I have been very blessed in my life to have had good teachers...wonderful teachers who took an interest in me, who pushed me to discover what I was capable of, who didn't let me slack off (even when I wanted to), and who made a difference in my life because they believed in me. Hopefully you have all had such teachers in your life.
The first teacher I remember is Mrs. Burger (sp?). I remember trying new foods in her class...a tie-dying project...and mostly just having fun. I can't remember if she was my kindergarten teacher, my first grade teacher, or my gifted teacher. I just remember that her class was fun (even though we had to do those disgusting weekly fluoride rinses....gag!). From her I learned that school could be fun.
I remember one of my second grade teachers. He also happened to be in our ward at church. There was a piano in our classroom and we sang songs everyday -- one song in particular was "This Land is Your Land, This Land is My Land"...is it strange to remember that? I don't remember specifics of what I learned in his class...I remember the layout of the classroom, and I remember that he always seemed to be happy. It was in his class, I believe, that my love of music was awakened.
This is not to say that I haven't had my share of less-than-good teachers. My next second grade teacher comes to mind (we moved during my 2nd grade year)...her philosophies about working with advanced students left much to be desired. I spent most of my second grade days in her classroom with my head down on my desk, doing nothing. Her rule was that, when our work was finished, we were to put our head down on our desk and sit quietly. No independent reading. No working ahead. Nothing. And so I spent much of second grade with my head on my desk.
A specific group of teachers stands out in my mind...my high school AP teachers. I had four different AP teachers (would have been five but I dropped AP Calculus...a good move on my part!). They all pushed me. School was easy for me, but they tried to challenge me and keep me interested. The first "C" I ever got was from my AP English teacher on a progress report...I was so angry at him for giving me a "C"...when he called to give me the results of my AP English exam and told me I had earned the highest possible score, I asked him how that was possible since he had only given me a "C". His response was that "A" work for other people was equivalent to "C" work for me -- that I was capable of much more than I was doing and he knew that giving me that "C" would push me to work harder to prove to him that I could get an "A". He knew all along what I was capable of...before I knew it myself. I did get an "A" from him that year -- and I knew I had earned it. I learned then that I didn't want to just be "given" good grades. I wanted to earn them and leave no doubt in anyone's mind -- especially my own -- that I had earned them.
My other AP teachers were just as great. My love of all things government/civics came from one of my AP History teachers and my AP American Government teacher. Those two couldn't have been more different, but both sparked an interest in me that has done nothing but get stronger through the years. They spoke to me about current events -- both in the US and around the world -- as if I were more than just a teenage girl. They encouraged me to think and learn and discuss and debate...to analyze a situation, pick my position, and defend it.
I had college professors who have had an impact on my life as well. One was an economics professor at BYU. I should have dropped his class but I was so stubborn that I didn't. Even personal tutoring sessions with the professor didn't help me...but even though he knew I wasn't going to get an A (or even a B) in his class, he took time to try and help me. Another was my faculty advisor at another university. I took several classes from him and really learned a great deal. I was in touch with him recently, letting him know I had (finally) received the master's degree I so badly wanted to start on 8 years ago. It was good to hear from him and to know he was sincere in his congratulations. Another who pushed me in ways I didn't expect and hadn't been pushed in a long time, who encouraged my goals of continuing my education...and from whom I learned there was more to me than I had been giving myself credit for for a long time.
There have been others. People who saw in me what I was not able to see in myself at the time. People who have reminded me of who I am and what I am, and who have encouraged and pushed me to be better and do better.
I am grateful for all of them.
A has had several such teachers in her life. One in particular, though, has reminded me of the impact a teacher can have for good in a child's life. He was one of her elementary school teachers. He took his class out to play sports outside every day for recess -- boys and girls. Flag football, frisbee, kickball, soccer...and A was right in the middle of all of it. Somehow in the process she turned into an athlete -- something he nor I ever expected would happen! He has now coached her for two seasons in rec league softball. He pushes her to be better, encourages her, and understands her. In her two years of school softball, he has come to many of her games to cheer her on. He does the same for other students of his. It takes time away from his "after school" life, but he comes anyway. He comes because he cares. A listens to him and values what he has to say. She respects him. She knows that he cares about her as a person, even she is no longer one of his students. He came to her softball game yesterday and always takes time after the game to talk to her and give her encouragement, congratulations, and support. He knows much more about softball than I ever will, so I find myself asking him to explain things to me as they happen in the game. He is still teaching her, and he is teaching me. He has taught me not to underestimate my children's ability -- not to think that it isn't possible for a girlie-girl to end up being a pretty darn good pitcher with more athletic ability in her pinky than I will ever have in my entire body.
That kind of impact will last a lifetime for her. And for me, because it has opened my mind to the possibilities that are out there for my children. My children are more than I give them credit for. B is now reaping the rewards of this enlightenment. She loves soccer. She also has more athletic ability in her pinky than I have in my entire body. And I know that when she has this particular teacher, the same teacher A had, he will have the same impact on her life that he has had on A's life.
I am not a teacher. Even though I am married to a teacher and I hear all about the good and bad side of teaching first-hand from him, I cannot pretend to know what it is like, day in and day out, to be a teacher. I know that, as the parent of two gifted children, I demand much from my daughters' teachers. Perhaps my demands and expectations are unreasonable. But we have had very few teachers who have let us down.
So today, I just want to thank teachers. My teachers, my girls' teachers, and all teachers. It is difficult, exhausting, frustrating work for which there is definitely not enough monetary compensation. But please know that somewhere, someday, somehow, you will touch the life of a child in a way that will shape the person they will become.
And that can make all the difference.
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