The Secret Lives of Teachers

Dear Colleagues,

This past Saturday, NPR kicked off a new series called The Secret Lives of Teachers, designed to honor teachers who have another job or passion outside of teaching. “So where do they go, all the teachers, when the bell rings at 3 o'clock?” the NPR story leads.  In many states, more than 20% of educators have a second job. And in adult education, the vast majority of adult educators are part-time.

My question to you is — do you have a secret life outside of teaching?

The concept behind the NPR series is that teachers are rarely viewed by students as doing anything else but teaching. And when you’re a kid, at least, you only think of teachers as going home, “maybe, to grade papers and plan lessons and think up pop quizzes.” Yet some teachers have entirely different careers, hats, or hobbies, while others have a life that may be an extension of their teaching, like art teachers creating art. (See this first NPR story for an example.)

So as an adult educator, do you have a (not so) secret life outside of teaching? If so, what do you do? Do you find that this time you spend has a connection to your time in the classroom, and if so, in what way(s)?

Looking forward,

Jackie

Jackie Taylor

EBPD Group SME

Comments

At least one weekend a month, I become "Solveig Eiriksdottir, called Goldenleaf" a Norse woman born in 966, for whom it is currently the year 1014.  Having lived through a number of adventures in my life (including a fosterage as a ladies maid in Ireland and piracy/kidnapping on the high seas near Spain), I have settled in the countryside near York, England, holding property and managing wool production for the local Baroness.

My 'secret life' is participation in a medieval re-creation group called the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA for short).  http://welcome.sca.org/about/. The SCA is a world-wide practical history society, recreating the arts and skills of pre-17th century Europe. Participants recreate/study nearly every facet of life from our period, approximately 400 - 1601 CE, building skills in areas such as archery, calligraphy, cooking, armoring, metalworking, carpentry, and needlework (to name just a few)  and experience celebration activities such as tournaments, royal courts, feasts, and dancing.  The SCA is welcomes all ages (my 7 year old is Solveig Solveigsdottir until she chooses to change it) and levels of interest/participation.  I have been involved in this group since I was 12 (in the Kingdom of the East, then Shire of Fenbryge - New England/Storrs CT) and have lived in the Kingdom of Meridies (southeastern US), Barony of Thor's Mountain (Knoxville, TN) since I was 18.

As a 501c3 "educational organization" the SCA is committed to assisting others to learn about this time period in history - working to dispel many myths created by Hollywood ;)  In our local area, participate in talks and demonstrations of medieval life held for K-12 students and youth groups at least 2-3 times a year.  In addition, we join in on other events that benefit the arts and culture in our community - such as the local Opera company street fair, and  2nd Harvest (foodbank) fundraisers.  Within the SCA itself, we regularly hold classes for one another - sharing our skills and knowledge of Medieval topics. For the past 6 years I have helped to organize classes at a week-long annual "war" in Mississippi with 3000-5000 attendees. So yes, on my vacation, I coordinate teachers and students to come together for over 500 classes in 8 different areas of the site - and even teach a few classes in spinning, weaving and dyeing myself (when I am not throwing spears and axes at the target range).

Besides the similarity/overlap to the professional development work in my "regular life," I think the activities in the SCA help me stay grounded in the needs of adult learners.  Everyone is welcome in classes and at events, and learning needs to start where they are, be of interest to them, and tends to be best when there is a hands-on element.  As an all volunteer organization, we tend to favor an "on the job training" model for running various parts of events and local activities. (How else do you learn how to cook a feast of 27 medieval dishes and 4 "removes" for 200 people?). My secret life helps me remember that the adults we serve can and do have full and rich lives, despite their barriers. In the SCA I have encountered adults who:

  • have a severe learning disability in reading, but by listening to others can memorize whole monologues needed for a medieval puppet show.
  • have been diagnosed with ADHD, but through hands-on demonstrations can make a solid wooden viking toolbox with only hand tools.
  • are unemployed, but are still able to serve as an inspirational leader (King) to an entire region of the US.

Entertainingly, I hated "history" in high school - but this isn't history, this is *interesting*.

 

Jackie, Duren and others,

In my other life I am a musician, a percussionist. In the 1970's I co-founded a folk music band that still exists, the Gloucester Hornpipe and Clog Society http://hornpipe.org. Now we only do a couple of concerts a year, but for many years we performed several times a month, and over time we have made several CD recordings and YouTube videos. We have performed mostly in New England, but were twice invited to play at the International Folk Festival in Letterkenny, Donegal, Ireland. The second time we tied for second place in a competition, performing a wildly popular Scott Joplin rag.  You may be amused to know, Duren, that for many years we performed at the King Richard's Renaissance Faire in Massachusetts, where we were cheek to jowl with re-enactors, bawdy wenches, and sword swallowers. I am also the world's foremost pogocellist.  http://hornpipe.org/how_to_make_a_pogocello/  (It's not hard to excel in a field where there may be as many as a half dozen competitors.) The pogocello performance highlight for me, however, was in Ireland when dozens of children followed me around from stage to stage, much like being drawn to a pied piper -- or at least that's what a local TV news show there called me.

