Letter to the Editor
Thank a teacher
Published Monday, May 5, 2008
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To the editor:
Think back. Waaay back to your school days. There was one teacher who encouraged you, who made you believe you could do anything. At the time you probably did not know it, but you know it now. Teachers are in the business of changing lives. They believe in their students. They encourage their students to work hard and dream big.
May 6 is Teacher Appreciation Day
Now it is our turn to make a difference in their lives. We can honor them for their hard work and dedication. Today thank a teacher for being there for your child(ren). Ask them how you can help to make their job easier.
Community Discussion
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Don't forget to thank your local homeowners, too - - - the ones that foot the bill for your kids to go to school....
Didn't get my Christmas Cards this year from the school board thanking me for my contribution...
And I'm glad we didn't, cause we would've been footing the bill for that too,
Thanks for the reminder, Mr. Roehl. Teachers play a key role in creating opportunity for every individual to develop skills and the possibility to understand the world they inhabit. Great teachers inspire people to become life long learners. Thank goodness for public schools and the possibility for people to access education.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, Alaska ranks 42nd in high school graduation rates at 60.7%
maybe instead of thanking them we should begin to ask some tough questions.....
Perhaps you could thank individual teachers who are doing an effective (and often amazing) job keeping young people actively involved in their education. Then you might ask tough questions of a system that makes it difficult, if not impossible, for teachers to get resources.
You might also consider asking some tough questions about what sort of role family violence plays in creating atmospheres where young people are impacted by co-occurring issues that may make it difficult for them to concentrate on getting an education.
Wow, Mr. Roehl has gone from being a math teacher to having a REALLY fancy title! I'm happy he wrote in to remind us about Teacher Appreciation Day.
Good teachers are worth their weight in gold, and rarely get acknowledged for all the hard work, and non-paid after hours work they do.
Please don't confuse teaching with parenting. Fairbanks has it's share of top notch teachers.
I never had a great or even a good public school teacher. I had quite a few decent and poor teachers though. The teacher unions chase off great teachers like Jaime Escalante, the famed calculus teacher, as they raise the standard. I would rather thank Milton and Rose Friedman for proposing that education vouchers replace the public monopoly system.
I suppose I was fortunate. I had some awful teachers in both public & private schools, but I also had some truly amazing ones in both schools as well. I choose to focus on the good ones.
If any East Thunderbirds had Mr. Hart, Mrs. Bryan & Mrs Dubeau, they know how wonderful & caring teachers can be. Mrs Green, my English teacher at a private school was beyond brilliant & amazing. Mr Wilkinson was a treasure. Continuing to the university level, UAA's Mike Haller & Caedmon Liburd were fantastic & always expected your best. Judy Kleinfeld & Greg Owens at UAF, amazing teachers both, they show you things in a new & different light. These teachers will always have my thanks as they positively impacted so many areas of my life.
Maybe many teachers aren't up to snuff, but thanking the good ones is never a bad move. If nothing else, it may inspire more education students to be 'that teacher', the one the students will always appreciate.
akguy- one of the main reasons for what akguy stated is that we dont have enough teachers who teach only what they have a degree in, often times they are teaching a class that the school was short a teacher in (ie my typing teacher in HS was my econ teacher, not because she could but because they needed her too) When a marginal student is faced with the frustration of dealing with a teacher in this type of scenario who is also frustrated it is a lose lose. This is obviously not the only reason that kids drop out and dont finish school, but it is one of the bigger differances between our state way up here at the fourth corner of the planet and the majority of schools that we are being compared to in the continental states. Location, location, location.
So for the teachers out there that are doing everything they can, THANKS! To Mary Butress who works at Hunter Elementary with the special resource children, you are invaluable with how you have helped my son and through that, my family. We love ya lady!
I propose that to be able to fully appreciate teachers, and all that they do, we pick a school day, and everybody not say anything that day. We'll think, and remember, and silently appreciate. We can call it a "Day of Silence". It will be radical.
