Teaching is a very odd profession. It is not normal to have one's personal success measured by what other people do. But that is the case for teachers. Our accomplishments are directly tied with those of our students. I could present the best lesson in the world, but if the kids learn nothing from it, and it provides them no benefit in the present or future, it was just a fancy waste of time.
He needs to soar!
In addition, we may not see the fruits of our labor for ten or twenty years... or ever. Sure a kid may perform exceptionally well on an end of the unit test, but is that really an effective measuring stick? Honestly, who cares how a person performed on the History final exam they took during their freshman year of high school? Would you ask that in a job interview? Would you ask that on your first date with someone special? Heck no.
The true litmus test of the value a teacher added to a student's life is only seen years down the road. If the former student is contributing to society and his or her family, perhaps a teacher played a role in that. Perhaps not. How could a teacher possibly know?
Teachers just need to have faith that what they are doing on a daily basis will pay dividends for their students years later. In addition, we have to come to terms with the fact that we may never get to see these results ourselves. We have to do the best we can to empower each student and hope that some of it sinks in.
Oh please let them remember something I taught.
That is why this week's @steemiteducation homework assignment is so challenging for me. This week @steemiteducation is calling for teachers to share their most satisfying experience you have ever had as a teacher.
Perhaps some people will write about a breakthrough moment they had with a student. Others may write about a student whom they inspired who went on to earn an award. Heck some may just be super proud of the fact that they played a role in helping a child to help himself graduate from high school.
But all of those accomplishments have a couple of things in common. First, they are all about the student. Second, they are immediate and tangible gratification that the teachers and students can experience together. Most of the time, that is the best we can hope for.
Luke and Han's teachers must have been so proud... and Chewbacca's must have been pissed.
However, every once in a while, someone is so blessed that he gets to see the truly important fruits of his labor.
I was that lucky once.
Last year, my daughter MJ was in a 4th grade play. She played Peter Pan in a very small performance produced by an after school extra curricular program in our neighborhood. The day of the show, the only people in the audience were family members of the performers.
My wife, who had arrived a little earlier than I did, saved me a spot. She was seated in the front row with her coat draped over an old, rusty, brown folding chair. Next to the chair sat a man in his mid thirties.
Not sure when the show would start, I quickly removed my coat and sat down in the empty chair.
Then... nothing happened. The kids were having problems with their costumes. As we waited, I alternated between checking steemit and chatting with my wife. All the while, the man next to me kept taking quick glances at me. I could tell he did not want me to notice. After the fifth or sixth time, I was finally motivated enough to close down steemit and take a look at my admirer.
Do I know you from somewhere?
As our eyes met, I cocked my head to the side, squinted and tried to figure out where I knew this man from.
Then he asked, "Mr. Hanshotfirst?"
Oh my god! It was Tyrone!
Tyrone was a student who was enrolled in two of my classes during my first year of teaching almost 17 years earlier. He had a learning disability that made it incredibly difficult for him to read. He also had almost no impulse control. But he was a great kid. I hadn't seen him since the day he graduated. And yet... he remembered me.
I asked what he was doing at this play. He explained that his daughter Aisha, a third grader, was playing Tinker Bell.
Wow! My former student had a daughter who was only a year younger than my own.
Perhaps one problem with the costumes was the fact that there is a big difference between Peter Pan and Robin Hood.
The fates smiled me on that day and continued to cause problems for the kids' costumes. This allowed me to chat with my former student Tyrone. I asked how he was doing, what his daughter's name was, what he did for a living, where he lived, how his family was...?
I asked everything I could. I knew it was a very unique experience to see the finished product one of my students had become.
After he was done answering, he said, "Oh this is my wife, Jada."
I stood up to shake her hand. She also stood up. But she did not shake my hand. Instead, she hugged me. In fact, she hugged me like she knew me (even though I had never met her before). She said, "You're Mr. Hanshotfirst? Tyrone talks about you all the time. He said you were his favorite teacher because you were so tough on him. He said you always got on him to finish what he started. And you always told him that he was smarter than he thought and reading wasn't the only measure of intelligence."
I thanked her and told her that I always knew her husband would make something of himself. He always had a good heart and worked hard.
Then the play started.
I saw my former student Tyrone's daughter play Tinker Bell to my daughter's Peter Pan.
It was awesome.
After the play, we said a quick goodbye and rushed to grab our children and smother them with praise for their performance. We didn't speak any more. But that was ok. I had learned enough.
Tyrone is an auto mechanic.
Tyrone is a good husband.
Tyrone is a wonderful dad.
Tyrone is the reason I teach.
