JUST PONDERING: THANKFUL FOR TEACHERS WHO TEACH AND TOUCH THE FUTURE.

The coronavirus has been the greatest whistleblower of our time on the significance of teachers. As nauseous as this may sound I am hopeful that with the current situation we will forever be grateful and thankful for teachers at the pre-Kindergarten through twelve grade for all they do to teach for by their work they touch the future. James Baldwin, a civil rights activist in the sixties, reflects the worth of teachers by stating: ‘give me a five year child and I will have him for life’. It is through the work of teachers that students engage in learning - constructing their knowledge and perspectives of the world.

There is the teacher who engages in teaching and students who engage in learning within the classroom system. It is important to understand teachers and students, and their respective roles in the system for teaching and learning to occur. It is also important to understand the purpose of the classroom system. This becomes more complex when we begin to identify other elements in the classroom system that are necessary for teaching and learning to occur. I will dwell on a less complex system as I touch the tip of the iceberg in reflecting on the arduous task of a teacher for which we should be thankful.

The purpose of a classroom (a sub-system of a school system) that embodies many components and their intersections is visible in effective learning defined by outcomes. Stated simply, the specific outcome in each classroom level is for students to be ready for the next grade level. It is crucial to examine the teacher, students, and their interconnectedness to appreciate the job of the teacher.

Teachers are supposed to create an environment where learning will occur. The environment must be appealing to all students and not just some if ‘no child must be left behind’ and for ‘every student to succeed.’ The Elementary and Secondary Education Act and specifically its 9th and 10th reauthorizations, No Child Left Behind (2002) and Every Student Succeeds Act (2015), respectively, reiterate the essence of teaching with individual students in mind.

Certified teachers are prepared to create classroom environments where every student feels welcome and safe in taking risks in their learning. The teacher shows compassion, humility, and respect for each student and is intentional in creating lessons that meet the learning needs of every student. The teacher is aware of the diversity in the classroom and is intentional in mitigating challenges like implicit biases that are likely to ensue within the classroom. The teacher is continuously reflecting on and enhancing his or her performance in teaching and always in the learning mode. Effective and accomplished teachers are aware of their significant role in creating opportunities for students to learn.

The classroom is a basic unit for education that serves as an equal playground - where every student, irrespective of their identity and background, is able to close the knowledge gap to be successful. Students bring diverse funds of knowledge into the classroom. Teachers have the responsibility to create and manage this equal playground for diverse students based on their specific needs. Teachers must be knowledgeable in diverse cultures that embody nationality, gender, physical ability, religious orientation, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, race, ethnicity, etc., in creating opportunities that consider diverse learning needs.

Consider a classroom representing multiple identities. In addition to specific identities, teachers must also be knowledgeable about the intersectionality of identities. It is still at the tip of the iceberg with respect to the job of a teacher in focusing only on the element of diverse student body – yet one can begin to appreciate the arduous task of being a teacher.

Although teachers have this daunting task of creating an environment in which to teach effectively, students also have the onerous task to learn. Learning does not happen spontaneously with teaching. Students do not come into the classroom like blank slates or  ‘sponges’ ready to absorb information presented by the teacher or expecting the teacher to transfer information into their brains. They cannot be passive in the classroom if learning has to occur. They must be active, intentional, and determined to learn, which involves engaging actively in constructing their knowledge within the environment created by the teacher. Learning is a complex process that involves students’ preparedness.

Students come to the classroom with different levels of preparedness, which challenges teachers who must determine the various levels in creating a learning environment to accommodate every learning needs. Teachers must therefore be skilled in eliciting students’ funds of knowledge, interpreting the knowledge, and making sense of it to be able to make instructional decisions. Given this skilled and ambitious teacher, students are still responsible for making learning happen. Students have the challenging responsibility to make sense of what they see, hear and feel to construct their knowledge in any environment. Learning is a personal endeavor, which makes the teacher’s job a tough one. It is a challenge for students to attain maximum learning if the teacher fails to create an adequate learning environment. The teacher’s role in learning is crucial.

Accomplished teachers bring their content and pedagogical knowledge in the classroom to ensure every student is successful. These teachers have learned and mastered what students are supposed to learn at the given grade level. They know how to elicit students’ prior knowledge as well as students’ developing knowledge in real time to enhance teaching and learning. They know how to determine faulty mental models that students present in the classroom and gaps in what they are learning. They also know how to enhance students’ motivation and to engage them to be active in the classroom. These teachers know when students are struggling and intervene at the right time to support students in their learning. They know that although knowledge construction is personal it happens effectively within a community of learners with students sharing and reflecting with each other in a safe environment that teachers must create.

Everyone reading this piece is developing a different perspective and constructing their own knowledge reflecting on their experiences and knowledge about teachers. Some will agree, some will disagree and others will be neutral. Agreeing or disagreeing tells of the essence of learning that is personal, a process that involves construction of knowledge. This construction and reconstruction of knowledge can continue if given the opportunity to engage in sharing more on our diverse perspectives with evidences. The outcome will be a more sophisticated knowledge on our understanding of teaching, learning, and more important the arduous task of being a teacher.

Knowledge is personal and explains why we have differences in our understanding of the world around us. Teachers are ordained to guide students see the world in a way that is as close as possible to reality. They interact with students for hours during the critical periods of their cognitive development. Teachers determine ways to create environments in which students will construct their knowledge efficiently. It is through the lens of teachers that students appreciate what is worth learning even with the responsibility to make learning happen. The million-dollar question comes in: Who is to blame when students fail to learn? Can the response to this question explain the rationale for school choice that include homeschooling? Although na?ve in the literature on homeschooling, I can appreciate possible reasons for this format of schooling.

In reflecting on the challenges in creating a learning environment that engages diverse students, one may have reservations on teachers meeting the needs of every student in their classrooms. Such doubts transcend formal classroom spaces to other spaces like medical, legal, and psychiatric that involve care providers. Clients have the choice to select care providers they trust. Parents and/or guardians with adequate pedagogical content knowledge can decide on homeschooling as an effective format for students to learn. However, parents becoming teachers will also experience the arduous task in creating an environment that will engage their children to be active learners.

I see the future of our nation in the workings of teachers who are responsible for students in their classrooms. To teachers, who engaged me in learning; who continue to engage students to prepare them for the next chapters in their lives; who are always learning and continue to be lifelong learners; we should be thankful, for they teach. They touch the future.