Teacher's high

Today I gave a life skills presentation at the shelter for homeless youth 18 to 21 that has been my internship this year. My presentation was "understanding your pay stub" and covered everything from W4 withholdings, taxes that are taken out, and how to figure out the difference between gross/net. Some of these concepts may seem basic, but what I've learned is that you can never assume what people do and don't know. Especially here, based on what I've heard about Philadelphia schools, some of the young people at the shelter are functionally illiterate yet have their diplomas.

This was my second time teaching this course, and I was actually excited about it, even though it's a seemingly dry topic. Tax time is coming up and I wanted to fill the youth in on what they can do to get their money back, but more generally, I love giving others information that helps them to better understand and manage their lives. In my lesson I discussed key terms (gross vs. net), explained what taxes are taken out, what they're for, what you can and can't get back.

I also discussed how they could learn to do their own taxes rather than paying someone else, and told them about the earned income tax credit, which many of them qualify for but none had heard of. From there, the conversation moved to bank accounts -- only one of the 6 present had an account, something I've found typical in the inner city. This leaves them reliant on money orders and check cashing places. I encouraged them to establish accounts, though I was temporarily thrown off when one young man made a comment so simple I can't believe I didn't address it: "But what if you don't have any money to put in it? What do you need a bank for?"

From there we discussed good vs. bad credit, after one girl said she didn't understand it. I asked the group, "If I want to have horrible credit, what should I do?" They told me, "max out your credit cards, don't pay them, pay them late". "Good," I said, "then you know exactly how to have good credit - don't do that!"

On the chalkboard we did math together, figuring out the annual earnings of a full-time worker at minimum wage and their take-home after taxes. This math exercise wasn't met with complaints, but in fact nearly everyone contributed. There were surprised comments about taxes ("They take out how much?" "You mean I'm paying for other people [with social security]?") Then one said, "Why don't they teach us math like this in school?" I agreed with her and said, "It's a lot more interesting when it has to do with something real like your money, isn't it?"

Her comment and the youths' positive responses overall are what I was referring to in this post's title: the teacher's high. I experienced that very rewarding feeling today when I gave my lesson and I could see that they were thinking, that I had given them new information. A good portion of the kids in the shelter have not completed high school. They have sketchy academic records, many are diagnosed with ADHD and other conditions and are medicated. It is easy to dismiss these and similar youth as troubled, having a "bad attitude", resistant to learning. Yet over and over, what I see is that everyone has the capacity and desire to learn -- when you engage them in a way that is respectful, interesting, and connects the material to the reality of their life.

Today was my last day at my internship. I was sad to go and will miss the youth and the staff. Yet I also left on a high based on the success of my lesson. Wherever my career takes me following graduation, I hope my future job allows for other opportunities to educate. Though I suppose that's the beauty of social work -- it allows for a whole range of work with clients, from therapy to case management and finding resources, to playing the role of teacher.