This makes me curious to know how many other adult educators are visual or performing artists. Don't be shy. Let us know. Are the arts the secret life of adult educators -- or is adult basic education the secret life of artists?

David J. Rosen

djrosen123@gmail.com

Hey all

Good to see this thread.  My other life has become more of my main life in recent years.  After completing Conflicting Paradigms in Adult Literacy Education in 2005 I shifted over to my other passion, contemporary Protestant theology.  The result is I began working on a book, which has finally come to fruition this month in In Quest of a Vital Protestant Center.  Information about that book can be accessed here: (https://wipfandstock.com/store/In_Quest_of_a_Vital_Protestant_Center_An_Ecumenical_Evangelical_Perspective).  Like Conflicting Paradigms, I don't view this more recent book as a K-Mart blockbuster, but I do expect it to have an influence where it is intended to have one.

So that's my secret life away from adult basic education where I remain active at the local level in San Diego. :Let's hear some other tales.

George Demetrion

Hi everyone, 

I've been an ABE program director for15 years. Prior to that I taught ESL. In addition to my life as an education administrator, I have other passions. One of them is philosophy which I think has been important in shaping the programs that I have overseen for many years. My other passion is cycling. Another thing that I love to do is painting, and, my cycling hobby is reflected in my artwork. Here is alink to some of my artwork: http://www.flickr.com/photos/25224248@N05/sets/72157611453345957/show/.

I hope I get to see some of you at COABE next yea

Andres 

 

This is a great discussion thread Jackie!  So great to hear about all these secret skills and interests of other folks n adult education.

My secret life comes on eight wheels and includes jammers and blockers and helmets and mouth guards.  An important part of my life outside of adult education work is being a major fan of women's flat track roller derby.  I tried out a couple of times to be on the local team and took part in a recreational league until I fell one too many times, so now I am just a fan.  I should mention that as I live in New York City, my local team is the Gotham Girls Roller Derby and they happen to be the international champions of women's flat track roller derby so I am honored to have tried out and not gotten on the team.

Women's flat track roller derby of today came into being in the 2001 in Texas and there are now over 273 leagues around the world.  Unlike the roller derby of the 70's this roller derby is skated on a flat track and doesn't have quite the world federation wrestling aspects of roller derby from the 70's.  Most skaters choose to adopt a roller derby name that reflects toughness or speed.  If  I was skating, my name would be some variation of Death KNell, Bat out of Nell, Nell on Wheels.....

I head to Nashville for the international championships at the end of October--hopefully to see the Gotham Girls take the Hydra trophy for the 5th time. You can stream the championship bouts -- learn more here: http://wftda.com/tournaments/2014/championships 

Rolling with it,

Nell

Hello all,

Thank you to Duren Thompson, David Rosen, Andres Muro, George Demetrion, and Nell Eckersley for sharing about their work outside of the classroom or PD room! I’m fascinated at the diversity of work and volunteer work in which adult educators thrive. Please keep the posts coming!

In the spirit of building our own learning network and fostering connections among educators during Connected Educator Month, I’ll share about my secret life. Like Andres, I also am an avid road cyclist. I’m a trained biologist and science educator and through this work I took state park visitors on interpretive activities, including hiking and bicycling. I led day trips and was paid to ride in Bike Ride Across Tennessee (also known as “BRAT”) as a naturalist and “sweep” rider. Since that time I’ve ridden across the Colorado Rockies twice, and I lead rides in the Smoky Mountains for my local bike shop several times each week, averaging about 150 miles/week.

On my last business trip to Colorado this summer, I arranged to travel a day early and I rode my bicycle up my first “fourteener” – Mount Evans – which boasts to be the "highest paved road in North America".  The most difficult part was emerging out of the tree line at around 12,000 feet. It was the feeling of venturing into the unknown, without the safe harbor of the trees around me. So, one revolution at a time, I made it to 14,200 feet (albeit slowly!). When I reached the summit, I was astounded to see that the surrounding peaks in the immediate vicinity were a rock’s throw below me.

People ask me sometimes, “Isn’t it hard to breathe up there, let alone ride a bike at altitude?” I actually find it easier to breathe without all of the humidity we have at lower elevations. It’s just that I have to breathe more often! But among the benefits I gain most from cycling is the time for reflection. I see much of life experience mirrored in cycling. As with any change we as individuals make in life, cycling is challenging. It’s difficult – and can even be terrifying – to come out of our safe harbors, but we do so even if it’s only one step at a time. And once we do, once we reach that goal, that summit, our perspectives are forever changed. And I’m a better person, teacher, and mother, for it.