08/20/2024
It’s been almost a year since I was in the classroom. I started out last year thinking I’d only have to take off the days for Corey’s chemo but I quickly learned that I would be needed for full time caregiving since the treatment was not working and his hospital stays were more like 2 weeks at a time. This, caregiving, has actually been my favorite job so far (though I’m not a fan of the pay—lol), but I do feel a little left out not returning to the classroom this year. One thing I’ve learned since stepping away is that teachers do not get enough credit. Half the country thinks we’re trying to brainwash their kids either with religion or a political ideology. When in reality, most teachers just want to help kids learn how to think for themselves. The other half truly don’t even know what is going on in the classroom. Let’s face it, parents have a lot on their plates.
Another thing is the sheer amount of expectations on the education system when, if all these expectations were met, teachers AND kids would have to be in school 8-10 hours a day to cover it all. When I hear a complaint that we don’t teach kids how to buy a house, do their taxes, or set up a budget, I wonder if school is the best place to learn these things? Nobody is taking anything off teachers’ or the kids’ plates.
Every culture teaches its kids a set of values it believes is important. For the most part, the set of knowledge taught in US schools (the three “R’s”) is designed to provide opportunities to increase brain activity and a chance to forge neural connections.
If these things are done right, students will be better prepared to take on many of the skills that are not explicitly taught in the classroom.
It’s impossible to honor each family’s personal beliefs, so teachers try to use research driven methods and best practices to serve all students to the best of our ability. I’ve had parents have concerns about teaching literature with complicated themes or question the discipline practices of the school or my classroom in particular.
All I can say is that we are trying to create a particular atmosphere in our classrooms that make students feel welcome and better able to learn and we want them to be able to read and appreciate Shakespeare and Homer as well as Twain and Shelly-Percy. I wish there was a way to bring all stakeholders to the same page so we could work together for the better education of America’s kids rather than continually complain about what’s not going well in education. Teachers are trying.
But we’re tired.
Thanks for coming to my TED talk.
The picture is just for engagement purposes (aka attention).
