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Running Head: Autobiographical Essay

Autobiographical Essay
Wesley Naylor
College of Southern Idaho

Author Note
This paper was prepared for Fundamentals of Education 201, C01W, Spring 2013, taught
by Professor Jonathan Lord.
Autobiographical Essay

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
Choosing the career that Im supposed to do for the rest of my working life was easy. Ive
never been wealthy, so I know that I can survive in this world with little money. So I asked
myself, what do I love to do? Ive always enjoyed being a student and learning new things. The
only thing I enjoy more than learning new things is passing on my knowledge to someone else.
This is why I know that I will be happy working as a professional educator for decades to come.
My educational background, work history, and extracurricular activities have influenced my
decision to become an educator as well as my goals to obtain my dream job.
Educational Background
My educational background is a major factor in my decision to become an educator. I
started and finished my k-12 education at the same place, Richfield School. It is a very small
school that averages ten to fifteen students per class. The building itself is L shaped with
kindergarten through sixth grade down one hall and junior high and high school down the other.
Going through the educational system in a small school definitely has its advantages in the social
aspect, but has major disadvantages in academics. Though most people would think that having a
great teacher to student ratio would make the academics great as well, this was not true in
Richfield. A low number of students meant a low budget for employing teachers. This low
budget brought in some awful teachers. One of my high school English teachers basically quit on
us half way through the semester, saying he didnt care to teach us anymore, and so he didnt.
Overall my k-12 educational experience was very unchallenging.
After graduating from high school I joined the Navy, this unlike high school, was very
challenging. I spent five years on active duty as a corpsman. This job choice came with an
endless amount of education, which I gladly accepted. I strived to get into as many courses I
could. These courses are much deferent then the average educational system. All military courses

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
are all day and sometimes night events that can last for months. My courses included: boot camp,
Corpsman School, ACLS, PALS, Supply training, Auxiliary Security Force, Tactical Combat
Casualty Care, Field Medical Training, Combat Medicine Training, Mountain Medicine,
Mountain Warrior, Marine Corps Martial Arts Program tan, grey, and green, & Combat Lifesaver
Instructor. Taking all of these courses made me realize how much I enjoy education, especially
the last course I took, which was the CLS instructor course. This was a two week education
course to prepare us to teach CLS to Marines.
Taking this short course on becoming an instructor helped me decide to pursue a degree
at CSI in physical education. My first semester of junior college was awesome. I truly loved
every class I had. It was a good start back into the academic world. I learned a lot and really got
back into the student mode with ease. I am currently in my second semester of junior college and
still enjoying every minute of it. Getting closer and closer to becoming an educator is definitely
exciting. I still have a long road of education ahead of me and Im okay with that.
Work History
Ive held many different jobs throughout my life. Every job Ive that Ive done has
influenced my development as an educator. Each job that I did required someone to teach me
how to do the task either while I was completing or beforehand. These experiences showed me
the differences a good educator can make compared to an inadequate one. I figured out at a very
early age that I need to see something done at least once before I can even grasp the knowledge. I
also figured out that I wont have anything truly figured out until Ive done it at least two times.
Learning so many different things from so many different people has given me tons of good
ideas about educating others, as well as ways not to educate. Working as a corpsman in the navy
has given me the most experience with educating others. While stationed with a Marine Corps

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
rifle platoon I became a combat lifesaver instructor. I had to organize and develop a curriculum,
coordinate with my platoon sergeants, teach bookwork and practical applications, and create tests
for 40 plus Marines. I also helped teach a few classes and ran practical tests for other platoons.
These experiences were the main reasons for me switching from the medical field to education.
Services and/or Extracurricular Activities
The extracurricular activities that I participated in during my school aged years played a
major role in my education process. I was involved in scouts as soon as I was eligible to join and
stayed in until I was a junior in high school. Scouts gave me the opportunity to learn many new
skills such as; tying knots, making camp fires with flint and steel, and making shelters. I had
many different educators throughout this time, especially at the annual two week summer camp
at camp Bradley. I also played basketball and football for seven years but only had two different
coaches. Unfortunately neither one of them are good educators. I learned many things not to do
as an educator from both of them.
Reasons for Choosing Education as a Career
I first started thinking about becoming an educator while I was still in high school. The
first education career I truly thought about was teaching history. I still loving learning about
history and sometimes consider changing my current major to be able to teach history. Though I
doubt I will, I may get an endorsement for it after I complete my degree in physical education.
Throughout high school my number one career choice was education, but I wanted to serve my
country first.
My five years in the military changed my plans for a few years. I seriously considered
staying in the medical field to become a medical doctor. I truly enjoyed working in the medical
field, in both the hospital and field settings. I had begun making goals and plans toward

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
achieving a degree in medicine until my last year of service. This is when I became a CLS
instructor. After I taught my first CLS course I was hooked once again. I realized that my first
instincts were right. When I was in high school I only thought that I would enjoy teaching, but
now I know that I do. I have decided to become a professional educator because I know that I
enjoy it and I have a desire to be good at it.
Professional Goals
My short term goal is to achieve a 4.0 GPA this semester. I received four As and one B
last semester so I know that it is attainable. Unfortunately I am not off to the best start in a few of
my classes. I am having a difficult time getting back into student mode this semester and Im
almost to the half-way point of the semester. I need to kick it up a notch and get more homework
done on the weekends than I have been. I know that if I continue to accomplish more work on
the weekends then I will be able to get my grades up in time to reach my goal. Another short
term goal I have is to prepare for a seasonal traveling job that I will be doing for the first time
this summer. Ive only been through one evening of training so far but I dont have control over
when they occur. I still have two more sessions to complete before I can begin working. After
completing these sessions and continuing to study the materials I know that I will be prepared for
this summer job.
My long term goals are to complete my degree in physical education, earn my health
endorsement, and begin my career as a professional educator. In order to accomplish these goals
I need to continue my education as planned. I plan on earning my associates in physical
education at the College of Southern Idaho as a full time student. After graduating I plan on
transferring to Boise State University to complete my bachelors degree in physical education.
After graduating I hope to obtain a full time position at a local school in the Boise area. I also

AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY
plan on continuing my education through BSU to earn an endorsement to teach health. I also
hope to coach football or basketball.
The education that Ive received throughout my life in schools, work, and extracurricular
activities has helped shape who I am today and has been a major influence in my decision to
become a professional educator. I stand by my decision to be a physical education teacher with
absolutely zero doubts. I know that the current short and long term goals that I have set will help
me obtain my future life long career. As much as Im enjoying the learning process of becoming
a professional educator, I wait with great anticipation for the day that I begin my dream career as
a physical education teacher.