Tuesday, April 16, 2024
Carol Heizer
I’VE BEEN THINKING
Carol Goodman Heizer is an author who recently moved to Hood County from Louisville, Kentucky. She has had short stories and articles published in six editions of “Chicken Soup for the Soul” books. Her column for the Hood County News will appear every two weeks.
As school begins and many parents look forward to their children returning to school, I dedicate this column to teachers everywhere. As parents look toward quieter days and time for their own individual interests or job responsibilities, teachers are preparing to begin a nine-month period of spending time with other people’s children.
As I typed that last sentence, a thought suddenly came to mind: “Nine months, the same time it takes to develop a baby.” And the reality of the comparison struck with full force. As a mother prepares for the birth of her child, a teacher prepares to lead her students from their current stage of development to a hopefully deeper and broader understanding of “things.”
Those things could include the teacher’s subject matter, other students’ differing personalities, the value of responsibilities, the appreciation for personal relationships, and other aspects of life often not found in textbooks or technology.
While most parents love their children to the point of personal sacrifice or death, teachers are expected to love and embrace each student as though they were their own. Sometimes that journey can be easy if the child’s life has been positively shaped by love and affirmation. Other times, that journey can be extremely difficult if the child’s life has been negatively affected by trauma, abuse, neglect, or belittling by others.
Students come to a teacher with all types of “baggage.” Unfortunately, such problems do not neatly appear on an index card pinned to their clothing. Teachers must learn of such past injuries by oftentimes building a relationship that can take weeks or months to develop such trust.
Troubled students are not easily forthcoming, so teachers must walk a fine line between the student feeling confident to confide, yet not pushing so hard that a student feels pressured to share information or feelings.
Most teachers are expected to have the patience of Job, the wisdom of Solomon, the emotional strength of Daniel in the lion’s den, and the physical strength of Charlie Atlas. Physical strength? Yes – physical strength to safely handle a child who is out of control while simultaneously protecting themselves and other students who may be in danger.
Although they are human, teachers are rebuffed if, in a moment of extreme stress, they lose their composure and say or do something that is not totally professional. Can we hold a parent to the same standard when dealing with perhaps one or two children, while a teacher is dealing with an entire classroom? And this classroom is filled with students coming from extremely different backgrounds where parental behavior expectations and children’s actions often go from non-existent to over-the-top.
If a student is hurt while under the supervision of teachers, they are expected to initially evaluate the injury, either offer elementary-level aid or choose to send the student to the school nurse. They must do all this while ensuring no bodily fluid is exposed to anyone else, while keeping an eye on other students to prevent further injuries.
Students may sometimes ask questions of a spiritual nature. Then teachers find themselves in a position of trying to decide how to provide a sufficient answer without pushing their own views on the child.
So, there we have it!
Teachers are expected to be a fountain of academic information, not only for their own subject areas, but also for all other academic subjects taught.
Teachers are expected to be counselors for students who need emotional help or a friend in whom they can confide.
Teachers are expected to be disciplinarians, always knowing exactly what to do and in the right manner to properly and effectively deal with problems.
Teachers are expected to be medical personnel in case of classroom or playground injuries.
Teachers are expected to be convincing persuaders as they deal with parents who believe their child could do no wrong, even in the face of concrete evidence.
Teachers are expected to be a parent figure for the child from a single-parent home.
True, dedicated teachers see their subject-area textbooks as only the beginning of the learning experience. They take their students into the many aspects of living, loving, and learning.
Teachers — multi-dimensional individuals whose daily stresses and responsibilities cannot be fully appreciated unless one has walked in their shoes.
cgheizer@gmail.com
