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My first call to the profession began in Grade 8, when my teacher
made learning enjoyable. He was able to explain scientific
concepts, such as aerodynamics, in a fun way. His lessons both
interested and encouraged me to learn. He asked all the students to
make paper air planes and with our hands-on experience, he explained
why some planes flew better than others. He is still an inspiration
to me, although he is retired now.
Teaching is in my blood. Many
of my family members are teachers. My father was formally an
educator and my mother still teaches today. Even my wife and her
parents are educators. We have great discussions at the dinner
table and I can bounce new and old ideas off them. I am surrounded
by excellent role models, who have shown me the path to
self-fulfillment in teaching.
The profession will always have
its ups and downs. Many people outside the profession often do not
see the value of educators or the impact they have. Teaching means
the world to me especially when I see my students eyes light up -
when they really understand something that I taught.
One of the major concerns I have
is the amount of funds that are being removed from the education
sector. This concern is a national one. Colleagues in other
provinces have also expressed the need for education funds to be
brought back into the classroom. When money is taken out of the
education sector, dedicated teachers are making up the difference
from their own pockets. I really cannot give you an exact number,
but I spend hundreds of dollars each year on classroom resources,
materials, and teaching supplies. It's about time something is done
about it.
I thought long and hard about
what I could do to help other teachers like myself. The answer
seemed to fall into my lap. I received a letter from a publishing
company that was giving away a free teachers guide at their
website. So I checked it out. Their website led me to other
resources on the internet and my bookmarks continued to grow. I
began talking to a web site manager. She encouraged me to continue
with my ideas for free stuff for Canadian teachers. This web site
was born out of those ideas.
I can help teachers connect to
those free resources that are available to them and feel that I
have created a valuable service to the Canadian Education
Community. I really hope that you find this site helpful and if you
have suggestions and comments to improve, please let me know.
Quentin D'Souza
I am a Teacher with the T.C.D.S.B..
I have also published
an article and book review in Professionally Speaking.
(March, September, December 2000) A journal that is distributed to
members of the Ontario College of Teachers (30, 000 +). You can view
the online version of "Searching
for Canadian Educational Content On The Internet", "Taking
Your Kids Online", "Teaching
Kits For The Classroom." |