JB -
excellent comment....
so..the yoga teacher in the paper the other day was an english teacher...but now she teaches 3 classes of yoga and 2 of english...
c'mon - do away with the stupid yoga and teach things kids need to learn...they have all day to stretch out! Teach MATH, ENGLISH, SCIENCE first....and then maybe we won't be ranked below all the states in the union in testing (all but a few, sorry) and our nation won't be ranked below most other industrialized nations in the world....
please...teachers chose to teach...time to put up
God Bless this town and all of its crotchety old people. I fervently hope that the comments on this board are not a true representation of the feelings of the rest of Fairbanks. It is amazing that people still want to blame teachers for all the ills of the world. I don't know, maybe, just maybe, we should place some of the responsibility on someone else. Hmmmm.....now who else could be responsible for children. Ummmmm.....I don't know. WAIT!!!!! I've got it!!!! How about the PARENTS!!!!! Could it be that the parents are ultimately responsible for their children's behavior????? Nahhhhhh. Lets blame the teachers instead. You know, those people who only see your children for 6-7 hours a day. The ones who are supposed to be teaching the children how to read, write, and do math, but instead spend 90% of their time dealing with unruly, unresponsive, and disobedient children. Maybe the children would be learning more if their parents made school important. Instead, its off to hockey/soccer/gymnastics practice. And don't forget to drop those kids off at the theater to watch their R rated movies. That way, they can learn new and interesting words to share with their classmates the next day. So, don't forget to write these same letters on Mother's Day and Father's Day. Then, perhaps, we can place the blame where it really belongs. Of course, no one will do that. It would be rude to ridicule people on the one day of the year when we are supposed to celebrate them....wouldn't it???
guppie9: Hold on! Are you saying that when my children act up it's my responsibility to get them under control? That's absurd. If they won't eat their broccoli, I blame their teachers. If you can't shove responsibility for your own children off on society, why have them to begin with?
I didn't see any comments saying that parents were not responsible or that teachers were the sole problem. Several comments (including my own) complained about the education system; public monopoly and unionized. Parents should be allowed greater responsibilities by being giver a grant for their children so that they can decide where their kids go and the kind of education. This would also clear up all these debates of Days of Silence, Creationism, the Pledge, and other tissue issues.
akguy,
I am a teacher and quite frankly I find your comments offensive. You think you know so much about our system and what we are up against each day. Before you comment in the future, I encourage you to spend a month in a classroom and see what really goes on. If all we had to do was teach kids the prescribed curriculum our lives would be easy. Unfortunately, we also have to worry about whether or not a kid has eaten breakfast or gone to bed. We have to put up with fights in the halls, conspiracies to kill people, and a general disregard for others. I'm not even going to add the part about cell phones. It appears easy to for you to throw out some statistics but maybe you want to check the validity of the stats. Maybe you should spend some time in a classroom before you go and disrespect teachers on the one day they are to be recognized. SO for those of you that see the value in teachers and the public school system, thank you. For others sharing akguy's views you might need a reality check. I fear what kids views would be without the education we as teachers provide every day!
Mrs. Behner (NPHS), Mrs. Becks (NPHS), and Mrs. Powell (NPHS '01) saved my life when I was in school. I think of them often and will never forget what they did for me.
It really IS all about self-flushing toilets. Let's let someone else worry about the consequences for everything we do...
I would have to say it wasn't a teacher or a school that gave me my encouragement. It was my husband. The schools may have given me the skills but Charlie gave me the confidence to go out and do something with them. I believe the schools and parents need to work together to give students skills and confidence both and to encourage them to go after their dreams.
akbear -
The various items you mentioned have been around since schools began. I agree that parenting is the real issue - and have said so on numerous occasions....but when kids are taking yoga classes and skinning classes in school, I find it offensive. AND I PAY FOR THE EDUCATION THEY ARE GETTING.
I have no problem footing the bill for the kids and YOUR salary - but I expect performance in return. I expect classes that challenge the kids in return. I don't expect excuses.
