Each and every one of us has had multiple teachers throughout our lives. Some good. Some not so good. Some rememberable. Some not. Whether you loved them or loathed them they were still your teacher. They taught you to be who you have become today. No matter what profession you have entered into, someone taught you how to do it. From pizza delivery to doctors. From sanitaion workers to astronauts. We were all taught.
Yet, schools are still struggling to make ends meet. Schools still struggle to send their students to learn outside of the classroom on a field trip. Schools are still struggling to provide teachers and students alike the resources they need to succeed. I cannot count on my hands and toes the number of teachers who spend their hard earned money on their students and classroom.
I imagine the day when teachers step into the spotlight to become part of the elitist group that comes with being a celebrity. When teachers are the rich and famous. When teachers are the ones who own summer and winter houses. When teachers sail in luxurious yachts bringing back experiences and knowledge to enhance understanding in their classroom. I dream of the day when sports cards aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on. When every kid wants their teacher’s “Teacher Cards”. When a teacher’s rookie card is worth more than a tanker ship filled to the gills with crude oil. Perhaps there will come a day when the entertainers enter the working class as teacher take over the top tax brackets.
I imagine a day when classrooms have just a dozen students. Or fewer still. No more classrooms busting at the seams with students. No more worring about how to fit in all the desks. No more worrying about feeding the masses a balanced, healthy meal, or if there will be enough books because schools will have the finances to supply it all.
I imagine a day when teachers have earned the trust bestowed upon surgeons, for those surgeons, too, had to have teachers. Perhaps one day there will be no more testing. No more accountability held over teachers’ heads like carrot on a stick. Teachers will be informed on what to teach but not how to teach. We will all rest assured knowing our child’s teacher is doing the best they can to ensure our child, our learner, our future, is receiving the knowlege they’ll need to make wise decisions when the time comes. But we’ll also know that teachers aren’t miracle workers for all education begins at home.
I imagine a day when teachers aren’t scoffed at for having summers off. Because truly, they aren’t really off without pay. A teacher is a 10 month employee who’s salary is stretched to 12 months. Some teachers even take courses over the summer to better prepare themselves for our children. Over the summer, teachers spend time with their own families instead of yours during parent/teacher nights. Instead of concerts. Instead of coaching a school based sporting event. Instead of sitting in a semi-dark classroom every evening planning the next big lesson for your child.
I dream big. Perhaps we all should.
Great post, Eric! So very true. Good teachers are often taken for granted. They work they do not really considered. Great eye opener. I sure hope that your dreams will one day be true. It will also guarantee that kids will be educated properly and guided to turn into responsible, respectful and kind adults.
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Thanks Sandra! I fear it won’t happen in my lifetime, but who knows? Might as well dream big.
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And make every little step towards it count…
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Reblogged this on A Momma's View and commented:
This is one of the posts I so deeply want to share. I want to share it so bad that I can’t wait to put it in the list of My Picks Of The Week. So here you go! We do not appreciate teachers enough. Just like nurses they are simply there. We do not realize how much they actually give and how little they receive. And yet they are so important.
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Aww thanks a million. You’re too kind. Guess that’s what makes us great teachers 🙂
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You are very welcome 🙂
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As a person married to a teacher I reckon this post is pretty awesome! And I would also like to have them sit on a yacht and earn a fortune. You guys really deserve it and I don’t mind sharing in the perks of your dream. I’m accommodating that way.
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Thanks, Ah-Dad! As a spouse of a teacher your are fully entitled to the teacher fortunes (yachts included). I’m sure you have to listen to all her woes and stresses from the classroom/school.
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Only in reply to mine.
What melts my heart is seeing how the little ones will want a hug every time they see her in a public place.
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Kids love seeing their teachers outside of school. It’s when they realize that teachers don’t live in school.
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I was moved almost to tears when I met my daughter’s new first grade teacher a few weeks ago, particularly after having such a hard time in kindergarten. Stella has had 2 whole days with this woman and already has received more encouragement and support than in all of last year. School has since been put on hiatus because of the awful flooding we’re experiencing. I’m crossing every finger and toe that this magical lady will be back, intact, once schools are able to resume.
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I’m so happy to hear that you are having such a positive start to the year. I hope you all remain intact through the flooding. When our oldest was in kindergarten he had a magical teacher. Everyone compared to her to Mary Poppins, and they were right in their comparison. Amazing the difference one teacher can make in a child’s life.
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This is a pretty fabulous post my friend!
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Thanks Tiffany! I also imagine a day when there’s world peace. But that’s for a different post 🙂
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Not that a teacher wouldn’t accept a cruise given the chance, but I suspect lavishness would just make the squirm a bit. They’d want to get back to what they love to do (with maybe a bonus check.) We really should appreciate the incredible roll they play in our kids’ lives, and the world at large, in the grand scheme.
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Teacher could travel in luxury in yachts and private jets to their conferences and professional days and take courses around the world 🙂 I think they are most underappreciated by the government more so than the general public.
