Blame the Teachers: My Version

 I recently read a post on Facebook entitled, “Blame the Teachers.” Its title made me want to read the article. It was not what I was expecting.  Here is my version of the article.

Maxine Moore, 2nd grade. She was my teacher when my father’s plane went down in Vietnam. She, and the guidance counselor, comforted a very sad, very lost, very confused little girl. They allowed her to come to school early, help pass out morning work and sharpen pencils. They loved her and comforted her, and gave her the time and space to adjust to her loss.  Let’s blame them….

Larry Fletcher. High school English. He allowed us to write book reports on any book we chose. I chose, “Helter Skelter,” because it intrigued me. What would cause someone to carry out such heinous crimes? What made Charles Manson tick? I shocked the class (and probably Mr. Fletcher!)  

He allowed us to play “Password,” boys against girls (because that was okay in the ‘70s). What he, and the boys, didn’t know at the time, was that I had learned sign language and taught it to all my girlfriends. We would just spell the work out under the desk and win every single time!  They boys were ticked!

He and his wife, along with some of our other teachers, went snow skiing with us every Spring Break. They were out at our house after every football and basketball game, bringing snacks and playing guitars.

When my longtime boyfriend and I broke up my senior year, Mr. Fletcher came out to our farm to make sure I was okay.

Let’s blame him…..

Diane Knutson. High school band. "Mrs. K" stretched us, musically, beyond what we thought we could do. When I was in high school, we had an amazing music department! Whenever we went to contest, other schools wold cringe. We would fill auditoriums with other schools coming in just to hear our jazz band. She pushed us hard and expected nothing less than our best. We all grew as musicians because of her!

Let's blame her....

Colleen (Norvell Sipich). High school choir, The kindest, most gentle soul I know! I took private voice lessons from her, in addition to what we did in school. She gave me an appreciation for vocal music. I love to sing! She is the reason I chose choir every semester of college. It was my "happy place." She is also the reason I chose to minor in music in college.

Let's blame her, too...

Fran Connealy. High school government. Let’s blame her! She made us bring in newspaper clippings each week to discuss current events. She made us read Time magazine! The nerve! She asked us to write a final paper, minimum of 10 pages, complete with a bibliography, about an event in the United States Government that changed history. Mine was about Watergate. I stayed up past midnight the night before it was due, typing and editing it.  Yes, let’s blame her for making us care about our country and what was happening and showing us what it would be like to write a term paper when we got to college. Let’s blame her….

Dr. Petersen. College Anthropology. I failed his first test. His teaching assistant wrote the test. Apparently, what I thought was important was way different than what his TA thought was important! I scheduled a meeting with Dr. Petersen. I was scared! He was a big man, tall, with a long beard. Intimidating. Turns out he was anything but. He quizzed me over the information he had taught and I nailed every question. That semester, if I didn’t do well on a test or quiz, he would have me come to his office to discuss the material. I ended up with a B in that class.  Let’s blame him….

Lori Beadell. College choir. I only needed two Fine Arts credits. I took her choir class every semester but my first one.  She said, “You know you don’t need more credits.”  I told her that music was my escape with everything else going on around me, it was my calm in the storm.” She made me her music secretary, cataloging and pulling music for her.  Let’s blame her….

Paul Cowell. Masters Instructor. We were used to working in small groups, having time for discussion. Paul believed in lecturing, the.whole.time. You could barely ask a question during his class. I needed a silver lining.  Here’s one thing he said that sticks with me to this day: “Involve families early, and in a positive manner.” This is my mantra now! I try my hardest to do this through Family Meetings before school starts and other methods throughout the school year. To date, I have had 100% attendance at Parent-Teacher conferences for 18 years, running.  Let’s blame him….

Jim Sporleder. Trauma-Informed Consultant. Former principal. Where to even start? When I heard Jim speak for the first time, I literally wept! He is the one who gave a name to what I believe teaching should be. We need to meet the physical and emotional needs of our students before we can ever expect them to learn! I am honored to have met him, have him mentor me, and call him my friend. Let’s blame him….

Teachers.

 Let’s blame them. 

Let’s blame them for caring, even when their workload is heavy.

Let’s blame them for taking time, even if it takes time away from their own families.

Let’s blame them for creating the ability to learn something new.

Let’s blame them for finding a way, and continuing to teach through the damn-demic.

Let’s blame them for our own ability to have a job.

Let’s blame them for the noble job they are doing when no one appreciates them.

Let’s blame them…..