Education commissioner fields questions from Byron students considering teaching careers
Sep. 7—BYRON — A high school student raised her hand with a question for the highest ranking education professional in the state. The student wanted to know how the education system could help students with disabilities — students like herself. She went on to describe herself as having "a lot of neurological issues" including Tourettes.
"I grew up in a lot of different schools and none of them really gave the help I needed," she said. "I want to know how you're helping kids with issues like mine."
Minnesota Department of Education Commissioner Heather Mueller was answering questions in a Byron classroom. The class was Introduction to Education, a college-level course allowing students to earn some credits in their high school environment. Mueller was lending some insight into what a career in education would look like.
Yes, the class was introductory and none of the students were guaranteed to actually become teachers. But they did represent the upcoming generation of people who could be teaching in classrooms. And as such, they had questions about what that future might look like.
Another student wanted to know about handling burnout. A third wanted to know what it would take to get more teachers in the field.
Mueller talked about the need to develop pathways for future teachers; she talked about the need to create mentorship programs to nurture young educators.
In response to the one student's question about helping those with disabilities, Mueller talked about the need to build systems that benefit individual students and address their individual needs.
She spoke about what has motivated her to keep going. She said that's a message worth sharing.
"We need to do a better job of telling this story, and talking about why we chose education: the good, the bad and the ugly," Mueller said.
Like many fields, the pandemic greatly impacted the education world. Gallup released a poll in June, showing 44% of employees in K-12 education either "always" or "very often" feel burned out. That percentage increases to more than half among teachers specifically: 52%.
For those looking at a future in education, those numbers can seem grim. Mueller said the students, based on their questions, wanted to know why they should go into teaching. Among the myriad of options available to them, they were looking for a justification for the career.
That's partly why Mueller was there — to help create the next generation of teachers who in turn will influence the next generation of students. She was trying to help provide the "why" they were looking for.
She clarified that not everyone in education is a teacher.
"I hope that they choose to be in the space of education," Mueller said. "And it doesn't only have to be in a classroom setting. There are so many things that make education work on a daily basis."
