Teaching is like ski touring
Teaching is like ski touring; walking uphill on skis and then skiing downhill after the climb. I have skied my entire life. I ski raced for nearly 10 years, taught myself how to telemark ski, coached ski racing and so, learning how to ski tour was the natural progression in my skiing story. That’s not to say that learning to ski tour hasn’t been challenging. It is a delicate balancing act of managing appropriate gear, the weather, the exposed avalanche terrain, and the people. The planning, map reading, the many physical steps, and the moments of self-doubt are part of the climb. Standing at the top, with the sun shining on my face, knowing I get to ski down, remind me why I chose to climb. For me, the climb is just like teaching– the lesson planning, the many steps and hours it requires, managing of people and resources, and the moments of self-doubt. The resiliency it requires to walk to the top of a mountain with my skis has been fostered through my interest in skiing and the desire to reach the top in order to ski down. Resilience is linked to the development of teacher efficacy and underpinned by emotional competence and this plays a role in new teacher success. I believe that the resilience it requires to climb a mountain can be translated to the resilience it requires to be a successful educator. The ‘climb’, with its many challenges, eventually reaches the ‘top’, where I see and experience student learning and understanding. During my two week practicum as a student teacher at Maple Grove Elementary School I planned a lesson on world religions for my Montessori 4,5,6 students. Initially, this lesson was intimidating and took many hours of planning and thought. I edited multiple times, had moments of self-doubt and anticipated the lesson for I was going to be observed as a teacher for the very first time. The ‘climb’ to this lesson where I would hopefully witness student learning and understanding was a challenging one. The students were engaged and thoughtful. They participated in the discussion that I facilitated and were able to ask questions and later infer the answers. For my very first lesson as a teacher candidate, it felt like the ski down. I believe I can use this teaching metaphor as a constant reminder of what I am capable of in my personal life as well as my teaching career.