Hi Everyone,
Welcome to my journey as an aspiring teacher. This blog will highlight all the emotions, experiences and reflections on the path to becoming a high school teacher.
The reality is I am definitely not ready to teach. In fact, I did not even think about teaching as a profession until recently. However somewhere along the road to starting this course I had hints about what I really was interested in. I remember reading an article once in the Reader’s Digest about Lou Anne Johnson when I was in year 10. The one thing that I learned from the article was that Lou Anne managed to motivate her students through a level of understanding and compassion. I was delighted when I realized that this story had been adapted into a Hollywood film called Dangerous Minds(1995) written by Lou Ann Johnson and Ronald Bass. The film has been directed by John N Smith and distributed by Hollywood Pictures in the USA. The opening scene has been provided below from Youtube.
This opening scene really shows how as teachers we can really underestimate what type of students we are going to receive. In particular the contrast between the two classrooms is quite evident. It is quite a feat when she does manage to control her classroom and this just opens up questions of how I am going to control my classroom.
Teaching Chronicles 
Jasothini I think you are very corageous in saying you are not ready to teach. But I think you are wrong as I think you are engaging in emotional reasoning. You are felling anxious about the prospect of teaching in a matter of weeks (as we all are) and this anxiety is telling you you are not ready. I find you to be articulate and forthright in your opionions and I think these qualities will make you a fine teacher.
I think you are spot on in sayijng that a level of understanding and compassion is required for effective teaching. I think it goes to the heart of the provocation “Do we teach students or subjects”. I totally agree with you and believe that a level of rapport is a useful prerequisite to effective teaching.
It is a very good movie. Your post made me hire it again. Now I just have to find the time to watch it amidst all our assessment requirements.