A Veiled Impact: Teachers Make a Difference Whether They Know it or Not

Yesterday I thought about an experience that reminded me of how important it is to take life one step at a time, to follow my heart, to stay true to my core values, and to remember that authentic, positive intentions connected to intentional actions go a long way toward good.

A few years ago I was blessed to teach a dynamic group of third grade students who impacted my life in tremendously positive ways.  Isn’t it ironic that some of what seem to be the most challenging and/or even defeating moments of our lives become the most rewarding in the long haul?

This particular class was made up of a spectrum of students with an extremely diverse range of needs.  That year I was responsible for making a positive impact on some students who had already developed a deep and consistent love for learning, some students who were still in the process of understanding themselves as learners, some students who had not yet come to a place where learning, growth, or engagement in instruction made much sense, and some students who were challenged in ways that preempted any thoughts of motivation for involvement in what would be considered a typical learning process.  Each of these students was due a joyful experience in my classroom.

I have to report that not a day went by where I didn’t feel as though I had failed at least a few of them.  It was one of those years that parents said things like, “Take your time getting back to me, we all know what a tough group this is!” or, “Boy do you have your hands full!”  As you know or might imagine, that kind of talk can spread quickly and perpetuate an unfortunate culture of dissatisfaction and even frustrated disengagement among some stakeholders…parents, teachers, and most unfortunately, students.

As you also know or might imagine, teaching is challenging no matter what group of students come together in a classroom.  Teachers are trained to work with diverse populations who have varying requirements.  Schools are equipped with support structures to address a wide range of student needs.  Every group is tough and every group is wonderful.  Generalizations and labels can be hazardous.  I worked hard that year not to fall into the trap of excusing my self from the task at hand by conceding that it was impossible.

I’m kind of embarrassed to admit that there were times when I walked the line of lowered expectations for myself.  I’m slightly reluctant to disclose that there were days when I let frustration and even despair threaten the faith I had in my ability to deliver that joyful experience I owed each student.  These are things that human beings do though, and I happen believe that those types of admissions and disclosures bring us ever closer to reaching our human capacity for clarity.  But I digress.

As you might imagine, we all had good and bad days that year.  However, as summer break arrived I was able to look back with pride and recall that for the most part I maintained an optimistic outlook, that with an eye on the mission of serving all children I bounced back from moments of doubt into moments of authentic enthusiasm pretty quickly, and that I gave all I could to that incredible group of kids.  I believe I was as good at fulfilling that mission as I could have been at the time.  Admittedly, I wonder every now and again whether or not “as good as I could have been” was actually good enough for some, but I was, and remain able to celebrate my successes and forgive my faults.  Again with the digressions, but those celebrations and that forgiveness help me evolve.

A few years later I ran into the father of a student from that class.  This student was one who struggled as much or more than any of his peers.  In fact, and unfortunately, he was the one who was regularly accused of being a deterrent to the positive progress of the others, an accusation that I feel has no place in education.  I think that learning how to live and grow with diverse populations is one of the great benefits of attending public schools.  I consistently find that some of the social challenges we face are among the most wonderful learning opportunities as we work to help our students become college, career, and life-ready.  Regardless, he was the one.

I often wished I could have impacted him further.  I often reflected on what more I could have done for this incredible student who struggled so considerably.  I would have loved to be able to show him even a glimpse of the joy that I know can accompany engaged learning.  Anyway, his father was with a friend that day, and he introduced me to the friend as one of his son’s “most impactful teachers.”  I was floored!  I was almost speechless, and if you know me you know that I’m hardly ever even close to almost speechless!

Classroom teachers don’t usually get to know what impact they make on the students that they serve.  What a treat.  What a shock.  What a wonderful experience that was for me!

If you’re struggling as we move through this school year, if you’re working to make a difference in the lives of your students with any bit of doubt in your heart, I implore you to take some comfort in the likelihood that you will most likely never see the composite results of your efforts.  I would urge you to remember that there are light bulbs and even fireworks going off in the minds of our students that we don’t get to know about.  Sometimes that can be a challenging reality to squeeze comfort from while we’re in the thick of things, but I hope you can, because I know how incredible and impactful you are!

We know that children don’t always blossom on our watch.  We know that nine short months are not nearly enough for the influences of our experiences together to fully develop and unfold.  But teachers, please remember yourselves when times get tough.  You’ve dedicated your lives to enhancing the lives of the children that you serve, you’re relentless in your ongoing pursuits of personal and professional learning and growth, and you give of yourself tirelessly.  You are more impactful than you may ever know.  In good times and bad, please never forget that you are a role model, an invaluable guide, and a hero!

Live. Learn. Lead.

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Dream Big. Work Hard. Be Well.

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