Blueprint Change: Becoming a role model and math teacher

An Interview with Derek Bailey

The Basics

Age: 26

Location: Roseburg, Oregon

Current occupation: Math teacher

Last school attended: Portland State University

Biggest and/or most recent Blueprint Change*: Becoming a role model and math teacher

*A decision you made or something that happened largely or completely out of your control

Past

Could you elaborate on your Blueprint Change?

To backtrack to the old days – I actually didn’t want to be a teacher when I was in college. I actually wanted to be an accounting, CPA kind of person. So I did an accounting internship and I did the whole undergraduate degree. And [then at] my first job…I sat down in a cubicle and I hated it. I hated not being able to be free and be who I am. I felt like I was under constraint. That was when I realized that accounting is not for me and maybe I should I look into something where I can be myself, where I can do something meaningful…that was another thing that I didn’t really like about [accounting].

But anyway – when I was in my accounting program, we did this outreach where we went go to the high school and taught about business basics. And I had a lot of fun with it! They were really fun kids. And my accounting professor was kind of walking around the classroom and, then, the next day, pulled me over and goes, “Okay, so I know you’re in the accounting profession and you want to be a CPA, but have you ever thought about being a teacher?” And I was like, “No…why would I ever do that?” I just brushed it off my shoulder.

But then I thought about it all of the next week. It was all that I thought about. I kept thinking, “I had a lot of fun that day.” So I tried it again. I did another outreach where we went to the high school and we taught another topic – like about stocks and bonds – and again, it was really fun! I could joke around, I could be myself. And I really like being around kids; that’s another thing. So that’s when I really discovered, “Maybe I should go into this kind of area”. So I did. And I don’t regret it a single day.

Another thing too – I didn’t really want to be a business teacher; that didn’t seem that meaningful to me. The thing was – I really liked math in high school, but not math in terms of rules and formulas that you repeat on a test. I liked it when there were big problems that took the whole day to solve. I like that stuff and I just feel like most schools don’t really push that kind of education.  And that’s why I really wanted to go into the math area.

Even in society, math is not the friendliest word. I used to say, “I am a math teacher” and people would go, “Gross! Why would you be a math teacher?!” So that’s another reason why I wanted to become a math teacher. I want to get rid of that stereotype that math is just something that you memorize, some formula that you memorize to repeat on a test. That’s not what math is. Math to me is an escape from reality. It’s an aesthetic.

What motivated this change?

I wanted to be in some career or job where I made a difference – with not just one person, but a lot of people.  Because it’s easy in this world to get distracted by movies and the way people think society is based on other people’s ideas – like Hollywood’s – and I feel like, for me, it was more meaningful to go into an area where I could motivate and inspire others. I want to be in a world where people are people and they are courteous to each other and that kind of stuff. I want to put good people in this world. Not people who are superficial.

What was the most challenging part of this change and how did you adapt?

The most challenging part of becoming a math teacher has been getting kids to see that math is not what they think it is. Honestly, for most kids, they go into math classes and, for their whole lives, all they do is sit and take notes on formulas and procedures that they repeat on a test. And, if they don’t get it, the teacher yells at them. That kind of stuff.

But that’s not at all how I want my classroom to be. And I try not to let it ever be that way. [Students] are so much more engaged when they are doing problems and they’re not just listening to someone else doing it for them.

[Also, a] challenge for me as a math teacher is pushing kids when they don’t want to it. Thinking and being able to really really think is frustrating and a lot of kids don’t like that. And it’s my job to push them when they try to give up. I get a lot of resentment from that, but in the long run, it’s so worth it.

Another thing too is getting parents to see that, again, math is not just this idea of “Here’s how you do it and here’s why it works.” Let me give you an example: Think of the area of a triangle. Everyone knows the area of a triangle. ½ x base x height, right? But really, why is that important? For me and in my classroom, I’d rather have a problem where I give kids a rectangle and I draw a triangle inside of the rectangle where [the triangle and rectangle share the same base and height]. And I want kids to show me why it’s ½ x base x height. Where does that come from? And I don’t care if it takes the whole day. Even if they don’t get it, they do so much thinking about that. And to me – that’s the point of math. To really problem solve and persevere. To have the creativity [to explain the why]. The fact that it's ½ x base x height is not the ultimate reason we do math; it's to increase our mental acuity through the creative process involved in problem solving. That’s really what’s it’s all about for me. And for me that’s a big challenge, because kids often don’t see it that way and neither do the parents. So that’s really hard.

Present

How do you feel about your Blueprint Change now?

I don’t regret it. I love it. I go to work every day pretty much having fun with kids. That’s something that I’ve always wanted to do. To just have fun.

And in the realm of changes in general - what are some Blueprint Changes you are most proud of?

I guess living independently. That’s the biggest thing. You know, you grow up with your parents, and you grow up in this neighborhood that you’ve probably lived it for 20 years and then, “Bang. You’re out somewhere else.” And for me, it was Roseburg. Which was three hours away and honestly [a place] I had never been to before. That was a big change and it took some getting used to. Being around people I had never met before – that was a huge thing for me. It’s hard for me to go out of my comfort zone so that was a big change.

If you feel overwhelmed with change(s) now, how do you adapt?

You know, whenever I am overwhelmed, I go, “Life is short. Don’t take it too seriously.” That’s really the best advice I’ve ever gotten and, honestly, the kids teach me that all the time. And it’s a great piece of advice, because if you really did take life way too seriously, you’ll get stressed out and that’s the thing: “Why?” For me, that’s the ultimate idea: Have fun with your life. Enjoy it while you can.

Future

What sorts of Blueprint Changes would like to see happen in the future and why?

The biggest thing – I guess it sounds kind of corny, but – I really want society not to be scared of math. That’s the biggest change I’d like to see with society. When I go over to someone and I introduce myself, and they ask me what my profession is, and I go, “math teacher”, I don’t want them to go, “eww, gross, I hate math, I’ve never liked math.” I want society to think of math as something fun. Like an escape from reality. Something fun to do like reading a book. That’s my ultimate ideal world.  

What are you most looking forward to in the time between now and year end?

Summer. There are three reasons why I became a math teacher: June, July, and August.

….kidding kidding! [Actually] I guess some of the kids that I have…I really want to see them graduate. There are some kids that I’m a little scared about, who might not if I don’t push them. That’s a big deal for me – getting some of these kids to graduate. And just to see kids grow by the end of the year and compare them to where they were at the beginning of the year. That’s huge. That’s like getting a paycheck. That is a really big deal. Not just in terms of math understanding, but being able to persevere and also just maturity-wise. How kids mature – mentally and emotionally. That’s a big change at the end of the year.

Could you share a piece of advice from your experiences (e.g. something that you thought about a lot during changes)? 
Along the same lines of “don’t take life too seriously”, another thing is: if there is some regret you have for making a change in your life, don’t harbor it inside of you. Everyone has things they regret. And, again, life is too short. You have to take risks.

For example, every teacher has that one class, where the whole year it’s just like you don’t want to teach in that one period. But just have fun with [that unruly class]. Life is not perfect. Things are going to happen. Don’t harvest that. What’s the point? Life is too short. I don’t think it’s healthy.

I think part of being an adult too is realizing that you’re going to make mistakes. But you don’t have repeat those mistakes. To realize that and to move on. That’s really what an adult is. To be able to forgive yourself. Which is easier said than done.

Thanks so much for chatting with me, Derek!