My heart aches today for teachers young and old. My heart aches today for the countless children whose horizons are limited because their potential future teachers are redirected away from education; though their sensitive hearts call them to spend their lives investing in the future through building up children, the hostile workspaces of schools and their tangent communities have driven them away I have taught for nearly 30 years, pouring my heart into my teaching, students, parents and community. Yet today I am portrayed as some selfish pariah feeding off the community's tax dollars.
Just as the light from a far distant sun doesn't reach us for millenia, so I see the impact of my daily words and efforts. Developing learners who believe in themselves, care about others, invest of themselves in their classmates and school doesn't have an immediate impact, but it works to develop individuals that will be productive members of the community later.
The battering of today's teachers is unprecedented. The constant stream of misrepresented data intended to deprofessionalize teaching is a flood of ignorance and misdirected good intentions almost too overwhelming to stand against. So here I try to find my voice and speak for two underrepresented populations; the teachers who want nothing more than to work themselves to death for the children they serve, and the children; more devalued in our society then has been seen in generations.
Here I intend to speak the truth from a classroom, join me in sharing your own experiences, fears, questions and challenges. There is hope for our future and it lies within the hearts of our children and those willing to look at the true complexities that face us.
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