Claire YerkeyClaire Yerkey is currently a student at the University of Illinois majoring in Elementary Education, minoring in Spanish, and getting an endorsement in Spanish in effort to become a bilingual teacher in the future. A few extracurriculars she participates in here at UIUC are the Marching Illini and the Illini Navigators. She has been volunteering at the Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club since October of 2015 and has enjoyed working as a tutor at Kumon Math and Reading Center since December of 2015. Having the opportunity to explore her passion for education has been such a great experience at UIUC. She has always gotten such joy out of helping others, specifically teaching others and supporting them on their journey to find their personal talents and to act on their desire to learn.
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Student Voices with Claire Yerkey
On Why She Chose Education
Ever since I was a little girl, I always loved helping people. It gave me this great joy that I couldn’t find in anything else I did in my life. Being in the school system, I thought about how much teachers help others and the amount of people they are able to help year after year. If a teacher has about 25 students in their classroom, they impact 100 students in just four years. And that’s just a direct impact. The students aren’t the only ones impacted through their instruction. The students’ families are affected, the community is affected, and the people that all of these people interact with in the future are affected just through one teacher. I thought, and still think, that teachers have the most important job in the world.
I hope to establish a solid foundation for the education of all my students and make a positive impact on my students and community. Wanting to teach specifically 1st and 2nd grade, I will be able to access the beginning of children’s learning potential. With this role, I will strive to create an understanding and a drive in them to learn more about themselves and who they can become.
All of my elementary teachers have reinforced my dream to become a teacher. The job of teacher is so influential but more importantly, a teacher possesses the power to create a learning atmosphere that is creative, and thus an interest in education is instilled in children. Something about working in a grey cubicle for hours on end causes me to want to run away screaming. But all of my elementary school teachers had such creative rooms that always made me want to learn more. The difference between my middle school teachers really showed me what kind of teacher I wanted to be, one driven with passion and positivity instead of just lecturing in the classroom. My high school teachers really showed me the importance of having good relationships with one’s students, specifically my performing arts teachers. Picking one or a few teachers that influenced me is extremely difficult—all of the teachers I’ve had have impacted me in different ways, shaping me in different ways. All of them have showed me different teaching styles, different ways to rule your classroom, different learning environments. Honestly, first impressions of a teacher’s classroom can influence one’s view of the class and the teacher immensely.
Through all of the things I have learned from my teachers, I hope to be the teacher that has an invigorating, respected, fun classroom atmosphere. I want to create an environment that the students look forward to coming to and stimulates their want to learn. I want my students to see how much I love them and how much goodwill and prosperity I hope for their futures. If I can create a classroom that generates learning through love, I know I will be doing what I am supposed to do in this world.
I hope to establish a solid foundation for the education of all my students and make a positive impact on my students and community. Wanting to teach specifically 1st and 2nd grade, I will be able to access the beginning of children’s learning potential. With this role, I will strive to create an understanding and a drive in them to learn more about themselves and who they can become.
All of my elementary teachers have reinforced my dream to become a teacher. The job of teacher is so influential but more importantly, a teacher possesses the power to create a learning atmosphere that is creative, and thus an interest in education is instilled in children. Something about working in a grey cubicle for hours on end causes me to want to run away screaming. But all of my elementary school teachers had such creative rooms that always made me want to learn more. The difference between my middle school teachers really showed me what kind of teacher I wanted to be, one driven with passion and positivity instead of just lecturing in the classroom. My high school teachers really showed me the importance of having good relationships with one’s students, specifically my performing arts teachers. Picking one or a few teachers that influenced me is extremely difficult—all of the teachers I’ve had have impacted me in different ways, shaping me in different ways. All of them have showed me different teaching styles, different ways to rule your classroom, different learning environments. Honestly, first impressions of a teacher’s classroom can influence one’s view of the class and the teacher immensely.
Through all of the things I have learned from my teachers, I hope to be the teacher that has an invigorating, respected, fun classroom atmosphere. I want to create an environment that the students look forward to coming to and stimulates their want to learn. I want my students to see how much I love them and how much goodwill and prosperity I hope for their futures. If I can create a classroom that generates learning through love, I know I will be doing what I am supposed to do in this world.