This was part of an article in the USA Today Posted 8/18/2005
"More teachers, it seems, are ready to leave their schools behind. Forty percent of public school teachers plan to exit the profession within five years, the highest rate since at least 1990, according to a study being released Thursday."
This film gave us a great example that could cause a dedicated teacher, Maurice, to possibly fall into this statistic. Without the help, or feeling of it, from your school system can cause discouragement. Here was a teacher that put forth his time and effort, which for a first year teacher could be very difficult, to get a student the help that they needed. After all his efforts and finally getting the student to the speech therapist nothing came from it. Maurice went as far as trying to get services around the community for the student. When all failed he did the best he could to provide the student the extra help himself. This is not uncommon in the education profession and can make people very distraught with the system; on the other hand, it could also be motivation for a teacher to try to make a change and get things turned around. I hope for that school that Maurice was motivated by this and has stayed with the profession. I think a lot of good teachers move on to other professions and it is a shame. People come out of school and get that first job thinking that they are going to change the world. I wish it were true, not to sound cynical, but it isn't the way it works. I know that I have not been in that situation but I have been in similar and it sucks when you lose that fire. WE as future teachers need to understand that there are going to be things that makes us angry with the system and that we don't understand how a kid can go without services, but it is our job to give them the best that we can and try to make a difference. Tonight in class I heard someone say the students want a voice, as teachers we also need to have a voice, that voice is what is going to make the changes as enable the students to gain theirs.
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2 comments:
I definitely agree that this report is very sad. It is unfortunate that many of the teachers that are serving the children in public schools are not content and passionate enough to continue teaching in the future.
I definitely agree that many teachers need to persevere and realize that even though some things don’t work out the way that they should, this doesn’t mean that they didn’t make an impact or that their dedication cannot be used to work towards positive changes in the future. Sadly, not every situation will always be salvaged despite all efforts. However, it is the people who are truly passionate about what they do and put their whole hearts into making positive changes that truly make a difference- whether or not they succeed. I certainly hope that great teachers with great hearts such as Maurice do not give up on themselves as teachers and use their failure as a fuel to motivate them to go on and make changes.
On the other hand, I definitely also feel that it may be a blessing that some teachers realize that it is time to retire or try a different profession. If a teacher has truly lost their passion for teaching, it may be a good thing they realize that they will not be providing students with the enthusiasm for education that students deserve. I feel that all students deserve to have teachers who are passionate about what they do and will remain dedicated to providing their very best for their students.
I also was having these same ideas while watching the video. I think that this particular movie was a realistic portrayl of what teaching is like. It's not like the "Hollywood" movies that are supposed to inspire us. I think that this movie was a much better tool for inspiration because it's real life situations. I felt frustrated and sad as I watched Maurice try so hard to find help for his student with a speech impairment. This is what makes a good teacher to me. Someone who goes beyond the basic responsibilities in the classroom. Maurice did not give up right away and when he was not receiving any help he took it upon himself to work on speech with his student.This was what really motivated me. Maurice really cared about and believed in his student. I know there are teachers like him all over but I just hope that all of remember this aspect of teaching.
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