It's Memorial Day, a time when we pause to remember those who have died in the service of our country, as well as those family and friends who are no longer with us. It seems a fitting time, too, to recall those teachers who have played important roles in our lives, perhaps influencing us to become the people we are today or pursue the careers we have chosen.
Most of us can think back to at least one such teacher and, if we're lucky, several. For many people, the most influential teachers were those we had in our youth—in high school, middle school, or even the elementary years. This may be because when we're young, more things are new to us and, consequently, we're more impressionable. Although influential teachers can appear at any time, even well into adulthood, those from our childhoods often have a disproportionately greater effect on our lives, underscoring the importance of teacher excellence in K–12 education.
In my case, I was fortunate to attend a top-notch middle and high school where I had many great teachers. One was a slightly eccentric high school English teacher who was passionate about literature and tried hard to make his students understand how great books written by long-deceased authors could relate to disaffected teenagers of the late 1960s. Mr. Raftery sometimes drew parallels from experiences in his own life or in the lives of those he knew. One particularly memorable story came after the class had read Zorba the Greek. Exhorting us to "live for today," Mr. Raftery told us about someone he knew who had postponed "living life" while pursuing a Ph.D. at our neighboring university. The day after this person received his degree, he died. The moral was clear: If we spent too much time planning and working for the future, we risked dying without ever having lived.
Another influential teacher taught journalism at my high school. Successfully bridging the gap between teacher and friend, Mr. Brasler was one of the school's funniest and most popular teachers, inspiring many students to pursue journalism careers. For those whose home lives were less than ideal, Mr. Brasler's classes and extracurricular activities—the school newspaper and yearbook—were both refuges and bastions of normalcy. Always involved but never too much so, Mr. Brasler often knew or intuited more about students than they did themselves and had great compassion for the difficult circumstances they were sometimes forced to endure.
So on this Memorial Day, here's to you, Mr. Brasler and Mr. Raftery—and to all teachers everywhere who try hard to make a lasting difference in their students' lives.
Showing posts with label Teachers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Teachers. Show all posts
The Importance of Giving Teachers Time
The other day I was chatting with a parent, and the conversation turned to a comparison between private and public schools. The topic is common among parents, particularly those who send their children to private schools after having had them in public schools. Understandably, parents generalize from their own children's individual experiences in their attempts to assess the differences between private and public schools (and, perhaps, to justify their hard-earned tuition dollars).
Although some observations private-school parents make can be questionable—such as that the teachers are "better" or the kids more motivated—one that came up in my recent conversation was that teachers in private schools have more time available to devote to students (which, in turn, helps kids academically and enriches their educational experience).
In general, this perception is true. Because of inadequate funding, classes in public schools are often much larger, which means public school teachers have less time available per student than do their private school counterparts. Moreover, free time can be—and often is—built into the schedules of private school teachers, allowing them to spend more hours correcting papers, giving feedback, meeting with students, and developing creative ways of teaching their subject matter.
This doesn't mean that private school teachers are inherently better—many, in fact, have years of public school teaching under their belts, and plenty of public school teachers devote countless hours of their own time to their students and classes after school, in the evenings, and on weekends. It simply means that private school teachers have an important resource—more time—that teachers in public schools typically don't.
As with other aspects of K–12 education, however, this difference is more important for some kids than for others—and at certain points in their schooling than at others. In other words, not only is the teaching in private schools not intrinsically superior to that in public schools, it also may not affect a particular student's educational achievement one way or the other—there are individual differences in how students respond to varying educational environments. As always, what's important is to evaluate the needs of your particular child at his or her specific developmental stage and choose a school—public or private—that will be a good fit.
Although some observations private-school parents make can be questionable—such as that the teachers are "better" or the kids more motivated—one that came up in my recent conversation was that teachers in private schools have more time available to devote to students (which, in turn, helps kids academically and enriches their educational experience).
In general, this perception is true. Because of inadequate funding, classes in public schools are often much larger, which means public school teachers have less time available per student than do their private school counterparts. Moreover, free time can be—and often is—built into the schedules of private school teachers, allowing them to spend more hours correcting papers, giving feedback, meeting with students, and developing creative ways of teaching their subject matter.
