Guest column

Value of teaching hasn't changed in 42-year career

By ANITA BLACKMAN
Published July 6, 2004

As I approached the podium to give my farewell address, a friend said, "You have been teaching longer than I have been alive." True. I began to ponder how much being a schoolteacher has changed and how much it is still the same.

My greatest memories are of the wonderful, capable people with whom I have worked through the 42 years that I was in public school systems. Teaching is still a high calling and attracts high-quality people.

People are still becoming teachers because they want to work with children. If that is not the No. 1 motivator, one could not stay in the classroom. This prime motivator was heard over and over as decisions were being made. "It is for the kids." Teaching is emotionally and physically demanding. That has not changed.

There are hundreds of teachers who go to work every day and do the things they need to do. Now they need to do more. As class sizes went up and up, teachers did whatever they could to give each child what each needed. They still do. Teachers put in countless extra hours for no pay. They do it because they want class time free to respond to the kids. They want to teach.

I have had classes with well more than 30 students. It was a gargantuan task to do well with each one. The nonteaching demands are greater and greater. There are meetings, memos, committees, reports, policies, procedures, in-service training and conferences. I was so torn when a student came in, obviously, wanting to talk and looking for encouragement. I hated to say, "I've got a meeting." Those extra demands continued to escalate right up until my last week. With new legislation and political demands, it does not look like the nonteaching duties are going to decrease.

Social and family problems have increased. So has the pressure on the kids. We all know that when kids are in emotional crisis, they are not in the state of mind to be taught. Their stories are heartbreaking. Their turmoil has to be addressed. How difficult it is to do when you have 31 other personalities, all with their own needs, to consider.

New teachers still come in so energetic and so full of new ideas that they are a delight. They have respect for experience and are eager to be coached about things that have been tried and worked. They realize that some things are old ideas with a new name. This is as true in 2004 as it was in 1964. How I have enjoyed watching these young teachers blossom. Some of my best memories are working with these people and watching them as they hit their stride.

A big change is that more people are choosing teaching as a second career. Many people have said, "I always wanted to be a teacher." I encourage them to go for it. What they lack in teacher training, they make up for in experience and intensity.

In my beginning days as a schoolteacher, I received lots of positive feedback. I was able to give lots of positive feedback. There was generally a great respect for teachers in the community. There were many opportunities for interaction. When I went to the grocery store, there was a student with his parents. It was a chance to chat. I sat next to students in church and saw them in the diner. As I walked to the post office, I greeted some students who were tumbling on the grass in their yard. The parent yelled across the yard, "Yours is her favorite class." Now interaction with parents is often by phone or in the formal setting of a conference.

We hear much rhetoric today about testing. We have always tested kids. We had achievement tests, regents, aptitude tests, quarter tests, semester tests and year-end tests.

The big difference today is that the atmosphere seems punitive. Politicians seem to look at only the money angle. They do not seem interested in the process. They do not look to the experts in the classrooms. Most of them have not been in a classroom in many years. Some have never been in a public school classroom. The atmosphere used to be one of working together "for the kids."

To some, the answer to education's problems is to install more technology. It can be a big help. Computers can stimulate interest. Phones in the classroom have been a great addition. There are many videos that enhance the curriculum. Nothing, however, replaces the interaction between an adult and a child. Older kids do not say, "That was a neat program we used." A graduating senior said to me, "I would not have made it without Ms. and Mr."

As I bow out, I am filled with gratitude for the people with whom I have worked in Pasco County. I applaud teachers everywhere. I say, "Keep on!" I thank the parents who gave me the opportunity to know their children. I appreciate the students who were receptive.

There is nothing equal to the feeling, when checking out in a local store, to having a student say, "You were my favorite teacher."

Sometimes I knew I had made a difference. What a great experience this has been.

- Anita Blackman of New Port Richey just concluded a 42-year teaching career, including 28 in Pasco County. She retired in May as a family and consumer science teacher at River Ridge High School.

[Last modified July 5, 2004, 20:21:05]