Though a majority of my expectations and day dreams regarding my future teaching career

Respond to discussion
At least 100 words per respond
Tristian
Though a majority of my expectations and day dreams regarding my future teaching career are filled mostly with the gand success that I will have teaching my students, I always end up realizing how unrealistic all those thoughts are. The reality of the situation is that I will be a rookie teacher with no experience and there are manifold ways that I do not even know exists in which I can fail as a teacher. Failure will surely hit me hard and discourage me in a way that I am not prepared for. If unchecked, this discouragement could derail me in my career, however, I have the truth of great literature and of Biblical Scripture to illuminate my life during that bleak phase of my career. Scriptures such as Jeremiah 29:11, are perfect for such times. The prophet is speaking on the behalf of the Lord to the exiled Hebrews when he says, "I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope, (NKJV). The writing of the prophet combines well with the apostle Paul's II Corinthians 5:7, which states plainly that, "For we walk by faith, not by sight." These two pieces o Scripture are integral for Christians teachers, or secular ones needing general wisdom, for their combined message is that God's ways and knowledge are higher than our own, always in consideration of our better futures, and takes devout faith from us to walk in his will. I point to this aspect of Scriptural truth because as a young teachers being hit with wrecking ball that is the reality of the state of the Mississippi education system and the rigid bureaucracy that has inundated our state's education department.
Karla
The scriptures from the past 3 weeks have helped give me peace about the profession I am in. Teaching, in my perspective, is passion driven field and we must reflect that for our students. This lets them know that they are always cared for. As mentioned in our topic of this week, planning to provide for all students' different abilities is so important but it is also important to have the right tools and reinforcement necessary. The Bible is one of the best tools that we can have for our spiritual health. It reinforces our mind and spirit and we are able to care for our students and reflect on their needs in a more intentional way. For any new educator it is a time of anxiety and worry but we are reminded that the gifts that God has given us should be used gladly, as teachers we have both the gift of leadership and the ability to be kind as is mentioned in Romans 12:4-8. In my previous course, we learned that as educators we are in "loco-parentis" which means that we are "in place" of the parents for the students while they are at school. This is such a huge responsibility but it also is the biggest blessing to be able to be a part of the village that it takes to raise a child. We should also look to our Heavenly Father when lost, he will always guide us in the direction we are supposed to be. By doing so, it gives us the strength and sound mind to be able to guide our students to a path of success.
Courtney
Jeremiah 29:11 states, "For I know the plans I have for you… plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future". As we begin our journey as a teacher, we must remember that like the Lord, we have made plans for our students to prosper for hope for a better future. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says, "We walk by faith, not by sight". Although we may have some bad days ahead of us, we must remember that this was our calling from God. We must have faith that he is going to help us get through the bad days. We may not always see it, but we have to have faith. Galatians 6:9 states “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” This goes along with the previous comment. We shouldn't give up being great teachers because we don't see immediate results. We have to stick with it and be consistent. In time, we will see our hard work pay off.
Titus 2:7 is probably the best scripture I have read since I started the MAT program. It says, "In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, and seriousness and you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching." Teachers should lead their students by being a great example of what doing the right thing looks like. They should have integrity and show their students how to have integrity themselves. Teachers should also take teaching seriously.