I just need some help rn

udontknome

This is my first time doing something like this, but I'm not in a good headspace and thought I would just try it and see if anything comes out of it.

I'm 21, in university, living at home with my parents. I don't know how long that'll last for.

I'm trying to be a teacher through my degree, but I've been failing my Maths classes ever since enrolling. I try studying, nothing works. I reach out to teachers, nothing useful. I'm also at risk of being kicked out of home if my parents don't see a change in better grades, so doing so I took up more classes. I'm retaking a Maths test next week as of typing this. I don't know how confident I feel, but if I fail again, it might just be the last time. I can't do that again.

Any support will be greatly appreciated. I'm at my wits end.

Jane971

Hi there, I’m really glad you posted here tonight. Thank you for sharing and opening up about your experiences right now.

I’m also new to the forums and I really hope you can find some value here.

It sounds like you’re going through a really rough patch and I’m so sorry to hear that. Navigating university, your grades, living ant home and your parents expectations, on top of life in general, must get overwhelming at times.

I don’t think I have any specific advice or strategies that could be useful for you, other than do you have a friend, classmate, sibling, cousin, aunt, uncle, grandparent or any kind of support person who you might be able to open up to about this struggle you’re going through as well?

It could be someone who knows you well, or a complete stranger who you feel safe with, but the idea is to have someone in your life who knows what’s going on, even if they can’t fix anything, at least you know that they are there to listen. Connecting with someone in person can be so important at times like this.

I am sending you lots of virtual support right now and also wishing you the best of luck.

Can I ask, what made you want to study to become a teacher? And what kind of subjects do you enjoy learning about?

Ciao for now 🤍

therising

Hi udontknome

I'm wondering whether you've considered some level of professional tutoring, in regard to math. With my daughter's partner being an ex tutor, his teaching ability used to amaze me. The amount of approaches and different types of approaches varied, depending on the work and the student's learning style. I think if we have a particular way or style of learning that in no way relates to the way we're being taught, the way we're taught poses a massive struggle. It can create stress, which can further interfere with learning.

If you look back to secondary school, there would have been teachers who were brilliant at teaching vs ones who just couldn't teach in relatable ways. Both my kids struggled with textbook and Powerpoint learning, especially my son. He learned much better through more imaginative ways of teaching. Maybe you could explain to your parents something along the lines of 'I'm failing to understand the math side of things based on the teacher's style of teaching being so completely far from understandable. I found better teachers in secondary school'. This could eliminate the 'You just need to try harder and study more' attitude that can sometimes come from parents. Btw, my brother used to lecture at uni and it used to frustrate him greatly when it came to how shocking certain teachers were. He'd say 'I don't know why they're getting paid to simply give out large chunks of work without actually teaching anything'.

With you taking on the noble profession of teaching, something I admire greatly, perhaps this struggle you face could offer you some insight into what kind of teacher you want to be for your students. Do you want to be a textbook teacher, a teacher who teaches largely through Powerpoint, one who just gives out work without really teaching the work or one who passionately works on having their students relate (so that they never fail to understand)?

udontknome

Thank you Jane for your kind words. To answer your question about what made me want to be a teacher, I had these two great Maths teachers back in high school; they were what I describe as the perfect teacher, and really helped me enjoy mathematics to the point where for 3 years I was a straight A student thanks to their support. I also just really liked helping the younger students or even friends whenever they needed any extra learning support.

I'm studying Maths and English, with English being the subject that just allows me to be imaginative and expressive while analysing different text, which is something that I was also praised for back at high school.

Again, thank you for reaching out, it means a lot.

udontknome

Hi therising, and thank you for responding.

I value the connection between the teacher and their students. I believe it benefits both sides, with students having someone they know they can talk to and rely on, and as the teacher, that means that they feel comfortable in the learning environment and are able to learn at ease.

Jane971

That’s really wonderful, those teachers sound like special people. Do you have any way to communicate with them now that you’ve graduated? They might be able to help with what’s going on.