Running head: AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY ABE 1

My Motivation to be a Teacher: an Autobiographical Essay

Jeff Horton
Professor Carol Billings
EDU 201 Foundations of Education
Fall 2013

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY ABE 2
My Motivation to be a Teacher: an Autobiographical Essay

Educational Background
My first taste of education began in Moab, Utah, back in 1984. I went to preschool there
for 4 hours a day. The summer after the completion of preschool, my family moved to Cedar
City, Utah where my dad obtained his Bachelors degree in Education. While he was going to
college, I went to school at South Elementary school. I completed kindergarten through third
grade during this time. My fourth grade year, we moved to Pima, Arizona because my dad began
his teaching career there. The following year, we moved to Beowawe, Nevada. The School was a
unique school as there were only 36 children in the kindergarten through fifth grade school. My
family didnt like being in an isolated area and moved back to Cedar City.
When we returned to Cedar City, It was time to enter sixth grade. In this town,
there was a school just for sixth graders, even though it was considered part of the middle school.
We had a four hour block that was our core classes, and then 3 elective courses where we had to
go to different classrooms. We lived in Cedar City until the completion of my eighth grade year,
when my dad received a teaching offer in Burley, ID. When we moved to Burley, I was already
prepared to enter high school. Thats when I found out that this school district kept the ninth
graders at the middle school. Although I was anticipating being a freshman at a new high school,
it was definitely a big stress relief knowing that I would get to know people before being thrown
to the wolves in high school.
After graduation in 1999, I enlisted in the Army National Guard. I attended my Basic
training and Advanced Individual Training in Fort Knox, KY. When my training was complete, I
moved to Arizona and attended Eastern Arizona College and had anticipated majoring in
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criminal justice. Half way through the year, I started missing Idaho, and decided to transfer to the
College of Southern Idaho for the next year.
I think that my education that I have received to date has set me up for success as
an educator on many fronts. The many different types of learning environments that I have been
able to take part in have opened my eyes that there is not just one way to teach a class. I have had
teachers who have the students read everything and learn that way and I have had teachers who
are up in front of the class all day and the students have not had to do anything on their own. My
dad has been a major influence and contributor to my education. Through experiences in his
classrooms, I have learned how to deal with and teach many different types of kids. The best
education that I have that has helped me develop is having children of my own.

Work History
When I turned 17, I decided that I would enjoy serving my country and would
also like to have some help for college so I enlisted in the Army National Guard. Between my
junior and senior year, I attended basic training in Fort Knox, KY. While at basic training, I
learned what skills were required to make a great leader and how to lead a disciplined life. After
I graduated from high school, I returned to Fort Knox to attend my Individual training. When I
returned in the fall, I worked as a recruiters assistant and would go to local schools and explain
to the students the benefits of the Army National Guard. I moved from Idaho up to Washington
State to be closer to my family that had relocated up there. Since I was no longer a recruiters
assistant, I started working at Walmart in the tire shop. I enjoyed this job as I have always liked
seeing something that was broken and being able to fix it. This job helped me become more
mechanically inclined and also taught me to become more of a people person as I worked with
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the customers closely to find a resolution to their problems. During this time I decided to attend
college and moved to Arizona.
After a year in college, I decided to move back home to Idaho for school. Once I
was here I got a job working at WinCo Foods. I started off as a grocery clerk and after a few
months moved up to working Loss Prevention. I really enjoyed this job as it allowed me to work
independently and allowed me to think for myself. I enjoyed the critical thinking and analytical
side of this job. I was not a fan of sitting around all day long though and decided to go back into
the grocery side of things after eight years. In this position, I learned how to deal with
confrontational issues with customers and employees. I especially liked being able to utilize my
knowledge of math and business when in this position and thought about going into the
management of the company. Then the company decided to change the way they utilize their
management and I wasnt keen on rotating from days to nights every six months. For this reason,
I decided that after ten years I was ready to return to school.
Now, I work at Sportsmans Warehouse doing loss prevention again but this job is
a mid-term job, until I get my degree. After 17 years in the job force, I have done a few different
jobs that have taught me many skills to utilize in the classroom. These skills include: patience,
discipline, communication, acceptance, diversity, and responsibility.

