More Than the Classroom: The Teacher’s Wider Role

Teaching is a multi-faceted occupation which includes so much more than simply creating the next lesson plan.

Teachers are part of a larger school team of staff and sometimes the duties extend far beyond your comfort zone.

Maybe you thought that you would just be in your classroom shaping the minds and educating the children in your care? If that was our only job, teaching would be a piece of cake!

Below are a few possible situations where you might be put on the spot to do things above and beyond just teaching in the classroom.

Be The Coach

Sometimes, when a fresh-out-of-college prospective teacher is interviewing for a position with a school district, they will ask you during the interview if you would be interested in coaching a sport. If you really want that teaching position, then the answer is always yes. Schools are often in need of coaches for their teams. And you should feel good about them asking because that means they are strongly considering you for the teaching spot.

You may be thinking that you have no experience in that certain sport to offer the kids or the school to make that team better. But sometimes it does not matter. The school just wants to make sure you are up for the challenge, and they are interested in whether you are a team player. 

Of course, if you have skills in this area and are keen to make a good impression don’t forget to mention it on your resume or application.

Volunteer Your Time

Teachers are expected to volunteer their time during the school year. There are several circumstances that usually come up. Parents sometimes ask for tutoring for their child from the classroom teacher. Someone needs to watch detention or study hall now and then. Perhaps another teacher is struggling with technology, so a volunteer is needed to assist them. This type of volunteering happens early and often every week of the school year. And if you are a team player, then you definitely want to volunteer before you eventually get recruited to do it and you don’t have a choice.

Once I was asked to volunteer for my school district in a wrestling match! A small professional wrestling organization was putting on a show to raise money for the school district. They thought if a teacher entered their battle royal and fought 20 other wrestlers all at once, the students and their families would go crazy for it. This would result in higher ticket sales and more money for the district.

It ended with me performing in front of over a thousand people on a Saturday night in a wrestling ring. As a teacher, you never know which circumstances you will be placed in and what you will be asked to do!

Be a Public Speaker

Many teachers will tell you that speaking in front of a classroom of kids is one thing, but getting up in front of a roomful of adults is something entirely different. So if your public speaking skills need a bit of help, make sure you seek it out before Welcome to School Night, school assemblies, and other times where you will be placed in front of a lot of people at a moment’s notice!

A Role Model for the Community

As a teacher, you may have already noticed that once you are out and about in the community, all eyes are upon you. Maybe it is former students that are watching you and wanting to say hello. Sometimes it is the parents of the kids at school who notice you. Whatever the case, you always have to conduct yourself appropriately. With the addition of social media, one wrong move could be plastered online for thousands to read. You may think I am exaggerating and believe people have much better things to worry about than a teacher at their school, but have you seen social media lately?

Being an educator means also being a role model for everyone around you. It is a duty that should not be taken lightly. Some of your students may not have adequate parental figures in their lives, so by just being a good person in and out of the public eye, you are influencing more kids than you will ever know. There are extra things that go along with being a teacher, and we may be placed in uncomfortable situations, but it is not anything that we cannot handle!

Written by Ryan Crawley

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