Another back-to-school! It seems (and we hope) it’s not going to be as crazy as 2020’s. Still, there are uncertainties and some anxiety with the pandemic still motivating some last-minute precautions, mandates and requirements. Then there’s political divide, climate change, overcrowded National Parks, you name it! Reasons for stress are all around.
Instead of focusing on that, I decided to make this a puff piece. If you decide to spend a few minutes reading this blog, I hope you come out of it energized and inspired to get your teacher-of-the-year hat on.
I’m sure many of you have already seen this quote in one shape or another (and if you haven’t I’m glad I can share something new), but it always gives me pause when I come across it. I think it is interesting to be reminded of that from time to time. It might be overwhelming for some, inspiring for others or alienate people completely. My take on quotes it that as long as it promotes an authentic reaction from me (positive or negative), it’s good and worth of analysis.
To reinforce the sentiment of the quote, I compiled here a few videos that reiterate the importance of your role as a teacher for your students and your communities. Some of them go back almost 13 years, but they are still as relevant and as moving as when they were first recorded:
Note that if you want to see Spanish subtitles for the first two videos, you can simply change the setting of your YouTube from English as chosen language to Spanish (something that I found out by accident). That didn’t work for the other two videos or for any other languages I tried.
Going back to the quote, what do you think? Is that how you see your role in the classroom? Not at all? Please share your thoughts.
Have a wonderful back-to-school! If there’s anything the Ohio History Connection’s education team can do for you, please reach out at [email protected].
PS: If you are a 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th grade teacher into Facebook, and you are not familiar with the “Not so wimpy teacher” Facebook groups, I would recommend to take a look. These are private groups so you need to ask permission to join. I’m only a member of the 4th grade one. There’s certainly a lot going on there but I honestly think there some really good tips and conversations among all the noise:
Blog post image citation: Teachers, Molly Drew and Mary Smith, Martin Luther King, Jr. School, approximately 1978-1979. Photograph. Toledo, OH: 1970s. Toledo Lucas County Public Library. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p16007coll33/id/164982. (Accessed August 3, 2021)
