by a roundabout route. After many years of another career, it was time for a change, and I decided to become a high school teacher. This was not as large a leap as it may seem, as I had dabbled in teaching for some time previously, including a stint as a part-time instructor at a community college. Thus, I am now learning the theory behind the practices I had been doing intuitively, and synthesizing the learning I had done in my trial-and-error method of becoming a teacher. I am finding this book to be an excellent companion at this point in my journey.
First, it is clear that Mr. Palmer knows both the joys and the heartaches of teaching. I loved the opening statement of the Introduction: “. . . there are moments in the classroom when I can hardly hold the joy.” (p. 1) This reminds me vividly of my drive home on the first evening after teaching at the community college. I realized half-way home that I was openly smiling to myself, in my deep happiness and the feeling that I had come home to a place that suited me. However, the author is not blind to the deep downsides and self-doubt that come with teaching, either. A few paragraphs later, he says “This book is for teachers who have good days and bad, and whose bad days bring the suffering that comes only from something one loves.” (p. 1) Just as vividly as with the first sentence, he brings to mind the students I feel that I failed, each of whom is still engraved deeply upon my heart.
I am also impressed by the author’s insistence that teachers must understand themselves in order to grow as teachers. His emphasis on the identity and integrity of a teacher’s inner self reinforces both my own personal experience and the reading I have done over the years on topics of spirituality. It does not surprise me to read in his biography that he is a member of the Society of Friends (more commonly known as Quakers). His deep thinking and self-reflection fits well within this tradition and with my own spiritual journey.
Finally, I am heartened by his insistence that the teacher is an essential part of the learning process: “I am also clear that in lecture halls, seminar rooms, field settings, labs, and even electronic classrooms . . . teachers possess the power to create conditions that can help students learn a great deal -- or keep them from learning much at all.” (p. 6) Some of our readings in this class have seemed to suggest that teachers are superfluous to the learning process; and I am glad to see this refuted. I have witnessed both good and bad teachers being a pivotal point in students’ lives; and I am convinced that teaching can make a difference. It is comforting to know that I am not alone in this belief, particularly since this is the path I have chosen.
I came to teaching by a roundabout route. After many years of another career, it was time for a change, and I decided to become a high school teacher. This was not as large a leap as it may seem, as I had dabbled in teaching for some time previously, including a stint as a part-time instructor at a community college. Thus, I am now learning the theory behind the practices I had been doing intuitively, and synthesizing the learning I had done in my trial-and-error method of becoming a teacher. I am finding this book to be an excellent companion at this point in my journey.
First, it is clear that Mr. Palmer knows both the joys and the heartaches of teaching. I loved the opening statement of the Introduction: “. . . there are moments in the classroom when I can hardly hold the joy.” (p. 1) This reminds me vividly of my drive home on the first evening after teaching at the community college. I realized half-way home that I was openly smiling to myself, in my deep happiness and the feeling that I had come home to a place that suited me. However, the author is not blind to the deep downsides and self-doubt that come with teaching, either. A few paragraphs later, he says “This book is for teachers who have good days and bad, and whose bad days bring the suffering that comes only from something one loves.” (p. 1) Just as vividly as with the first sentence, he brings to mind the students I feel that I failed, each of whom is still engraved deeply upon my heart.
I am also impressed by the author’s insistence that teachers must understand themselves in order to grow as teachers. His emphasis on the identity and integrity of a teacher’s inner self reinforces both my own personal experience and the reading I have done over the years on topics of spirituality. It does not surprise me to read in his biography that he is a member of the Society of Friends (more commonly known as Quakers). His deep thinking and self-reflection fits well within this tradition and with my own spiritual journey.
Finally, I am heartened by his insistence that the teacher is an essential part of the learning process: “I am also clear that in lecture halls, seminar rooms, field settings, labs, and even electronic classrooms . . . teachers possess the power to create conditions that can help students learn a great deal -- or keep them from learning much at all.” (p. 6) Some of our readings in this class have seemed to suggest that teachers are superfluous to the learning process; and I am glad to see this refuted. I have witnessed both good and bad teachers being a pivotal point in students’ lives; and I am convinced that teaching can make a difference. It is comforting to know that I am not alone in this belief, particularly since this is the path I have chosen.