If my employees don't perform to a standard - no matter if they have eaten breakfast or got in a fight - I am ultimately accountable.
When 60% of the kids don't graduate in alaska - it is more than just the teachers fault - but when the one's that do can't do simple math or speak english correctly, then I begin to wonder.
You have very difficult job of educating the kids - - - and I am one of the ones who hire your product. I think that gives me more than a right to speak out. Maybe if you looked at your trade instead of making excuses - we would all be better off.
kids are graduating at a level that doesn't match what it was even a few years ago - I know - I hire them....how are we doing on the standardized tests?
I apologize for my previous post - i was typing fast and made a mistake
only 39.3% of Alaska's youth fail to graduate....
guess that makes it better
Oh - and thinking about it...when I have stated in the past that the family is part of the problem I get single mothers calling me a jerk - - now I say teachers are another part of the problem and they say they are offended...
Maybe its just me...I must be the problem since I hire their offspring...maybe my standards are just toooo high....
akguy-
It is ignorant to group all teachers together and call them part of the problem. I agree with akbear, go put yourself in a classroom before you bash teachers. Also, just to let you know, the teachers are bargaining for a new contract with a sizable pay increase. You know what that means, higher taxes and more whining.
It sounds as if you have a problem with the education system. I would agree with you that there are a lot of problems. However, the original article was about TEACHERS. Before you dog that teacher out about teaching yoga instead of English, you need to realize that teachers don't necessarily choose what classes they teach. If a principal tells them to teach a class, they teach that class or find another job. There is a curriculum that MUST be taught. If you don't like the curriculum that is being offered, than you need to make your feelings known. It is reviewed every year. And guess what; you, as a taxpaying citizen of the borough can let your feelings be known. Check with the school board (citizen elected) about what is being reviewed this year and put in your two cents. Teachers are doing the best they can with what they have. Are there bad apples in the bunch? Absolutely. But no more or no less than in any other profession.
Gdogg and guppie -
I agree with you both. However, there is a problem in our school system.
People being offended will not change this. I have worked in the schools, though not as a teacher, and I have seen the 'classes' offered. We have lost our focus.
When I went to school, high school was there to get you into college or train you enough to take your place in the workforce. It was about making you desirable to a future employer. Now, it seems, school is just a place to dump the kids off for a while and keep them off the streets.
What is the goal of schools anymore - does anyone really know? I though it was about a PRACTICAL education. There is time for yoga later. There is time for skinning later. Teachers have a very short time to influence these kids - why waste the time on subjects that are not going to matter once the kids graduate.
We send kids to school to make them productive members of society. Why don't we concentrate on that, get the graduation rate up, get the ACT and SATs up and help these kids to escape the ghetto of their own minds.
Then we will have won. Otherwise the bangers on Cushman will just gain new recruits - but recruits who can stretch and skin well.....
I believe we need more vocational training classes. Many students don't have the money or the desire to go on to college. With more vocational training they would be more prepared for the workforce. When I was in high school many many moons ago the high school would work with local businesses and they would let students work in the industry getting OJT along with letting it apply for credits for graduating. Junior Achievement and the Boys and Girls Clubs were designed to help with this also. With the emphasis on college I believe we are losing much needed technical training for mechanical, appliance technicians and other practical training.
amen alaskastoryteller
Mrs. Woods. Fifth & fourth grade mixed class, Woodriver Elementary School. I've never had a teacher who believed so much in me, who was ever prouder, and who ever made me feel as special as she did. She retired years ago. Thank you Mrs. Woods, you changed my life.
AKguy
We are students of a military school. We feel that you should probably look into your sources more than you have already. Did you realize that we are on a military base where about 20 kids in each grade move every year because they are reassigned to different bases in not only different states but different countries all over the world? We feel that our teachers are doing a wonderful job teaching us. Not to mention, you do not even know what kind of curriculum they use and what each teacher has to deal with every day. Half of the things you are talking about, such as yoga, help in ways that you are apparently unaware of.
VoicesOfTheStudents
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