In her final three chapters, Kathleen Cushman concludes with a treatise what it means and how to cope when students AND teachers fail in their respective roles. She does so by pointing out the reasons why both parties fail (i.e. giving up on students, ineffective instruction, lack of confidence). Chapter 10 concerns those ways in which educators can utilize distance learning (i.e. community cleanup, internships, summer & enrichment programs) to allow for their students to create their global classroom and more importantly, constant learning. In addition to providing interviewee biographies and teacher resources, Kathleen finishes her masterpiece by helping her audience realize that YOUR students have the same concerns and attitudes about education and should be listened to when so often they are ignored.
essential quotations:
"I am one of the students that's in the crowd that teachers don't notice. I'm not liked and not disliked. It feels safer. I don't want to have people think I'm needy and I don't want to talk unless I'm sure I have the answer right. ~ Lauraliz" (Cushman, 163).
[This response is intriguing to me, especially since I hope to be a professional counselor someday. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of the relationship between the faculty and counseling department. Students are real people with real physical, emotional, and spiritual needs--not just academic. While it may be difficult to help others like Lauraliz as they journey through school, it is crucial that staff members provide the resources for them to take at their leisure.]
"Relax and take your mind off school for a while. Think about the kids: We need you, we want to get out of school and become someone. [Try to] stay organized but relaxed. ~ Montoya" (Cushman, 171).
[Where the wisdom comes from I will never know? It's incredible how some young people have such a grip on their life, but that's just it. Educators fail to give their students enough credit! I had two students who approached me after a difficult class one afternoon last year. They were concerned about the classroom atmosphere and about a particular student. They knew I was struggling and needed some help. They were probably 9-10 years younger than me. I cannot recall exactly what they shared with me that day, but I remember being humbled.]
"One problem with teachers is they want to be crusaders, they're so gung ho--'I'm going to go to their house, together we can do that, Billy, together we can do it!" And then if that doesn't work they feel like failures, they get depressed because they didn't save that one kid, and so the twenty others suffer. Because all the energy is exerted on that one kid--you invest so much energy, and your drive, your determination, your love for the job is all spent on one student. ~ Vance" (Cushman, 171).
[I suffer from this tendency/problem, but I am aware of it, which I believe is a step in the right direction. I've always had that "I'm gonna save the world" mentality, but I've learned to be more realistic, which is why I have adopted, in my opinion, a better slogan, "think global, act local." Vance is a very perceptive student who educators/counselors need to hear from or else we will be no good to no one.]
"You want [kids] to find themselves, and not everyone is going to find themselves in the classroom. So you want to open as many doors as you can. ~ Latia" (Cushman, 175).
[Amen. This is so well-said I have nothing to add. Number one goal for educators = provide a safe, learning environment for students who have a right to a quality education. You are (I am) not their parent/guardian and I can never be that for them, which can be difficult.]
"As every [good & experienced] educator knows, good teaching entails far more than basic intelligence and knowledge. It requires the courage to look honestly at what is and imagine what could be. It requires the humility to admit one's own mistakes and to keep trying. It requires empathy, to hear and feel what someone else is experiencing. And it takes genuine curiosity about people and ideas. In fact, good teaching looks a great deal like learning" (Cushman, 184).
[I think I may put this series of statements above my desk when I become a school counselor. What a pledge for every educator to live by! I've seen and heard of some of the least intelligent/articulate people become some of the most impressionable and successful educators. Those four qualities that Cushman mentions--courage, humility, empathy, and genuine curiosity--are the ingredients that we all need to make our lives and professions sweeter.]
critical questions:
question #1: Cushman cites that "three out of five [teachers] leave the profession in their first five years" (162). If this is true, what could explain this concerning phenomenon? Is there anything a particular school's administration or board of trustees can do to try and ratify this trend? If so, what? If not, why not?
question #2: Why are educators paid so little? Are not there responsibilities tremendously important? Considering the amount of money celebrities and star athletes make, the economic hierarchy seems to be a little backwards, no?
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