Student intern, Seth Allen said he knew he wanted to be a Spanish teacher since his junior year in high school.
Allen attends the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, majoring in Spanish, with a minor in secondary education and will graduate in May with his teaching license.
“By getting my minor in secondary education and going through all the processes, I’ll graduate with a teaching license,” Allen said.
Bryant was not Allen’s first choice for student teaching.
“I got to make requests; all of them were rejected,” Allen said. “I wasn’t particularly thrilled with the thought of driving 25 minutes every day in traffic to Bryant to come teach. I wanted to teach at Parkview; I wanted to teach at Central, but my adviser said, ‘No, there’s a really great Spanish teacher that I’d rather you go teach with in Bryant’. So it was chosen that I come here.”
In August, Allen started student teaching to get the required hours needed to get a teaching license. Anne Taulbee originally taught the class. When Taulbee left because her husband took a job out of state, Allen became the long-term sub. Allen said little has changed since Taulbee left.
“As far as Mrs. Taullbee leaving, it hasn’t had a major effect on my time,” Allen said. “While she was here, I was teaching classes full time, and when she left, I’m teaching class full time. The only real difference now is that I stay about an hour and a half later every day, to finish up grading and putting in grades.”
The best part about teaching is connecting with the students, Allen said.
“When I see the spark light, and I see that somebody understands,” Allen said. “While that’s great, that is the overall goal. My personal favorite part is connecting with them on a personal level. When I make someone laugh with something ridiculous, that’s my favorite part. When the students are having fun, I’m having fun. When they’re not, I’m in my head threatening to quit, feeling I need to do something different.”
Allen said he feels comfortable teaching here.
“I’ve actually been told by some of the other teachers in the foreign language department that I’m spoiled,” Allen said. “I think I’ve had an overwhelmingly good experience here, but they may have spoiled me just a tad.”
Once he receives his teaching license, Allen hopes to get a job here.
“It’s a great school district,” Allen said. “I already know all the policies now; I already know a lot of the students. That’s just a process I wouldn’t like to repeat again, having to learn a whole new batch of faces, not to mention professional connections.”
Allen said he will always be learning as a teacher.
“I doubt my own [language skills]. To my knowledge, Señora Maus and Señora Dees doubt their own language skills,” Allen said. “We’re always in a state of learning, and I think as a result of that, I feel like I’m in a constant state of learning in being a teacher as well. Not to mention the fact that I’m a novice. I’ve been at this for 13 weeks, so I will be learning for many years to come.”
