Running head: AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY 1

Autobiographical Essay

Ashley N. Hunt

Professor Carol Billing

Education 201 Foundations of Education

Spring 2016
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Introduction

I have always dreamed of working in the field of education. I love working with children

and am very much looking forward to helping kids realize their potential while sharing my love

of learning. I have had many positive influences in the form of teachers, and my goal is to have

that positive influence on kids so that they have the desire to work until see their dreams become

reality. My work and schooling experiences have given me the opportunity to be kind,

supporting and encouraging to students and their parents.

Educational Background

My elementary, middle, and high school years were spent in Porterville, California. I

attended West Putnam Elementary until 5th grade, then Jim Maples Academy for 6th grade. I

then attended Burton Middle school, followed by Monache High School until halfway through

my junior year. After Monache, I graduated in January of 2010 from Prospect Education Center.

I am currently enrolled in the Elementary Education program at the College of Western Idaho.

When I have earned my associate's degree, I plan to transfer to Northwest Nazarene University in

order to finish my bachelor's degree in Elementary Education.

In the sixth grade, I was given the opportunity to help in the special education program at

my school. I was able to help my peers with whatever they were working on or sometimes just

to encourage them when they were having a rough day. I was also given the opportunity to be a

peer monitor, to help my peers work through difficulties they were having with others. I loved

being able to be part of the solution and helping people feel better about their school

environment. These opportunities gave me the problem solving capabilities, patience, and

kindness that will be vital in my career as a teacher.

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I had many influential teachers in middle and high school. They encouraged me to

continue on in my education, no matter how hard outside forces were working against me.

Prospect Education Center was a high school which included a teenage parenting program

(TAPP). My time attending this school was an amazing experience. All of the teachers were so

encouraging and uplifting. They believed in their students and pushed them hard to succeed,

instead of giving up on them and treating them as failures. It showed me that even in the face of

adversity, a good teacher can be the light and give hope and support to students who may not

have that support anywhere else in their lives. My goal as a future educator is to make my

students believe that they can do anything as long as they are willing to have the grit and

perseverance to see it through.

Work History Service and/or Extracurricular Activities

My work history has helped to enhance the characteristics I will use in my career as an

elementary school teacher. From babysitting, to retail, to working in a school, every one of these

occupations has helped me to grow and develop essential skills needed in this career field.

While in high school I found a job babysitting for my music pastor. I watched a six-year-

old boy and four-year-old girl, which helped spark my interest in working with younger children.

Their mother was very proactive in giving them all of the tools needed to be successful in school

from an early age, so one of my duties was to help the children complete workbook pages. In

working with them, I learned how to explain concepts to the kids in different ways to help them

understand something they were struggling with. This experience also helped me to be patient

and persistent in helping someone learn something new.

After high school, I accepted a retail job working at Payless Shoe Source. Although this

wasn’t the most rewarding or glamorous job, it definitely taught me a lot about myself. This job
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was my first experience talking with other adults and having them see me as their equal. This

gave me confidence to speak up and share ideas that I felt would be helpful to the company. It

taught me that no matter how my personal day was going, I could still set it aside, put on a smile,

and do my job to the best of my ability. I learned how to train new employees, as well as give

positive feedback and constructive suggestions on how to help my coworkers improve their

work.

I am now employed with Idaho Connects Online School, where I started as a Student

Advisor, after three years I was promoted to Lead Advisor and Launch Specialist, then three

years later I moved up to the Assistant Director of Student Services position. Though last on my

list, this job has given me the opportunity to work with middle and high school students, which

motivated me to pursue a career in education. My role with ICON school is to welcome new

students and parents to our school, monitor progress and attendance, create three- and four-year

plans to make sure students are meeting all graduation requirements, update transcripts, train

advisors, and monitor/problem solve with students who are having trouble consistently coming

to school. I also load courses and help set up dual credit courses for students who wish to

participate in advanced opportunities. There are many other components to my job, and it has

been so rewarding working my way up in the school and learning the ins and outs of what goes

on within a school system. Though this job is a challenging one, it has made me realize how

important it is to encourage students to continue their education. My goal every semester is to

make sure my kids know that I am in their corner, I believe in them, and I won’t give up on

them.