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What if a politician offered a portion of his or her campaign fund to teachers?
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They would get my vote if I could trust they would keep their promise. Politicians are tricky like that, though.
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Wonderful. And true. I am, like, a jillion years old and I still remember my favorite teachers and how important they were to me. Mrs. Schroeder, where the heck are you now? Oh, and Mr. Evans, who actually let me use the school office so I could run off copies of my ‘newspaper’ on the mimeograph machine when I was 10.
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I’m only a gazillion years old. Not that far behind you. I remember mimeograph machines with rollers and blue ink. I rememer my first grade teacher, Mrs. Rosemere. She helped me to love school again. As my mom likes to tell me, “You would have walked through hell in a gasoline suit for her.” Wouldn’t it be great to find those teachers so we could tell them we miss them and remember their teachings (or permissions) a jillion years later? Actually, my 6th grade teacher is on FB, as is my gym teacher from the same time. 😀
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Love love love the idea of you walking “though hell in a gasoline suit”. Now THAT’s a TEACHER.
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Amazing how one teacher can change the world for you… or me 🙂
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It’s a great piece, Eric! I’m not a teacher, and having been in a trainer’s shoes, it’s a thankless job. What more being a full time teacher! I’m always in awe at how much the kids learn in school and how very patient they usually are. It’s only right for parents and teachers to work together rather than put all responsibilities to the school/teacher alone.
Maybe, just maybe there’s a chance of your dreamsite happening on this lifetime. That wld be amazing. And hey! Who knows you’d be having your own yatch! 😊
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It’s not entirely thankless. There are definitely parents who understand and the kids (for the most part) are all the thanks we need. Well, a yacht would be a nice thanks, too.
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Yachts for teachers…maybe I’ll go back to the profession after all 😉
Lovely post! I, too, wish we lived in a society that valued teachers more.
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Yachts for teachers might entice more people to join the profession, thereby giving rise to the reduction of class sizes. Of course, we’d have to weed out those who really want to teach and those who just want the yacht.
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Make them chaperone a middle school dance and we’ll thin the herd 😉 I must be losing my mind lately, I have been seriously thinking about giving teaching a second shot (with or without the yachts) when BG starts school.
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Chaperoning would definitely thin the herd. As would taking the heathens on field trips. Or make them sit through parent/teacher nights 🙂 I can’t wait to get my own classroom again!
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Wow. What a beautiful post and a wonderful tribute to what teachers truly deserve.
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Thank you Laura. I suppose for now, teachers’ riches are measured in smiles created by their students 🙂 If only smiles could pay for that yacht.
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It all starts with the teachers mate 🙂 we’re square one!
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Indeed we are! Teachers create every other profession 🙂
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Nice one mate 🙂
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Thanks, man. Appreciate it.
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Hey Eric,
Thanks for this piece. If it’s okay with you, I am oing to reblog. The Mrs. and I have been speaking through this entire olympics about how teachers should be the ones revered, earning big bucks and being the heroes of our children. They are our heroes.
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You do whatever you want with it, Lisa. I have been hear a lot about Coaches in the Olympics. While not exactly the same as a classroom teacher, coaches are teachers, too. But even those athletes had classroom teacher helping them get to where they are now. Thanks a million again for the reblog!
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Reblogged this on lisapomerantzster: Are we there yet? and commented:
This is a reblog from Eric over at AllInADadsWork. He nailed it. To every teacher out there, this ones for you! We do not take you for granted. We thank you for helping us to mold the future. M’wah! ❤ ❤ ❤
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Well-posted, Eric. I’ve known and had some inspiring teachers.
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Pingback: in a perfect world | Riddle from the Middle
Beautifully written. Reblogged at riddlefromthemiddle.com with “My kids go back to school tomorrow. We met their teachers last week – people who’ve spent their summer strengthening their skills for a new group of students, or researching material for a new grade level. Incredibly hard working folks, one and all, and I’ve stumbled across a post that sums up my feelings perfectly.”
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Thank you so much Laura! Both your comment and reblogging this most mean a lot. Teacher are an incredible group of people 🙂
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Wow! This is such a great post. It remind my of “I Have a Dream” speech delivered by Martin Luther King Jr. I have a confession to make – I too want to be a teacher, but I am not so sure of myself how I would react of naughty kids. I guess that’s why teachers enrolled themselves in Summer school to become a better teacher. It is amazing how much work and dedication they have to each and individual child. I don’t know how they do it but with my great respect to them indeed.
Thank you so much for linking up with us on #FabFridayPost My apology for taking me so long to comment. I hope that you can join us again today. xx
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Reacting to “bad behaviour” is tough because you often react slightly differently to each child that acts out as they all respond to different reprimands. It does take an extreme amount of patience, work and dedication. I’ll be sure link up today! Thanks a million!
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That’s very true indeed. Patience is the one thing I need to practice on. Thank you so much for linking up with us again. 🙂
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