This doesn't mean that private school teachers are inherently better—many, in fact, have years of public school teaching under their belts, and plenty of public school teachers devote countless hours of their own time to their students and classes after school, in the evenings, and on weekends. It simply means that private school teachers have an important resource—more time—that teachers in public schools typically don't.
As with other aspects of K–12 education, however, this difference is more important for some kids than for others—and at certain points in their schooling than at others. In other words, not only is the teaching in private schools not intrinsically superior to that in public schools, it also may not affect a particular student's educational achievement one way or the other—there are individual differences in how students respond to varying educational environments. As always, what's important is to evaluate the needs of your particular child at his or her specific developmental stage and choose a school—public or private—that will be a good fit.
What to Do about a Bad Teacher
We all start off each school year hoping our kids get "good" teachers, and usually, we're not disappointed. Most teachers enter (and stay in) the profession for the right reasons and have their students' best interests at heart.
Occasionally, though, there will be a bad apple. Whether it's a teacher who doesn't teach the subject competently, who is "mean" to individual kids or the entire class, or who ignores particular children in favor of others, these teachers can have effects that last far beyond the classroom.
Take, for example, a kid who starts off eager to learn a subject but whose efforts are consistently belittled and compared to those of others. Not only will the child begin disliking the teacher and dreading the class, interest in the subject matter itself may well wither and die.
What should parents do in such situations? Often children are afraid to talk to their teachers when there are problems and worry, sometimes justifiably, about reprisals. When, for whatever reason, a child hasn't been able to work out the issue with a teacher himself, parents should consider getting involved.
The first step is contacting the teacher and, if possible, setting up an in-person meeting to clarify the situation. Sometimes a child's perception of what's been happening can be distorted, or there may be other factors playing into the situation that a parent hasn't been aware of. Often, a single meeting—or even phone conversation—with a teacher will be enough to get things back on track.
On occasion, however, just speaking with the teacher won't be enough—the child will continue to report instances of poor and even psychologically damaging teaching. If this is the case, parents should take their concerns to the school principal (and, if necessary, higher authorities). Perhaps the child can be moved to another class or, if that isn't possible, the principal may be able to speak with the teacher about the problem and indirectly improve the situation.
In extreme circumstances, if all else fails, parents may have to consider switching schools. Although such a step shouldn't be undertaken lightly and is disruptive to everyone, in the long run it may be the best course of action, both for the child's current and future educational progress.
Occasionally, though, there will be a bad apple. Whether it's a teacher who doesn't teach the subject competently, who is "mean" to individual kids or the entire class, or who ignores particular children in favor of others, these teachers can have effects that last far beyond the classroom.
Take, for example, a kid who starts off eager to learn a subject but whose efforts are consistently belittled and compared to those of others. Not only will the child begin disliking the teacher and dreading the class, interest in the subject matter itself may well wither and die.
What should parents do in such situations? Often children are afraid to talk to their teachers when there are problems and worry, sometimes justifiably, about reprisals. When, for whatever reason, a child hasn't been able to work out the issue with a teacher himself, parents should consider getting involved.
The first step is contacting the teacher and, if possible, setting up an in-person meeting to clarify the situation. Sometimes a child's perception of what's been happening can be distorted, or there may be other factors playing into the situation that a parent hasn't been aware of. Often, a single meeting—or even phone conversation—with a teacher will be enough to get things back on track.
On occasion, however, just speaking with the teacher won't be enough—the child will continue to report instances of poor and even psychologically damaging teaching. If this is the case, parents should take their concerns to the school principal (and, if necessary, higher authorities). Perhaps the child can be moved to another class or, if that isn't possible, the principal may be able to speak with the teacher about the problem and indirectly improve the situation.
In extreme circumstances, if all else fails, parents may have to consider switching schools. Although such a step shouldn't be undertaken lightly and is disruptive to everyone, in the long run it may be the best course of action, both for the child's current and future educational progress.
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