For the Love of Learning

Scott Hayden, an American composer, once said that “teachers have three loves: love of learning, love of learners, and the love of bringing the first two loves together.” This is a perfect description of my goal when it comes to education.

Educators can have a powerful and positive influence on a young person’s life. They can encourage them to try their best and pursue their dreams. When I first started the application process for the Masters of Arts in Education, my ultimate goal was to engage and inspire all students and ultimately foster lifelong learning. Or in other words, bringing those first two loves together. Achieving this goal, in my mind, would have the biggest impact on a student’s future because when people have the desire to learn, they can achieve remarkable things. Continuing my education would not only allow me to model this idea of continuing to learn and grow, it would also give me the information, techniques, and resources to reach all of my students. I would be able to achieve my goal of encouraging students to continue their education, their learning, beyond high school.

It’s no secret, technology is an essential part of today’s society; I recognized this then and I recognize it now. It is an applicable life skill and it gives educators the opportunity to be diverse in curriculum and instruction. During the COVID-19 pandemic, educators across the country were forced to turn solely to technology to deliver content. I had little training in how to conduct a virtual classroom and had to learn on my feet. In anticipation of continuing virtual learning in the future, my district implemented a new learning management system and I spent much of that summer learning how to use it effectively. After this experience, my original goal was to learn the best way to implement technology for the purpose of virtual learning. During my experience in this program, I realized that, while it is important to be able to utilize technology for distance learning purposes, there is plenty of room for technology in all realms of education and not just in the virtual classroom.

I am now in the final semester of my Masters of Arts in Education program. I have learned a great deal and even though my goals have not changed much, I do believe they have grown and expanded beyond their original intent. I am now looking at the bigger picture. Education is my passion and as an educator, I know there is always room for improvement. My overall goal has grown, it has expanded into this idea that it is all for the love of learning, theirs and mine.