During college, my plan was always to be a scientist: to get my doctorate and work full time in a research lab. I loved studying biology, with all its diversity, beauty, and balance. There were so many exciting lessons to be learned, and I wanted to be a part of helping to create and discover new knowledge. After a year of graduate school, however, I realized that research wasn’t what I had expected it to be – and I realized that what I had enjoyed the most all along was the time I had spent acting as the teaching assistant for a freshman chemistry laboratory course during my last two years of college. Because of the nature of the course, I didn’t get to spend much time teaching lessons directly, but I did get to have a lot of one-on-one time with students when they came to me with concerns or problems during the experiments. Of course, some students only ever wondered things like “will this be on the exam?” or “do I have to memorize this equation?” But I was always happy when they came up with questions beyond the immediate scope of the laboratory – things they weren’t required to know for the class, that they would never be tested on, but that they generally wanted to understand more about. I also enjoyed helping them discuss and plan their academic careers; since I was two or three years down the path they were currently taking, I could tell them what classes they would learn the most from and what professors would help them succeed the best.

I loved science, and I had begun to recognize the profound pleasure I found in helping students understand, appreciate, and apply science on their own. I realized that what I really wanted to do was teach.

Besides simply enjoying helping students to understand the facts of science, I also feel it is very important that students have an appreciation for what science and technology can do, and for the usefulness of the scientific method itself. I think that these things are an important factor in being able to function in our increasingly science and technology-dependent society. Being able to use reason and process information scientifically using empirical evidence is a critical part of being able to participate in modern democracy – a part that is too often lacking in young adults today. In addition, it is becoming more and more important for people to have a solid scientific background in order to evaluate the information they receive from media and government outlets, if they are to be able to form a valid and informed opinion on it. I would like to do what I can to ensure that students are appropriately equipped to deal with such problems as may arise in their daily lives, at their jobs, or in future academic work, with the best possible critical thinking skills, data collection, and factual knowledge.

Even though I didn’t feel scientific research was the job for me, I still feel it is a very valuable field, and I would like to encourage in young students the drive and the curiosity necessary for such a career. Laying the foundation for the years of work, both experimental- and class-wise, needs to begin in secondary school in order for students to be prepared for a rigorous undergraduate schedule and a lifetime of laboratory work. Despite leaving my graduate program without a degree, I am glad to have the experience – not only to better understand the process of science and the details of factual knowledge, but also to be able to advise my students on exactly what a scientist does and how he or she goes about doing it. Even if I don’t get to teach the next Einstein or Curie or Crick, it would be nice to know that I have helped children find a career they are excited by.