FTA’s Job Shadow Day

This year, Fair Grove’s club Future Teachers of America (FTA) was fortunate enough to participate in a job shadowing day in one of the Fair Grove school buildings.

FTA is a club for students at Fair Grove who have any interest in pursuing a career in teaching. The job shadowing day gives students in the club an opportunity to see what a day in the life of a teacher is like.

Nikki Kisling, the club’s sponsor, explained, “The goal is for FTA members to leave knowing if they could or could not be a teacher of the grade/subject they observed. We offer it every year so that students can pick different grades/subjects based off of their experience from the prior year.”  She went on to say that this gives students insight on whether they want to pursue teaching or if it’s not something they’re built for.

Abigail Gilmartin (12) is a member of FTA who participated in the job shadow day. Gilmartin shadowed Victoria Glenn in her third grade class. Gilmartin shared, “I think job shadow day helped to prepare me for my future. It gave a lot of insight.” Gilmartin went on to explain that she had a lot of fun and that it was a great experience. After high school, Gilmartin plans on attending College of the Ozarks for a degree in education.

Another member of FTA that participated in the job shadow day is Makenna Drefke. Drefke shadowed Lindsay Dunning. Although Drefke is unsure about what their future holds, they hoping that FTA can help make the decision a little easier. “After high school, my future is very undecided. I plan on taking a gap year once I graduate to start really figuring out what I want to do. Two main things I really want to potentially do is either become a therapist or a teacher. This is honestly very undecided and I am taking FTA to start narrowing down what I want to do.” Drefke continued, “I think the day I spent with Mrs. Dunning helped me really reflect on the options I want to potentially pursue when I graduate. My future is uncertain, but having experience through FTA really helps me have more confidence in whatever decision I make for my career.”

Students who participated in the job shadowing day not only sat in on teachers classes, but also received advice and tips from the teachers. Kisling shared, “In addition to students observing a teacher all day, they also get to communicate with that teacher about what they enjoy as a teacher and advice they would give to new teachers,” she continued, “Some students might even choose to cadet teach their senior year based on this experience.”