Let me tell you a story.
I almost got fired from the MTC.
I was hired in November of last year, and by January I was in the classroom as a lead teacher. As you know, it was really fun but I was a little terrified and overwhelmed at times. Along with my work at the MTC I was going through my first full semester of school since my mission and together the combination was a lot to handle. When I started in November, my expectation was to grow as a teacher and learn the fundamentals better than I ever had before. By February my expectation had changed. I wanted to survive. I arrived to work just on time, taught my class, and left. I appreciated training meetings but other than that I didn't think often about my teaching in the MTC. It was my job.
Lisanne pulled me into her office when I hit my three month mark. I don't know how much of the apprenticeship I had done, but I would guess that I had probably finished 25%, and I had only had Lisanne into my classroom once. We reviewed this together, and then Lisanne told me that if things didn't change, and if I didn't finish the apprenticeship, then I would be fired. I needed to finish 75% in four weeks or else I would be gone. This is how I managed to almost get fired from the MTC.
Next story.
This is why I didn't end up getting fired from the MTC.
Obviously after this convo with Lisanne I was terrified so I got onto the Google doc and started signing up and figuring out how I could get everything done. (Spoiler alert) I ended up finishing the apprenticeship after working 24 hours a week during the last month of school and almost died (I'm not asking for your sympathy, I'm saying don't be an idiot and put yourself in that situation). Though that was helpful and required, it was not the reason that I didn't end up getting fired from the MTC.
The reason that I didn't get fired was that with a month left I caught the vision of what I wanted to do as a MTC teacher and I took every resource possible to try to get there. This was a three part process that luckily happened quickly for me. First, I had to understand what I wanted to be. Second, I had to understand that I wasn't there yet. Third, I had to understand that it was going to take me FOREVER to get where I wanted to be on my own, and I needed help. All semester I had been thinking about my teaching. All semester I had been trying to improve. However, only with one month left did I realize that I needed the help of the Lord, Lisanne, Krys Gardner, and my zone coordinator Shane to get me where I needed to be. Suddenly I was motivated to be observed whenever possible. I loooooved watching Shane or Krys or Lisanne teach. I studied outside of the MTC and set personal goals for improvement every week. Finishing the apprenticeship became easy when I sincerely and almost aggressively wanted the feedback and help of those assigned to help me.
I sat down with Lisanne after four months and I didn't lose the job. I'm not telling you this so you see my as a shining example because I wasn't. My attitude at four months was the expectation all along. I didn't realize the joy in the journey until my last four weeks. I should have had that desire and sincerity and fire from the beginning. I should have realized that I couldn't get where I needed to be on my own.
I'm sending this to every new teacher in our zone. Some are being more proactive than others. I just hope that if any of you feel like you may be remotely close to where I was at, that you try to catch the vision for where you want to be, and then you reach out to all those that want to help you on a daily basis. I love being a teacher at the MTC. I always have new questions and ideas. I find myself studying them even when I'm not getting paid. We are not just in missionary work, but we are in the work of education, of human development, of communication, of leadership, and of changing lives. We're in the Lord's work. It's pretty big. That'll keep you busy right?
Anyway, I'm really grateful for all of you and I just want you to know how much help is available to you, and its given from the Lord who loves you. Have a great week!
-Sean
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