About two years ago, I took a pledge to uphold the four ideals of Kappa Delta Pi, Fidelity to Humanity, Science, Service, and Toil. Each ideal has played and plays a critical part of who I am as a Kappa Delta Pi member and future educator.
The central ideal of fidelity to Humanity is defined as faith in the potential of all human beings, through education, to experience more meaningful lives. If every single child around the world had access to a free public education that meet and fulfilled their individual needs, think about the world we could live in. Maybe the child who lives in a country that requires students to pay for their education but stays uneducated due to the lack of money. Maybe that child has the potential to provide medical care or education for their home. About four years ago, I traveled to a rural village in Ghana, Africa where an education is not affordable by the vast majority of families. While we were there we learned their culture, language, and really got to know the kiddos. As I set in a classroom one day working with some students I noticed how egger and excited these students were to learn even though the majority of the students were not always provided an education that allowed them to reach their potential. From that moment on I knew the profession I wanted to enter into. I chose to become a teacher because I believe in the ideal of fidelity to Humanity. That every person is born with a potential and education is the key to unlocking their potential. I deeply believe that every single student is capable of succeeding in anything they put their mind to. It is our job as teachers to provide the tools and skills that allow students to reach their highest potential.
The next ideal, Science, is considered a field of study concerned with discovering and describing the physical and natural world through observation and experiment. Often times when we think of science we limit our thoughts to scientific subjects such as: biology, chemistry, physics, ect. However, as the very definition points out, the field of education is also concerned with discovering and describing our student’s educational and/or behavioral progress though observation and experiment. The observation being formative and summative testing, while, the experimentation is our adjustment to lessons in order to help students reach the desired outcome. Just like other fields of scientific study, teachers too track data in order to draw conclusions about student learning. This last summer, I worked as a behavioral specialist in a children’s respite care center. My job was to monitor and record my observations about student behavior related to their individual goals specified in their Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP). By using the data collected, as a team, we revaluated every two weeks to determine student interventions and supports that helped the student reach their behavioral goal. Though this job I had numerous amounts of experience using data in order to determine instructional needs for the students I was working with, just as I will do when I am a certified teacher.
The third ideal, service, is considered the act of helping another person. Service teaches empathy and respect toward others by putting their needs before oneself. I believe it is a critical part of education in order to create a community that encourages one another. Though Kappa Delta Pi, I serve by helping during T-shirt sales and the initiation ceremony. On my swim team, I serve by providing support and assistance in academics. In the cedar valley community, I serve at the Food Bank and by working with kids who have special needs through the spectrum project.
The last ideal, toil, means to work extremely hard or incessantly. The numerous organizations and service activities in which I am actively involved in, combined with my academic performance provides a picture of how hard of a worker I am. When I commit to an activity or organization I truly give it my all. I want to be successful in all I do and I believe success follows hard work. As the saying goes “what you put in, is what you get out.”
By being an active member of Kappa Delta Pi for about two years now, has provided me with educational opportunities and fellowship among those dedicated to teaching. While I did not know what Kappa Delta Pi was all about at first, I am grateful that I jumped right in and took advantage of my membership because it has positively impacted me as a future educator.
