What are we really teaching?

Since this is National Teacher Appreciation Week (I honestly didn't even know that this existed) I got to thinking about teachers that I had. I was lucky enough to have some great teachers that made learning fun. We were able to connect with our teachers in more ways that just their content. We learned about them, their families, and they, too, about us. This got me to wondering...is that how my students feel?

In an age where standards, test scores, and prep classes have taken over, have we lost that personal connection with students? Do they view me as just someone who teaches them English? Obviously, the standards are important, don't get me wrong, but I hope that I am able to teach them more than just English. I hope the same things about the guys that I coach. If I only teach them football, basketball, and baseball, then I have failed them. I hope that they are able to learn life lessons from me. I hope that they realize that there are more important things that just sports. I love sports, but once I graduated from college, I was done playing them. What was I left with? The skills that I had gained from great teachers and coaches. It no longer mattered how hard I could throw a baseball- now what mattered was how well I could communicate with a coworker. 

We have some amazing teachers in this world- and some really great ones in this school district. They are able to show students their human side, their flaws, and their shortcomings. They can joke around with students and talk about the game on Friday night. They understand that the world outside our front doors isn't always a pretty one for our students. And hopefully, this is a safe haven for 9 months of the school year. I hope that someday I will be able to emulate those great teachers that I had.

If you get a chance this week, tell that teacher/coach that you had how much you enjoyed their class/sport. It just might be the pick me up that they need to hear at the end of the year.