Service and/or Extracurricular activities
When I was young, I was always involved with playing sports. My favorite sport
to play when I was younger was baseball. I enjoyed playing as a team but that the sport allowed
you to shine as an individual. My favorite position to play was pitcher. I was always taught that
the pitcher was very important to the team to succeed. When I reached the 6
th
grade, I was old
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enough to play tackle football. After one game of organized league play I was hooked. Being
able to play on a team with other kids that have the same goal of winning games made this the
sport that I focused on all through high school. The added bonus of football was being able to
blow off steam or built up aggression and not have to worry about getting in trouble.
During High School, i looked into joining the military and decided on joining the
Army National Guard. I chose the guard because it allowed me to serve my country but still live
in Idaho. I attended basic training between my junior and senior year of high school. While there,
I learned a great deal about discipline and respect. I learned how to be responsible and take care
of myself. After starting a family and leaving the guard, I started picking up on some hobbies.
These hobbies include camping, hunting and fishing, and softball. I have begun teaching my own
children these hobbies so that they can have a lifetime of enjoying the outdoors. This is
especially needed in the generations of today as the kids are too involved in technology. I enjoy
playing softball as this keeps my competitive spirit burning and allows for physical activity. The
outdoors is a great place to be to get away from the everyday stresses and relax.
I believe that these hobbies and extra-curricular activities have helped me become
the person I am today. I think that the skills that I have learned throughout my life, will be very
beneficial in the classroom. The skills of respect and discipline will help with keeping a
classroom attentive and wanting to learn. Along with these skills I feel that the competitive side
of me will drive me to want to do a better job teaching each and every day.
Reasons for choosing education as a career
I first started considering a career in education when I was in high school. My father is a
teacher and has been since I was in the fourth grade. I would often go to his class and help with
the resource students when I got the chance. I also have spent some time peer tutoring in the
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elementary schools and enjoyed this very much. I think I got inspired by some very nice teachers
when I was very young. Teaching is a good way to give back to society for giving me the
opportunity to have an education and a pleasant life. This may sound a little selfish, but being
with children has positively influenced me as well. How? They always remind me that there's so
many things I should be thankful for and should appreciate. I'm always reminded to say 'please',
'thank you' and 'you're welcome', that I can still be silly even though I'm already a grown up and
many other things that I neglect most of the time. The final determination as to why I chose a
career in education came after I had children of my own.
I am pretty sure that I never saw a career in the education field as my first choice. My
first choices would have been law enforcement related or being an auto mechanic. I gave up on
the law enforcement career after seeing the odd hours that are worked and the lack of time they
get to spend with their families. In regards to automotive mechanic, I have signed up three times
to attend schools that specialize in the industry. The first time that I did this was when I was
twenty, again when I was 22, and the last being when I was 25. I decided against it as the schools
were all day schools and with a family I would have a hard time providing for them.
I know that there is not a whole lot of recognition or notoriety that comes from a career in
education and especially not for teachers. The kind of rewards that I am anticipating are not
those that are trophies and medals but knowing that I have changed lives for the better and
helped someone become a better person. The reward of seeing a student master a concept that at
the beginning of the year they couldnt even grasp is going to be great. The only accolade comes
years later when a student graduates from high school and moves on to college or a career of
their choice.

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Professional Goals
I have a few long term goals that I am looking forward to achieving. One of these goals is
to find a career that I can be happy doing. I do not want to have to go to work and go through the
motions, collecting a paycheck for my time. I would rather have a career were I can be excited
about what I am doing and although the paycheck is necessary, It is not my number one priority.
Knowing that I can make a difference in what I am doing is also key in being happy and part of
my long term goals. This is the reason that I have elected to pursue a career in education, and in
particular, elementary education.
Until the time arrives that I can begin my career, I have a few short term goals that I will
work on to help me reach the long term goals. The first goal that I am currently working on is
obtaining my associates degree. The spring semester of last year was my first semester back in
college and I am doing it all online. I know that I have approximately a year and a half left still
after this semester but I know that I am going to have to move soon to attend classes in a
traditional setting. I wish that I could continue doing the online classes though.
After I complete my Associates Degree, I have a goal of attending Boise State University
to complete my Bachelors Degree. I have always liked the University and decided a long time
ago that if I ever was going to get a bachelors degree that I would go here. To help me
accomplish this goal, I have been waiting for a job opening with my current employer in the
Boise area so that I can be closer to the school when I am ready to attend. I also have a
contingency plan in case this one does not develop, which is to give up on the goal of Boise
State. If I cannot get up to the Boise area, I will stay here in Twin Falls and attend the distance
education offered here at the College of Southern Idaho by Idaho State University.