They Lift Them Up
ROCK --->(Teachers)<--- HARD PLACE
Teachers have to try and keep the Parents happy, in order to try and keep their Administrators happy, in order to try and keep the school boards happy, in order to try and keep politicians from mandating any more requirements that will be underfunded, and virtually impossible to measure.
I taught public high school for two years and sought life elsewhere.
I can think of only a handful of teachers who really took me to another level, so much so that I've written to them sometimes decades letters expressing my gratitude. But, for the reasons you mention, I think that the best ones do indeed burn out. Under the circumstances, I'm sometimes amazed that anyone teaches.
I have two children. One is just finished fifth grade, and the other just finished seventh grade. Both of them got perfect report cards-- with quarter and year GPAs of 4.0 in both cases. My kids are both gifted and would do well most likely irregardless of who their teachers are. But there is no doubt that their teachers have made the difference as well. Some are kind and sensitive. Others are sticklers for detail and inflict a torrent of homework, projects, reports, and class participation. It would be overly self-depreciating to say that I had no role in their academic achievements. But my participation has been minimal, as their desire to achieve seems to be genuine and inner-driven. As a parent, I have few rules, but what few rules I do have I expect no deviation. These include: to tell the truth always; to do homework without fail and with excellence; to always aim high and do their best; and, above all, to treat their teachers with respect, demonstrating not just brilliance but graciousness as well. I want them always to feel that their teachers do indeed lift them up to more than they can be, in the words of the Josh Groban song:
You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up... To more than I can be.
You raise me up... To more than I can be.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/227140/you_raise_me_up/
Teachers have to try and keep the Parents happy, in order to try and keep their Administrators happy, in order to try and keep the school boards happy, in order to try and keep politicians from mandating any more requirements that will be underfunded, and virtually impossible to measure.
I taught public high school for two years and sought life elsewhere.
I can think of only a handful of teachers who really took me to another level, so much so that I've written to them sometimes decades letters expressing my gratitude. But, for the reasons you mention, I think that the best ones do indeed burn out. Under the circumstances, I'm sometimes amazed that anyone teaches.
I have two children. One is just finished fifth grade, and the other just finished seventh grade. Both of them got perfect report cards-- with quarter and year GPAs of 4.0 in both cases. My kids are both gifted and would do well most likely irregardless of who their teachers are. But there is no doubt that their teachers have made the difference as well. Some are kind and sensitive. Others are sticklers for detail and inflict a torrent of homework, projects, reports, and class participation. It would be overly self-depreciating to say that I had no role in their academic achievements. But my participation has been minimal, as their desire to achieve seems to be genuine and inner-driven. As a parent, I have few rules, but what few rules I do have I expect no deviation. These include: to tell the truth always; to do homework without fail and with excellence; to always aim high and do their best; and, above all, to treat their teachers with respect, demonstrating not just brilliance but graciousness as well. I want them always to feel that their teachers do indeed lift them up to more than they can be, in the words of the Josh Groban song:
You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up... To more than I can be.
You raise me up... To more than I can be.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/227140/you_raise_me_up/
Labels: education
posted by My Mall and News at
11:00 PM
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