Passion is a term often associated with love or romanticism, but it isn’t always. Passion is merely a powerful or compelling emotion; a strong or extravagant fondness, enthusiasm, or desire for something. I think I could safely say that most of our students at IFS have a passion for either football or tennis. However, I would hope it doesn’t stop there. Having passion shouldn’t stop with your favourite sport or an activity you love. It’s important to have passion for life and love what you do every day.
Just this morning one of my Stage 4 students said to me, “Bec, why did you become a teacher? You’re at college your whole life!” Comments like this always make me laugh because when I was at college I would never have seen myself as a teacher and I am sure I would have said something similar to my teachers. For me, being a teacher comes down to a passion for learning. I love learning. As dorky as it sounds I watch documentaries in my spare time and thrive on finding out new information. I also pride myself on being able to recall this information, as irrelevant or necessary as it may be. Being a teacher isn’t always about teaching, it’s also about learning.
What does this have to do with passion? It’s about finding something you are avid about. After a series of unfortunate events I dropped out of my first university degree and decided to undertake a teaching degree. To be honest I wasn’t convinced to begin with. I thought it was the easy road out and uni didn’t really do much for me, but when I found myself in the classroom that was a whole different story. My first ‘prac’ was such an amazing experience; I absolutely loved it, it challenged me and I had to learn new ways to deal with these challenges. I found my passion.
I encourage our students to find something they are passionate about, create a life that makes them excited to get out of bed in the morning. Coming to college isn’t always fun, but when it is combined with something you love and are passionate about then it should make it that much more enjoyable.
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