Natural State News

Crystal Carranco, Assistant Principal, Stagecoach Elementary, Cabot Public School District

As we celebrate #LoveTeaching Week, I find myself overwhelmed to give a simple answer to such a big, complex, and multifaceted question. When someone that doesn't teach asks me why I love teaching, my answer is usually, "I want to change lives" or "It's my passion." My cliché sentiments are genuine, but there is just so much more that it's hard to give a response that can thoroughly explain what's so special about this career.

Carolyn Haywood said, "Children are not only innocent and curious but also optimistic and joyful and essentially happy. They are, in short, everything adults wish they could be." Every day I am surrounded by their amazing, youthful spirits. They make me laugh, spark my curiosity, and force me to believe anything is possible.

And they love you. They know you, and they love you. Nobody is happier to see you than an elementary school student. It is really and truly the best. The complexity of life in the classroom is unmatched by any other profession. Last week, I dressed as a 100-year-old (for the 100th day of school, of course), taught, and had a Zoom meeting with the Chair of the Senate Education Committee.

The simplest explanation is that I thoroughly enjoy interacting with children and spending my days helping them become the people they are meant to be. It's a privilege. Nothing quite compares to the moment you look back and see tremendous academic or behavioral growth. Teaching is the most influential job there is—someone's life can be completely turned around by a teacher. That is so powerful.

Teaching changed me. It made me the best, most confident, empowered, empathetic, and thoughtful version of myself. Don't get me wrong. It is a hard job. The word 'passion' comes from the Latin root word, patior, which means to suffer. There was an idea that a passion was an external force that made you do something or suffer in some way. The word passion has evolved, but the original etymology resonated with me and how I feel about teaching.

Some days I feel the burden of unrealistic expectations, heartbreaking situations, media backlash, defiant behaviors, and teaching during a global pandemic. But the love I have for this profession is an external force that makes me keep going. Teaching is fulfilling and has given me innumerable opportunities to experience joy.

Why do I love teaching? Because it's my passion, the hardest job I've ever loved. Because it's about changing lives. And sometimes, if you're lucky, the life that gets changed is your own.

#LoveTeaching #TeachArkansas

Original source can be found here.