In Your Debt! Thanks!

Later next week the school where I used to teach is going to kick off another school year.  I spent thirty three years teaching and I remember fondly getting my class lists for the year, getting my room ready, and getting excited to try the new activities that I had worked on over the summer with my students.  Most of all I always looked forward to reacquainting myself with teaching colleagues, both new and old.

Teaching was something that was part of my DNA I think.  From the time I was in fourth grade I was committed to the idea of being a teacher.  My father had been a teacher and I really enjoyed watching him do his work and getting ready to do his thing in the classroom.  He loved it, and so did I.

I guess that I get really tired of reading or hearing about how bad the education system is in the USA.  As soon as the experts start commenting it is not long before they start to hammer away on how bad many teacher are.  They spend little or no time discussing all the time spent by teachers preparing lessons and activities, both during the summer and during the school year. They seem to ignore the fact that even with five years of higher education that teachers pay does not even scratch the surface of what people in the business word make.  Most of the teachers that I knew and worked with were extremely dedicated and cared deeply about the students in the charge.  They worked hard and for the most part I would say that their impact on the students was both immediate and long lasting.  Kids in the country are bright, plugged in, and ready to find their way and to make a difference….no matter what the media experts say!  I know this to be true because I taught lots of great kids who I was amazed by every day.

I had a lot of teachers that I remember from when I was a student.  Some of them were tough on me and demanded more of me than I ever would have demanded of myself, while others were sensitive and made a sincere effort to get to know me all the while providing me with the perfect learning environment.  Like all professions I had a few teachers that I did not feel were very good at their job.  Some were inexperienced while others maybe were not confident in their skills and teaching practices.  In spite of this I can say that just about every one of them worked hard.  ALL of them are stuck in my memory bank and I will be forever indebted to them for all that they gave me from September through June each and every year.  I will be in your debt until the day I die.

I honor teachers everywhere with this blog!  The job they do is an honorable profession and one that has a lifelong impact on hundreds of thousands of students every year.  I am in awe of their creativity, their sensitivity, their willingness to make many sacrifices, and their ability to be teacher, social worker, guidance counselor, coach, and mentor to those people who will be taking care of me in my old age…..I am almost there. 

I have no fear of young people taking care of me!  They will learn, grow, share, and find their way just the way that I did.  And this is at least partly to do with everything that they learned and observed from their teachers.

My hat is off and my heart is thankful for teachers everywhere.  And a special shout out to the ACS faculty and staff!  Have an amazing and memorable year!