Positive to Teaching and Teachers

Red Hare

I would like to start a discussion about all things positive to teaching and teachers as opposed to all the negativity that seems to get so much publicity and discussion space!

Pull up a chair and sit down. Let me tell you that as a middle age teacher - i'm really impressed with some teachers i know who have been around a long time. They are so patient with the students and really draw them out of their comfort zone so that they are using their minds, or hands, or bodies to learn something completely beyond their own experiences.

God bless those ould teachers - they can really show us a trick or too, but saying all that these young ones really impress me too with the new ideas that they bring to the profession!

Feeona

I met an older teacher a few years back, she's now retired. A true lady. She was discussing some of the children in her group as I was going to be taking them a while after, and the language she used was amazing. They were difficult kids, but you wouldn't have known it the way she spoke about them. I was in the middle of my teaching course at the time and had heard about the importance of passing on positive information. I thought it was all blah de blah :rolleyes: until I met this lady. I still carry that conversation in my head whenever I have to tell another teacher about a child . Start with the positive!!

byhookorbycrook

To all the teachers who train our sports' teams, hurling,camogie, girls' and boys' football in their own time,what a difference you are making to so many lives, teaching team playing, sportsmanship and even how to lose gracefully(but not too often:D.)

Cailin CoisFarraige

I'm just finishing up my B.Ed. and can honestly say every class teacher I've had on TP has been incredibly helpful and supportive. It can't be easy to give up your class for a few weeks to a student who, let's be honest, probably screws up occasionally, but I've had nothing but co-operation and constructive advice.

savvyav

A student told me the other day he is seriously considering studying my subject (MFL) in college because of my TY curriculum. It was genuinely the highlight of my week, knowing that you'd helped someone to consider a career path that they'd never thought of before is a great feeling!

whiteandlight

savvyav wrote: »

A student told me the other day he is seriously considering studying my subject (MFL) in college because of my TY curriculum. It was genuinely the highlight of my week, knowing that you'd helped someone to consider a career path that they'd never thought of before is a great feeling!

It's the best feeling ever! As a maths teacher on temp contracts you often have very weak classes. Meeting a parent of an ordinary level student towards the end of the year last year she told me her daughter had hated maths all through school and was now considering doing it in college! Made my day

Feeona

Musicmental85 wrote: »

It's the best feeling ever! As a maths teacher on temp contracts you often have very weak classes. Meeting a parent of an ordinary level student towards the end of the year last year she told me her daughter had hated maths all through school and was now considering doing it in college! Made my day

My boyfriend received a lovely letter from parents last year in which they thanked him for teaching their daughter. Apparently she hadn't liked going into school in previous years, but loved it when he was teaching her He was delighted with himself too!

stripysocks85

The first year that I taught infants, my principal received a letter from a parent of a boy in my class praising the effort I had made with their son

Having taught the same age group for a few years in a row, I was feeling quite 'stagnant', but after returning from Xmas holidays this year, about a week into the year & was amazed that the kids in my class CAN READ!!! And I taught them that!

whiteandlight

Other positives: the satisfaction of spending a few hours at night sourcing resources, amending them and printing/copying them for a specific group of students with problems in an area and the lesson then going smoothly and the students getting that 'I get it!' moments!

E.T.

savvyav wrote: »

A student told me the other day he is seriously considering studying my subject (MFL) in college because of my TY curriculum. It was genuinely the highlight of my week, knowing that you'd helped someone to consider a career path that they'd never thought of before is a great feeling!

That's a fab experience savvyav, congratulations!

Have to say the job satisfaction is amazing in teaching. I know that somedays it's easy to forget it with all the negative attention in the media etc, but it's just amazing how a positive interaction with a student/parent can just make your day (or week, or year!)

Miss Lockhart

I work in an area where more than 50% of students have an immediate family member who is drug abuser and the number of students with an immediate family member who has been murdered/shot in gangland violence is in double figures and only increasing.

When I see these kids getting involved in extra-curricular activities, school leadership programmes, Gaisce, YSI and making a difference to their own prospects I am thankful to all the teachers who make these activities possible. Especially when these kids remain involved even after they've left school and contribute to their own community themselves.

So well done and thank you to all the teachers who make that possible.

gaeilgebeo

I took my JCSP class on a bowling a few years ago. When we stopped at the shopping center for lunch on the way home, one of the boys refused to get off the bus and go in. I knew the boy had a difficult home life and it occured to me that he probably had no money. He didn't want to be embarrassed in front of his peers.

I asked him to go round the bus and pick up all the rubbish etc... I gave him €10 as a reward for "helping"and his wee face just lit up. He had tears in his eyes and thanked me so so much. I knew that that €10 meant so much more to him than it did to me. He even bought little bits to take home to his brothers and sisters.
This "difficult" student is now in 6th year and to this day I can still see the gratitude in him. I am never stuck for someone to do heavy lifting, hang posters etc....

I had a student hand me a letter on graduation night saying that I had changed the direction in which her life was going when she joined one of my classes. She said that my constant encouragement and "hammering home" that everyone in the class was capable of achieving a good grade was the first time she felt that she wasn't just an "average invisible" student. She had come to the point of giving up on her studies. She said that I inspired her more than I'll ever know. Very teary moment as in all the giving out and stress and busyness, we tend to forget the effect we are having on young minds.



I also have had students say that they want to be Irish teachers. This includes my JCSP students who are doing foundation level Irish! God bless their innocence.

Now, there are days I could kill them but it's the little things that make the job worthwhile.
Well done to all teachers who inspire our young and make a difference.

