I am an endangered species. I am a conservative millennial who also chose education as my career path.
I teach high schoolers. I have told my friends and family that I am terrified for our country. I have honestly had students that could not identify the United States on a map and have argued with me that socialism/communism is a great idea! I have more hilarious/depressing stories on what they don’t know.
My dad used to say the day music died was when the Beatles landed in the US. I say that the day education died is the day that No Child Left Behind was passed in 2001.
Many people bash teachers on here, but I can honestly say that this is not a direct result of teachers. This is a direct result of tying success in the classroom to test scores. There is a disproportionate amount of time spent on math and reading/writing in elementary. Many districts/states require so much time spent on those subjects that there is literally no time left for any kind of science, history, economics, geography, health, etc. The first time they are truly exposed to these subjects is in middle school. Because of this, they never reach the point of analytical thinking in high school/college and are simply still learning facts. For example, students first learn of the different forms of government in their junior or senior years of high school.
Educators do tend to be a liberal bunch, but I strongly disagree that teachers are government cronies used to manipulate and brainwash our children. Teachers as a whole are overwhelmed, under appreciated, overworked, and underpaid. They are discouraged with people with no experience in education dictating what they can and cannot teach on a daily basis. Teachers are the middlemen left with no choice but to follow the regulations given to them.
If you have not shaped some values and foundation by the time they are 12 you have lost them. After that it is pretty much just information and does not become part of their character. So sad.
From third grade to sixth are the teachers I remember the most. Sure there were a few others in subjects that I can name but these three or four years planted the seeds to what I wanted to know instead of what I had to learn. Geography in 4th grade and Mrs. Watson, Science in 6th with Mr. Davidson and making little tin electric motors, learning about circuits, lemon batteries, mechanical linkages, the four cycle engine stages and making electromagnets; Mrs. Roher and history in 5th grade and all the stories of our nation and even the world. Mr. Connors in 9th grade and history and civics that he made come alive by seeding it with history and how it shaped the world we live in. Mr. Maddox and American History in 11th grade and all the things he challenged us to think about more deeply. Mr. Slater who taught us Physics and Biology and encouraged and let us go off on interesting tangents and how he helped us apply the things we just had to learn. The rest was just required. These things though were fun. These things were over 50 years ago for me and I still remember particular days. I wish I had better math and english teachers though. The ones I had could never cause excitement about what they were teaching us.
My Mom was a teacher, my Dad a professor and engineer. They both loved to educate not just teach. Momma touched and shaped more lives than Dad and her legacy is what she gave to four generations of children in our town. Both of them though worked together to give what care they could to those who needed a hand.