This afternoon I ran into a former student from several years ago. I recognized him immediately and much to my surprise (and probably his too!) I actually remembered his name. After ten years of teaching there are very few names that I could ramble off to you from memory. There is Jonathan whom I will never forget- not only did his mother pass away while he was in one of my marine science class but he managed to pass his state final exam for chemistry when every teacher in the building told me that it would never happen. And then there was Julio, from my very first year in the classroom. He was in my homeroom his first freshman year and my integrated science class for his third freshman year. I will definitely always remember Francisco who narrowly escaped a firey death when a rival gang member doused his brother's car in gasoline and Juan who was escorted in protectice custody back to Puerto Rico after a weekend of people trying to gun him down.
Of course, I don't just remember the tragic cases. I will never forget Lauren or Sarah or Jenni just because they were so sweet and the sort of students every teacher would love to have a room full of. I will always remember Ike as I watched him mature from a typical sophomore boy to a young adult about to graduate. And who could ever forget Joey- always ready with a hug and/or a compliment.
Every year, as a faculty, we choose one of our colleagues as teacher of the year. I work in a school with so many deserving faculty that it is often hard to choose. Their personal experiences and dedication to their students is unfailing and each teacher chosen defintely deserves the honor. I am not sure that I will ever be voted in to such an honorable position but I am totally OK with that. I have never been the teacher that all the kids love or all the kids hate- I am somewhere in the happy middle. I don't teach AP kids and I don't have the valedictorian thanking me from the stage on graduation day but I am OK with that too. What I do have are a handful of students that have touched my life and made themselves unforgettable- not by what I was able to do for them but by what they have done for me. I know that over time I have become a better teacher- practice makes better right? But I am far from the most gifted or organized or revered educator in the practice. What I am far prouder of is the better human being I have become becasue of the students that have touched my heart. I have learned patience, developed compassion and tolerance. I see the beauty in each of my students and hold out hope right until the last possible day of class that they will have success- even if that means completing the course and never having to think about chemistry again.
Teaching has made me a better teacher, helped me to be better mother and forced me to be a better person.
I keep a file of memorable moments in a hope chest at home that I intend to one day turn into a scrapbook highlighting my teaching career. There is a smattering of photos, notes from students and newspaper clippings. There is even an official thank you letter for a letter of reference from a young man is one year from graduation at West Point Military Academy. But the things I most remember, the things I hold closest to my heart are not the tangible items in a folder at home. They are the goodbye hugs and the tears on my shoulder and the unexpected Facebook messages and remembering the name of one student from many years ago just because he was a part making me who I am today.
You are in it for all the right reasons!
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