Fear_an_tarbh

At a P/T meeting during the year a parent of a severely autistic boy thanked me for all the work I've done in making him feel happier and more confident in school. I couldn't believe it! She said that he used to hate primary school but loves the fact that he can immerse himself in what he loves (IT) in our school.

Also one of the year heads of the school I work in is incredibly supportive and sees nothing but positiveness in the most troubled of students; this makes such a difference and is infectious.

lestat21

Had a bad experience the last day before midterm but after reading this thread im smiling again and looking forward to next week... Remembering now that the student who was difficult last week, was orignally very bad for sitting down the back and doing nothing all class. After rejigging the seating arrangement and giving out a pair work worksheet, this student had her hand up every 5 minutes to show me that her and her partner had finished the page they were working on. The whole class, many of whom had been struggling, sped through the exercise, helping each other to understand concepts and get the right answer out. I ran outta work for them, so impressed and they were so chuffed with themselves.

Gotta remember the positive experiences and look forward to the next one

rainbowtrout

Was heading off on school tour a few years back and went into the local chipper for food before I went. Had my luggage with me. Girl behind the counter was a former student who had not long finished school. So she was asking me about the tour. Town is small so when we do a tour everyone in town knows someone going on it etc. Anyway she was on our first school tour 2 years earlier. Her family aren't well off and we discovered half way through that she was paying for the whole thing herself working every hour she could get in the chipper and supermarket. We came to a private arrangement with her so she could make payments in smaller amounts when she had the money. Anyway I was chatting to her and she said ' I wish I was going with you tonight, I had the best holiday ever in paris and it's probably the only holiday I'll ever get' it was really touching to hear that it meant so much to her. This was in celtic tiger times when many of the kids paid their 400 for the tour and had another 400 as spending money. Some parents were sending two kids. She appreciated every little thing on the trip where for some used to foreign travel would have whinged about food accommodation etc. Nice to know one child will always have good memories of their trip abroad

rainbowtrout

One other one that stands out for me is a lad that was in my class when I first started teaching. He was quite contrary and always getting into arguments with staff including myself. It came to a head in leaving cert when principal threatened to expel him over something small. It was never gonna happen but student didn't know that and thought his education was over. He was incredibly bright but didn't really realise it. Took 9 subjects for LC right across the range science art construction, business had a flair for everything except languages. Anyway after the row with the principal ( he had started to work with me rather than against me at this stage) I pulled him aside and just told him to keep his head down, stop the arguments and not to keep up the rows regardless of who was right or wrong and he would get through. Asked him what he wanted to do following year and went through his subjects and for each one he replied that he didn't think he was good enough for a degree in that area.

I was gobsmacked. I had the complete opposite view in that he was talented in a range of areas and realistically had a wide range of options to choose from. Told him to find a course and go to college, that it would give him a chance to meet new people and a whole range of experiences as well as an education.

Anyway fast forward 5 years and I run into him and ask what he's doing. Turns out he did computer science and has a serious flare for it. Got a 1.1, masters, won some prestigious prizes for his talents and is setting up his own software company at present.

But he did tell me that what I said to him made him decide to go to college cos no one had ever stood up for him at school before or believed in him. I was very touched that what I said might have made a difference.

spurious

Even after so many years, to have a child tell me they are the first person ever in their family to do the Junior Cert. makes me happy - and yet very angry too.

Way back in 1978, I was completely unaware that there were people leaving school after what was then the Inter. Cert., let alone people never getting that far.

Celtic Tiger later and it's still the same for some people.

savvyav

E.T. wrote: »

That's a fab experience savvyav, congratulations!

Have to say the job satisfaction is amazing in teaching. I know that somedays it's easy to forget it with all the negative attention in the media etc, but it's just amazing how a positive interaction with a student/parent can just make your day (or week, or year!)

It really does, I was having one of those horrible weeks where nothing was going right and it really cheered me up. It's such a pity that people (in my experience anyway) remember that they had a rubbish 'insert name of subject' teacher at school before they remember their good and inspirational teachers.

I also think resource teaching might be one of the most satisfying areas- if you have the personality for it.

Also, I agree with Spurious. I have a few students who will be the first in their families to do the Leaving this year, and I'm so proud of them!

byhookorbycrook

I teach learning support/resource.It's fantastic, you really get to know the kids, they feel that they can manage in the small group and their self-esteem just blooms.Without giving too much away,I have a child with dyslexia that I figured was exceptionally able as well and they now attend CTYI and "feel like I can be me."

lovelygirl123

Red Hare wrote: »

I would like to start a discussion about all things positive to teaching and teachers as opposed to all the negativity that seems to get so much publicity and discussion space!

Pull up a chair and sit down. Let me tell you that as a middle age teacher - i'm really impressed with some teachers i know who have been around a long time. They are so patient with the students and really draw them out of their comfort zone so that they are using their minds, or hands, or bodies to learn something completely beyond their own experiences.

God bless those ould teachers - they can really show us a trick or too, but saying all that these young ones really impress me too with the new ideas that they bring to the profession!

Thank you very much for you saying that, as a teacher, i think there are some misunderstandings from some people, of course, there are also many positive points on us which make most of the teachers have courage and passion to try their best to help their students... i'm also one of them, and i will continue my career with pride...

jonseyblub

I love the fact that us teachers (mainly 35-40 y.o) beat the best senior student 6 a side team 5-1 in a soccer match before the holidays. The craic and slagging from both sides was mighty. My knees may never recover though !!

Ms.M

Still getting Happy Christmas and thank you emails from kids I taught years ago :-)

Meeting a former-student who is studying Irish to become an Irish teacher.