All of my past jobs have made me the person I am today and sharpened the skills I will

need when entering the education field.

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Ethical Reasoning in Education

When I was in high school, I had a Spanish teacher who most students struggled with. I

was warned to transfer out of her class, but I figured I could deal with it. I stayed in her class and

soon realized why everyone was so terrified of her. This teacher was insensitive and sometimes

plain mean. She would make us present in front of the classroom, and if we got an answer

wrong, she would make fun of us. Some of us did tell our parents, but that made it worse as she

would then call that student out in the middle of class and call them babies.

This teacher used ethical egoism in her classroom. This means she was interested in

looking out for herself and doing what she wanted, more than being interested the good of the

class and teaching them in a way that would not make them feel bad about themselves. She

wasn’t responsive to feedback from students, and even with all of the complaints she got from

students and parents, she was going to do things her own way because that’s what made her

happy. I feel that she may have chosen this type of orientation in her classroom because she felt

that her students would listen better if they feared her. That may have worked for her but did not

help in ensuring a safe and comfortable environment for her students.

A good way to avoid this as a teacher will be to help my students to learn without fearing

me. I want my students to feel happy, safe, and comfortable in my classroom. I will not belittle

my students or try to make them feel ashamed because of where they are in their learning

journey. I will also be open to criticism from parents and students and if I do something to make

a student uncomfortable, I will expect them to tell me or my superiors to right the wrong. Instead

of calling a child out, I will schedule a conference with them and their parent/s and the head of

school so that again, they feel comfortable and safe, and they can bring their troubles to my

attention in a neutral environment.

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Reasons for Choosing Education as a Career

My third-grade teacher was exceptional. She was always willing to help, never put

students down, and it was very apparent that teaching was her passion. Seeing how happy she

was in her career was what made me realize that I wanted to teach as well. I remember going

home and practicing my teaching strategies on my younger sister, this was when I knew that I

wanted to teach. I loved teaching my sister things that she didn’t know and showing her how

much fun learning could be.

When I was in high school, I played around with the idea of being a veterinarian. I love

animals and thought that would be a great career for me as I would get to spend all my time

around them! In researching that career, I realized that veterinarians are able to be around

animals all the time, but often times they are unhealthy. I think I would have loved helping

animals and bringing joy to their families by saving them, but I think seeing all of the pets and

animals I couldn’t help would have been too much for me to bear.

I anticipate a career as a teacher will be rewarding as well as challenging. I feel the

intrinsic rewards will make this a very fulfilling career. I know that helping students see their

potential will make me happy. I had teachers who pushed me to pursue my dreams and supported

me even when I didn’t believe in myself and being that kind of teacher will be a better payoff

than any amount of money. I expect to teach students not only about academic materials, but also

how to be a positive influence on the world, and I expect they will teach me life lessons as well. I

also expect that my time in the classroom will make me a better person as I will be an example to

the students I will teach, and young minds are easily influenced.

Professional Goals
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My long-term goals include finishing my Associate’s degree at the College of Western

Idaho and then going on to earn my Bachelor’s degree at Northwest Nazarene University. After

this semester, I will need two more years to earn my degree at CWI, then I am anticipating

another two or three years to earn my degree at NNU. To accomplish these goals, I will need to

stay focused and motivated. Although I am excited to earn my degrees and start my career in

education, I am doing my best to continue living in the moment and absorbing all that I can

while attending school.

My short-term goals include finishing up this semester at CWI and planning out which

courses I will be taking for the rest of my time here. Making sure I have everything planned out

will help me ensure I have met all the requirements needed to earn my AA degree. This will also

make me feel more organized, and less overwhelmed. I will be able to research instructors, and

register for the courses and instructors I want, making my education a little easier. Having

everything planned out will also relieve some of the stress that comes with being a college

student. I can also implement this planning and organization into planning the rest of my

education.

Conclusion

I have dreamed of making a difference in people’s live almost all my life. I strongly

believe that my purpose in life is to be an educator for young people, so that is what I’m going to

do. I’m going to do my best to show my students that they really can do anything they want, as

long as they are willing to work for it. I want students to be excited to walk into my classroom

and learn, by showing them how excited I am to teach. Teaching is what I was born to do!