- #1
Overkill777
- 15
- 0
I've recently had a revelation in my life that has filled me with desire to become a teacher.
***I apologized for the life story, my questions come in the very last paragraph.***
When I was in high school I never had any direction or any idea of what I wanted to do with my life until my senior year when I took physics. It blew my mind. I was always good at math but it never appealed to me until then when I learned how much it could be applied to the real world.
When I got to college it didn't take long before I decided to major in Engineering Physics. This is a more applied physics major. I put my elective credit hours towards physics classes so I covered everything a regular physics major covers as well. I graduated with a 3.9 GPA in physics classes, so that shows I am at least passionate about the subject.
When I graduated I still didn't know exactly where I wanted to go in life. I knew I didn't want to go directly into grad school because I needed a break from college. The economy was really bad at the time. Although I got offered a position to work at the particle accelerator at Michigan State, I always had a calling to serve in the military so I enlisted in the US Army with a contract to go to Officer Candidate School after basic training. I made it through basic and OCS as an honor graduate and became a Lieutenant in the Engineer branch. I became a platoon leader of a construction platoon which is where I am now.
I never deployed and the way things are now it doesn't look like I will. That being said, a unit in the army that is not deployed usually doesn't do much of anything but training. Most training is conducted by experienced non-commissioned officers (NCOs) but there are a few things I have learned as an officer that the NCOs aren't very familiar with. This perspective has given me the opportunity to get out there and teach my Soldiers and NCOs some things they otherwise would not have understood.
This opportunity has made me realize how rewarding teaching is! I never realized it before but I love teaching as much as I love learning, especially if it's a subject I am passionate and knowledgeable about. I know that teaching in school is a lot different from training Soldiers but I feel that the passion for sharing knowledge will remain the same.
I would like to get certified and teach high school physics because I am as passionate about physics as I am anything else! From there I would like to eventually get a masters degree and branch out, maybe to teach high school algebra and/or calculus, maybe move up to teach at a community college.
My question is, with about one year left in the Army, what can I do now to start preparing myself and working towards teacher certification? I was considering taking some online classes and maybe doing some volunteering at a local high school. The only downside is I don't have very much free time, as a platoon leader my schedule is very demanding. I am currently stationed in Hawaii and plan on moving to Kentucky (Lexington area) when I get out.
Any advice or thoughts will be greatly appreciated!
***I apologized for the life story, my questions come in the very last paragraph.***
When I was in high school I never had any direction or any idea of what I wanted to do with my life until my senior year when I took physics. It blew my mind. I was always good at math but it never appealed to me until then when I learned how much it could be applied to the real world.
When I got to college it didn't take long before I decided to major in Engineering Physics. This is a more applied physics major. I put my elective credit hours towards physics classes so I covered everything a regular physics major covers as well. I graduated with a 3.9 GPA in physics classes, so that shows I am at least passionate about the subject.
When I graduated I still didn't know exactly where I wanted to go in life. I knew I didn't want to go directly into grad school because I needed a break from college. The economy was really bad at the time. Although I got offered a position to work at the particle accelerator at Michigan State, I always had a calling to serve in the military so I enlisted in the US Army with a contract to go to Officer Candidate School after basic training. I made it through basic and OCS as an honor graduate and became a Lieutenant in the Engineer branch. I became a platoon leader of a construction platoon which is where I am now.
I never deployed and the way things are now it doesn't look like I will. That being said, a unit in the army that is not deployed usually doesn't do much of anything but training. Most training is conducted by experienced non-commissioned officers (NCOs) but there are a few things I have learned as an officer that the NCOs aren't very familiar with. This perspective has given me the opportunity to get out there and teach my Soldiers and NCOs some things they otherwise would not have understood.
This opportunity has made me realize how rewarding teaching is! I never realized it before but I love teaching as much as I love learning, especially if it's a subject I am passionate and knowledgeable about. I know that teaching in school is a lot different from training Soldiers but I feel that the passion for sharing knowledge will remain the same.
I would like to get certified and teach high school physics because I am as passionate about physics as I am anything else! From there I would like to eventually get a masters degree and branch out, maybe to teach high school algebra and/or calculus, maybe move up to teach at a community college.
My question is, with about one year left in the Army, what can I do now to start preparing myself and working towards teacher certification? I was considering taking some online classes and maybe doing some volunteering at a local high school. The only downside is I don't have very much free time, as a platoon leader my schedule is very demanding. I am currently stationed in Hawaii and plan on moving to Kentucky (Lexington area) when I get out.
Any advice or thoughts will be greatly appreciated!