Mindset 1: Many roads lead us to become middle school teachers. While some of us made the decision early to work with young adolescents in middle schools, there are more than a few who accidentally stumbled into her nest. What if we hadn’t landed in a middle school because “that was the only job open”; or what if we hadn’t happened to be with a professor who said, “You know, you might love middle school!” Or what if that middle school teacher we had hadn’t said, “You would make a great middle school teacher!”
Perhaps we need to provide more intentional opportunities for K-6 and secondary licensed candidates to experience middle school students. Our Collegiate Middle Level Association (CMLA) is an excellent place to start. I would imagine as university professors we have seen the spark in pre-service candidates' eyes, the wild side, the mavericks who will help set middle school students’ learning and experiences on fire. We need more of that!
Perhaps we need middle school clubs in middle schools for those interested in becoming teachers. Perhaps we as middle school teachers and leaders need to become mentors and advocates for our own profession. Our first element associated with a middle school mindset encompasses the idea that if we had not seen middle school, or someone hadn’t pointed it out to us, we may not have realized its value. So is it possible to start a campaign to advertise the value, the importance, the magic of this age group?
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