Teaching Role Models

As I look back on my own educational journey, I remember being inspired to learn by many different types of teachers. I've realized lately that my favorite teachers inspired me to go into Political Science and International Studies in College. I was born and raised in Idaho. I've never left the United States. Yet, I have this passion for learning about other cultures, people, forms of government, history, places I've never been. So here is the list of who I blame for creating such a juxtaposition in my life.

7th Grade Geography Teacher
This is where my passion for all things international really began. He was such an amazing teacher partly because I don't remember "learning" anything in his class. I remember a few projects and I'm sure there were tests, but this class was all about excitement and opening our minds to the plethora of cultures to discover. He wanted us to become students of the world and, for me, it happened. He taught us to care about other people in the world and want to be cartographers, photographers, historians, and work for the State Department.

12th Grade Government Teacher
While this teacher's style was dramatically different, he still was able to instill an interest in government in me. This class was much more structured. We could anticipate what would happen in the classroom and when. Aside from traditional book learning, essays, and tests, we followed current events by watching CNN for a few minutes each day. We could count on the "Friday Speech" to be given at the end of class every Friday. Even though this speech was really a lecture on behaving over the weekend, it was nice to know he cared (years later I learned that his daughter had died while in high school, which brought a new understanding about why he wanted us to avoid reckless behavior). If, someday, I'm lucky enough to teach government, it will be all his fault if my class is very structured.

College Professor
I had many professors I really enjoyed in college, but one in particular comes to mind as far as inspiring me politically. He was a retired history professor and political activist. He taught fun classes like "Political Primaries 2004" and "Idaho Politics and Politicians." His classes were usually full, and while there were some lectures, he pulled ideas from his students on a regular basis. If a student was older, he would ask them about old politicians that 20 year old students had only read about. If a student was from another region of Idaho or the country, he would ask about the politicians in their area. The books for his classes were never textbooks. They were usually essays on current events, newspaper articles, or non-fiction books written about Idaho. As students were encouraged to bring topics/articles/news that interested us to class. Ideas and discussions were always welcome in his classes.

It is very interesting to look back at my teachers from this new perspective of how I want to be as a teacher. While there were many wonderful teachers I had over the years, I definitely look back on these three as great examples of how to inspire students to love the subject you teach. 
Maybe I shouldn't blame them for sparking such an interest in social studies in me- even though it serves little purpose in Idaho. Maybe finding a passion in social studies would have happened anyway. Either way, it's too late, I love it!