I can’t believe that it’s exam time again. I’m about to complete my second semester of teaching at the College, and it’s flown by so quickly.
It’s been a whole academic year that I’ve been here. The first semester was a whirlwind; doing everything for the first time was intimidating and filled with surprises. This second semester has had more of a flow. I feel more confident in my abilities as an educator (though I have a long way to go) and I’m getting used to the drafting of exams, and marking, marking, marking!
I love being in the college environment and the structure of it – the semester begins, midterms happen, then finals and it’s over. The youthful vitality of the students is invigorating – I love their questions, their plans, and their outfits! I’ve now had several students in consecutive semesters, and it’s rewarding to see them develop academically and go on to job placements and internships. I take pride in their successes and feel anxious for their futures.
The most satisfying aspect of my job, however, has been the camaraderie within the faculty. There’s an amazing group of teachers here, and it’s mostly women. From day one, I was welcomed into the lunch room and made to feel a part of a fabulous community. There’s always coffee, great conversation and an incredible sounding board to address a crisis with a student, a marking challenge or an issue with one of my own kids. My colleagues are all mothers and/or grandmothers. There’s nothing I’m going through that they haven’t seen a million times. I love drawing from their experience and learning from their lives – teaching and otherwise.
It’s such a strange thing, this office “life”. At this stage of my life, so much emphasis is placed my roles as spouse and mother. However, as much as these roles define and fulfill me, this camaraderie at work plays an integral role in my happiness. I find myself excited to come to work not only because of the intellectual stimulation but because of the social element too. I look forward to the community, the conversation and the few hours when I exist not as a parent or wife — but just me.
I teach introductory accounting – I am a CA. I am not technically a prof, but rather a part-time sessional instructor. My baby turned 11 last week and my oldest is away at University. As a parent of little ones, you might think life will slow down once they get older, but let me just say it never does!
I didn’t know you were a prof, Therese! What do you teach? And four kids, wow. I have to admit that I’m feeling good about this semester ending too. I’m teaching the first term of summer but am off for July and august to be with my kids.
I spent many years at home with my 4 children, and 3 years ago my husband suggested he would be able to retire sooner if I went back to work. Who could argue with that? I have just yesterday finished my 6th semester of teaching a first year university course, and I love it. The students are amazing, and so are the faculty and staff I work with every day. However, I think we are all happy the semester is over 🙂
Alice, I so know what you mean. I think for me, job satisfaction is 75% percent related to the people at work.
I know what you mean – even on days off, I want to feel connected to work because |I love so much of the staff there.