Become a Teacher?! Really?!

Hey there everybody! My Name is Kyle Ervin. Here's a picture of me with the sweet "winter break beard" I've got going on right now.

 I actually created this blog years ago when I still had time to write silly stuff and post it on the internet. I have four kids and my wife is disabled, so writing silly stuff has been placed on the back burner and will probably remain there for quite sometime.

 Interestingly, I did not really "choose" education so much as fall into it. It was my wife, actually, who was the educator. She used to teach 5th and 3rd grades. Unfortunately, she had a fairly serious medical incident about 8 years ago that left her with an anoxic brain injury that prevents her from teaching any longer. After her incident, I could no longer maintain the 50 to 60 hour work weeks and frequent travel that my job required so I got canned. I was still coaching my son's soccer team, however, and one of the parents happened to be a principal at a local high school. He appreciated the way I coached and told me I needed to start substitute teaching. Honestly, it took a while for me to relent to this advice because I have, for a very long time, been adamantly opposed to becoming a teacher. This is not because I don't enjoy teaching, sharing knowledge, or dealing with kids. I actually love all of those things. My opposition stems from my reluctance to deal with the bureaucracy and politics that accompanies the position these days.

 To make what is becoming a long story short, my substitute teaching experience has been so psychologically and emotionally rewarding that I decided to pull the trigger and get my credential. 

Currently, I am still substitute teaching in the Fullerton High School District, and I hope to be doing my student teaching at a Fullerton High School in the fall.

 After reading the PDF on the Philosophies of teaching I would have to say I relate most to the eclectic philosophy. Yeah, perhaps this is a bit of a cop out, but I am truly not one to hold to ANY single philosophy whether it regard education, religion or even soccer. There is almost always more than one way to skin a cat - how you choose to do it should depend on the circumstance at the moment, not on blind loyalty to a particular philosophy.