Tuesday, May 7, is National Teacher’s Day in the United States. Ever since the tragic shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School last December 12, I have been thinking a lot about teachers and all that they give to their students, from a listening ear to loving discipline to school supplies purchased with their own meager earnings. Virginia Leigh Soto was one of the teachers who gave her life at Sandy Hook. She was shot as she used her body as a shield to try to protect several of her first grade students. (Here’s a lovely article from CNN that recognizes all of the heroes on that sad day.)
In one of the many news stories that followed the shooting, I heard someone describe one of the teachers as childfree but “she treated all of her students as if they were her own children.” They might have been describing Ms. Soto. She was only 27 at the time of her death, so perhaps she would have had children of her own one day, but I would argue that her love for her students was independent of any parenting experience. That’s my experience of most teachers, and it is evidence that flies in the face of the old “you wouldn’t understand unless you’re a parent” accusation we all have heard.
As I thought back to the beloved teachers of my youth, I wasn’t surprised to realize that almost all of them were parents or would go on to become parents. Except for one: Mr. K. Both he and his wife were teachers; he taught English Composition to high schoolers and she taught elementary students in the inner city. Perhaps they couldn’t have children of their own. Perhaps they looked at their combined incomes and decided raising children wasn’t in their budget. Perhaps they both loved their work so much that they wanted to dedicate all their creative energy to raising good students. I’ll never know the answer, but I do know that they were both were respected and adored by their students.
Mr. K was the first teacher who truly saw me and my potential. “You’re a good writer,” he said to me on that fateful day, “but you have some work to do.” Previous English teachers had strongly discouraged me, to the point that I had given up and was just hoping to pass the required courses. With Mr. K’s encouragement and guidance, I worked my tail off to learn and improve. I am a professional, published writer today because of the seeds he planted and nourished.
Fortunately I had an opportunity to thank Mr. K before he passed away 20-some years ago, and I like to think his spirit has celebrated my successes. Next Tuesday I’ll be looking around at the other teachers in my circle—both parents and cheros (heroes who happen to be childfree)—and thinking about how I might acknowledge them. “Thank you for your sacrifices. Thank you for your passion. Thank you for loving the students in your care as though they were your own children.”
I invite you to join me in this little campaign of thankfulness for the teachers of the world. And, if you are a teacher yourself, I have a message for you: I appreciate you and all that you do.
Kathleen Guthrie Woods is a Northern California–based freelance writer. She is mostly at peace with her childfree status.
J Thorne says
Wow -as a teacher, it was so nice to read your post. Some days many of my colleagues and I feel very underappreciated. The time we put in above and beyond school hours and the genuine concern we have for our students often goes unnoticed. It seems that the media has been on “teacher attack” mode which often spills over to the attitudes of the general public. It has been a difficult year in education for many reasons so I thank you for recognizing what we do.
Julie says
Well said! With so much focus on testing now, the media seems to have forgotten everything else that we do for our students, and that that single day for a test is not always the best indicator of what a student can do. Especially when we live in a culture of “retakes.”
Robin says
Thank you! What a lovely post and I appreciate it being a teacher. 🙂
Julie says
I’m glad you were able to thank Mr. K. So often we wonder what happened to our students, and I love running in to them and finding out how they are now. I don’t always remember their names depending on how much we talked during their school year with me and how many years have passed, but I always remember their faces.
As the year progresses and I get to know the students better, the “do you have kids?” question comes up a lot. They are teenagers, so they don’t always know when to stop, so the follow-up questions can be brutal. But I know their questions come from a well-intentioned place, and I’m in a much better place now, so answering their questions in a fairly honest way is okay now.
loribeth says
Several years ago, I found my old high school’s website, & realized that my old English teacher was now the principal. I decided to do something I had long thought about — I e-mailed him and thanked him for the great grounding in literature, grammar and essay writing he & his teaching partner had given us. I told him I had found essay writing at university to be easy, thanks to my high school prep, and that I was now working in communications. He e-mailed me back to thank me and said he would take that as a tribute to HIS old high school English teacher, who was still alive (!) & he would pass my words along to her when he next saw her. 🙂 I was glad I had taken the time to tell him abougt the impact he had had on my life.