The Importance of Teachers!

I was driving into work this morning listening to a local news station.  The host was talking about teachers who had made a difference in your life.  Lots of people called in and talked about their favorite grade school or high school teacher.  Then one person called in and stated that Mr. Rogers had made a significant  impact in their life.

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I am sure that any of you who are reading this, know who Mr. Rogers is.  I have fond memories sitting down with my young children and watching Mr. Rogers Neighborhood.  It was a PBS anchor, a must for young parents raising young children.  Mr. Rogers was the poster child of true love, kindness, and the motto, "A soft voice can sooth the savage beast."  He was always calm, with a soft voice that invited you to come into his world and let him care for you.  He was a true example for parents of all ages.  In fact, I recall enjoying his show as much as my children did.

I can easily recall all six of my grade school teachers, well actually seven if you count kindergarten.  Mrs. Butler - Kindergarten, Mrs. Higgens - First Grade, Mrs. Stoddard - Second Grade, Mrs. Weaver - Third Grade, Mrs. Davies - Fourth Grade, Mr. Olsen - Fifth Grade, and My Sixth Grade, who will remain nameless for reasons you will find out late.

I find it interesting that I can remember all of my grade school teachers names.  I also can picture their faces and the many experiences I had with them easily in my mind.  They were molding my life.  They were and continue to be a integral part of me.  Now, as a parent, it is a wonderful experience to meet and get to know my kids teachers -- to feel the love that they have for both my kids and being a teacher.  In fact, I have a sister that is a teacher.  She is a marvelous person.  I can feel her love every time I am around her.  She also loves to talk about her classes, the school she teaches in, and her students.

In particular, I had an absolutely awesome fifth grade teacher.  Mr Olsen is the poster child of a teacher.  He really cared about me and my classmates.  He loves to teach and make each and every day an adventure in learning.

Mr. Olsen would make each day better than the previous day.  We had an overnight winter camp at the school district's summer camp.  We went on many field trips to reinforce the concepts that he was teaching in the class room.  He even made preparing for the dance festival fun, because, as I recall, girls were still "yucky" at that time.

The qualities of a good teacher can be summed up in a article by Catherine Tayor-Lagos, here, which, paraphrased, goes like this:   What is a good teacher?  Depending on one's perspective, this question has many valid answers.

• A child might say that a good teacher makes learning fun, is fair, and assigns no homework!
• A Parent might say that a good teacher is organized, has good control of the class, and challenges students.
• Administrators might say a good teacher follows district guidelines, presents curriculum effectively, and contributes to the school community.
• The school custodian may say that a good teacher is tidy, has students clean up after themselves, and makes reasonable demands on his/her time.

The following are generalized attributes of a good teacher:

• Sees each student as an individual with hopes, dreams, strengths, and vulnerabilities.
• Knows their students on many levels.  She learns all she can about a student's academic strengths and needs, but also about their interests, fears, hopes, and worries.
• Helps students develop, achieve, and maintain strong self-esteem.
• Helps students feel that they are special, unique, and wonderful.
• Allows students to see and get to know his real self, not hiding behind the teacher role.
• Remembers that each student is somebody's precious child, is important and valuable.
• Tries to see things through her student's eyes as well as her own.
• Works hard to be fair, empathetic, and encouraging.
• Not afraid to try new things, to look a little silly, to show a little sadness, to be a little angry, to get mighty excited, or to act really happy.
• Not afraid to apologize, or say he made a mistake.
• Makes learning exciting, an adventure!
• Know that no one can be a good teacher to every student every day, but she continues to try -- knowing that is she can be a good teacher to every student many days that she has been successful.
• Shares what they have learned with other teachers.
• Becomes attached to her students, knowing that it will be hard to say good bye at the end of the school year.  Hopes that those students will come back to visit, and even if they don't, that they will carry her in their futures and remember her with their successes.

I am so grateful for good teachers, especially in my kids lives.  There is one particular teacher at my kids elementary school that all of them have had, my youngest this past school year.  She is an exceptional teacher, remembers all of my kids names and the attributes that define them.  She really cares about them, you can feel it when you are in her classroom.

I am also grateful for the protections that are afforded parents in the classroom today.  As much as I don't enjoy discussing it, my sixth grade teacher was probably the worst person I have had to spend an extended period of time with.  Back when I was in elementary school, parents didn't have the luxury of law suites or disciplinary councils.  My sixth grade teacher has a serious temper problem.  He would commonly pick boys up by the hair above the neck.  He actually took me out in the hall and banged my head against the coat rack one time.  (Maybe I deserved disciplinary action, but definitely not physical abuse.)  Of course I told my parents about this and other incidents.  They talked to the Principal, who calmed them down, but did nothing about the problems.  Funny thing is, 25 years later, I remember all these incidents too.  And when this sixth grade teacher was awarded some city service award a few years back (I read it in the newspaper), a flood of memories ran through my head.  I even thought about calling up the city to let them know about what had happened, but decided that it wasn't worth causing pain in an elderly gentleman's life.

I am grateful for the other five, well six if you count kindergarten teachers, and the many Junior High and High School teachers that molded me and made me what I am today.  Teachers are the ice cream of our lives.  Hopefully all of your teachers have been good and loving to you.

Till next time,
Bill