Teachers Influence

Watching Stand and Deliver on Monday has made me take a look at all of the movies we watched in class and all of the books that Dr. Glassman chose for our class to read. We have seen great examples of teachers who really deeply cared about the lives of their students such as in Stand and Deliver and To Sir With Love. Then we have seen some not so great examples of teachers in Waiting for Superman and The Lottery. Throughout the books most of these teachers were teaching in large inner city schools in New York who were constantly doubting themselves on their abilities to teach students who  lived in  very rough conditions. The teachers themselves were struggling financially and in other areas of their lives too, but they felt that if they could make a difference in the lives of at least one student then they could be satisfied a little.

I think as future educators we need to be available to help every single student as much as we can, but also be realistic in that we can't control the actions of our students and make them all succeed. All we can do is influence our students in positive ways such as reaching out a hand, listening, showing support, etc. We also need to realize that we are human beings and not God. I think in our society people expect teachers to be miracle workers. It was refreshing to see the struggles of the young teachers in the books and yes we will all probably have struggles too as young educators, but realize that there is light at the end of the tunnel and that is positive influence on a student's lives. You may do something for a student that you think is so small, but it can have tremendous impacts on that student. It is always the little things in life I feel like.

After browsing around I found this blog that I think really sums up what I said. The link for it is http://www.huffingtonpost.com/deborah-chang/5-things-great-teachers-a_b_3860781.html. It discusses five things great teachers are and five things they are not. I think they are pretty accurate descriptions and also misconceptions that our society thinks they are.

1. Great teachers are not superheroes; they are everyday heroes.
2. Great teachers are not saviors; they are inspirers.
3. Great teachers are not magicians; they are practitioners.
4. Great teachers are not interchangeable; they are individuals.
5. Great teachers are not lone rangers, they are team builders.