Stepping Into the Darkness of the Unknown

This quote was emailed to me by one of my classmates who was taking a MS in Education degree at the University of Pittsburgh Department of Instruction and Learning in the early 2000's.  I was taking courses at this department to obtain my certification in teaching chemistry in high school at that time.  I had an epiphany while teaching college chemistry at Carlow University that I would have more of an impact in educating the young if I started teaching them earlier in their lives, namely, when they were in high school.

I remember when I was trying to decide to take the jump.  It was late afternoon and I was in bed trying to decide whether to sit in in that course in education at CCAC the title of which I do not remember now. This course was to start in 30 minutes at the community college just 3 minutes drive from my house.  I decided to go for it.  I leapt out of bed, dressed up and just ignored the fact I had to pick up my college age daughter from the bus stop during the time this class would be held.  I stepped into the classroom and when we were to introduce ourselves, I started with, "I have not actually enrolled in this course.  I just want to know if I want to pursue my dream of teaching high school students.  So I am sitting in this class first today to find out".   Later I remember, during a pair-up session, my partner could not help expressing his shock that I did not even enroll in the course.  And yes, I stayed in the two hour class and just forgot about my daughter in the parking lot waiting for me.  She ended walking home with a big container of leftover pastries from a meeting she attended.  Poor girl. 

Fast forward, I finished the certification at Pitt, passed the Praxis and started a battery of interviews for a high school position to fulfill my dream to teach preferably in an inner city school.  I would admit, in my mind the question kept coming up, "Would I really be able to teach at this challenging level where disciplining the students take a bulk of your time?". 

Fate decided for me what to do.  I got an interview at Indiana University of Pennsylvania to teach chemistry to elementary education majors.  I accepted the position and forgot my dream of having that impact on teaching in an inner city school, just like Michelle Pfeiffer in Dangerous Minds. I justified my decision by saying that if I cannot do what I dreamed to do, I can help the others to do it.   I never regretted my decision, I felt I have had as much impact on the young students I had at IUP.   Some of them struggled adjusting in their first year in college especially in a difficult course, chemistry and I was happy to help them with my teaching.

I was really stepping into the "darkness of the unknown" when I decided to try out if teaching high school was for me by sitting in and eventually enrolling in that class in education at CCAC.  I even spent one year to get that certification which I never used.  But I do not think I would have been as effective and inspired teacher in the college level without it.  I did "land on solid ground" as well as learned "how to fly" as I figured out what to do with my life.  I discovered that it was by finding the best way to teach a very challenging subject, chemistry, to my wonderful college students at IUP.  I truly felt fulfilled when I retired last semester.