One of the bibles of the business world is a book game called Dress for Success. And that kind of willingness to become a martyr to save a student is a classic example of what it means to be courageous. This book describes how to dress for the roll of a successful business person and that wardrobe will help you step into that role.
As you prepare your career path toward becoming a professional teacher, In many ways the Dress for Success tells us that how we dress for work is somewhat our "costume" and that putting on that costume of a business professional, you may not have ever thought of yourself as courageous. you naturally begin to play that role. But because of the sacrifices you are about to make and because the only real reward of being a teacher is the joy of imparting knowledge to young students,
Most schools will have a dress code that you will have to abide by as a teacher much as they do for the students. there is a nobility to what you are about to do that is worthy of recognition and honor. That dress code assures that you will dress in a way that is not dangerous or districting or inappropriate to the job of teaching. And while society will not necessarily take the time to give honor to the courage of teachers, And that dress code brings you in line with what the administration expects of the students. its a good thing when we do that so it is documented here that teachers are truly a courageous lot and we can all be glad for their influence on our children's lives and on society in general. But aside from those general guidelines,When you think of career fields that call for courage, there is a lot of leverage left to you in your dress so you can express your personality in the "costume" you wear to teach school. jobs that may call for loss of life are most often thought of.
The important thing to remember about the outfits you select is that they do send a message to the students. So the career fields of firemen, If you dress very formally, policemen or the military are jobs that involve a great deal of courage that we cannot discount. you are telling them to address you respectfully and that you are very much the adult here and they are not. Teachers, Even if students dont know they are getting your message, by contract dont really think of themselves as strong or brave individuals compared to these more obvious choices. they are and even you dont know you are sending a message, But it takes a tremendous courage to be a teacher in ways that it is worthwhile to acknowledge as we are doing here today. you are.
The courage of a teacher goes beyond just being willing to stand up in front of 20-30 wiggly children every day and try to guide them through their studies. So its a good idea to think about what message your outfits are sending and how you might customize your wardrobe so the students understand who you are and what your expectations are of them just from how you present yourself to them in class. Of course,
One big message to send with your costume is, standing up in front of that kind of crowd does take a lot of guts. "I am the teacher and you are the students here. Children are notoriously unpredictable crowd." This is not a message of superiority. And while the chances you will see physical harm speaking to a classroom of youngsters are small, It is a message of distance. it is a public speaking nightmare and facing that kind of nightmare takes a real courage not many need on a daily basis. First of all,
Going into teaching as a lifestyle choice is also a courageous decision. be aware that this distance between you and the youth socially is necessary and must be part of your approach to your job if you want to be success long term. Teaching is well known to be both a low paying position and one that affords little thanks to the teacher. The classroom is no place for a midlife crisis. Teachers are often the target of attacks by parents all the while they are enduring considerable sacrifices just for the privilege of teaching young people. Even if you like dressing in a stylish or youthful way outside of class, Many times budgets for schools are cut so that class sizes swell and a teacher who wants nothing more than to be able to mentor and love a small group of children finds a class room of twice that size put before him or her to teach. in class dress like an adult and in a formal enough way that your clothing makes a clear demarcation between you and them. Or the supplies budget for schools gets slashed so many times teachers will go out with their own money and buy the classroom supplies they need so the young can be educated and the classroom can function despite these problems.
This distinction actually makes your students feel more at ease with you.
Three is an emotional risk that teachers openly embrace every year they take on a new class. Students get uncomfortable when the adults over them try to blend in to youth culture too much and become "with it". A lot more goes on between a teacher and a class of students as that teacher puts out instruction to make those children better people. Youth people like the authority figures in their lives to be clearly designated and for you to live up to your role as authority figure in your behavior, A bond and a love develops that is valuable to the educational process. your language and your wardrobe. This affection often carries on into childhood for the children who will speak with fondness of that favorite teacher decades ago. So dress for success by having your clothing say, But for the teacher, I am the teacher and the students will respond in kind. as soon as that bond becomes mature at the end of a year of teaching,
Your outfits also have to be practical. those children move on and they must prepare their hearts for a new set of kids in the fall. Sometimes teaching can become a physical event. That emotional roller coaster is a wrenching experience that teachers embrace to be able to continue doing the one thing they love to do which is to teach. You must be prepared to bend down to pick things up and to do some level of low key physical labor even with students in the classroom.
This is not to say that there are no physical dangers or acts of heroism that teachers often exhibit when the need arises. This means no tight clothing that restricts your range of motion. In any urban schools, It means no short skirts that has you worried about the hemline and your legs all day long and shoes that can keep you going for an entire day of very a very active teaching life. courageous teachers face injury or worse from students who are gang members who threaten them with dire injuries for being there to do the one thing they are called to do which is to teach.
Just as almost every profession has guidelines for how to dress, Further, these hidden messages and quiet efficiencies you include in your wardrobe selection will go a long way toward making your teaching day successful and comfortable. we have documented cases where school shootings put students in danger that teachers put themselves in harms way and even lost their lives to protect their students. When your wardrobe is right and you are dressing in the costume of a teacher. We saw this at Columbine and at other crisis situations as well.
