[ncte-talk] A Prayer for Teachers

["Mary-Sue Gardetto" <gardetto@erinet.com>]

The following was written by Carol Brown Dodson, past president of the Ohio
Council of Teachers of English, whom some of you might know.  I'm forwarding
it with her permission.  Mary-Sue

Subject: A Letter of Thanks for Teachers
Date: Sunday, September 16, 2001 5:37 PM

I wrote this in the aftermath of Sept. 11 as I sat at my computer thinking
about what it must be like to be in the classroom during the unfolding
events. This piece began because I couldn't help but think of how trivial
proficiency tests and standards are in the face of a world forever changed.
I finished the piece because I wanted to thank all the teachers I can reach.
I hope you'll share my words with as many teachers as possible.
Thanks,
Carol (You know me as Carol Brown, but I was married in May, and I became
Carol Dodson.)

Many people have performed heroic acts this past week. We see these heroes
in every newscast and read about them in every newspaper. We learn of the
firemen and policemen who gave their lives and of those who work hour upon
hour to do whatever has to be done. We hear about the men and women aboard
the doomed flights who died trying to avert an even greater tragedy.

Yet a group of heroes remains unnamed and unseen by most. These heroes are
not at the site of the tragedy. They are not a part of the bucket brigades
or search and rescue teams. These heroes are in classrooms with our
children. They guide, protect, and teach our children in the face of all the
horrors of this week.

You, the teachers of our children, are these heroes. Our nation's
schoolchildren were tested this week. You -- their teachers whose work is
often undervalued and unappreciated -- coached and guided them through this
test. This test was not a proficiency test designed to assess basic
knowledge. This test was not designed to sort students into classes for
remediation or to rank students. This test was not part of a plan to compare
one student to another, one teacher to another, one school to another, or
one school district to another. No one in American education or politics
planned this test.

This test has no beginning and no ending dates. This test doesn't end at
graduation. You can't teach to this test. Your students can't deal with the
events of September 11, 2001 and their aftermath by mastering a list of
standards and objectives.

You, our nation's teachers, are heroes. You spend each day with your
students. You share your courage and hope when you are scared and filled
with doubt. You put aside lessons, carefully planned to insure students'
academic success. You refuse to let proficiency test outcomes occupy the
heart of your classroom.

You are heroes. You create the heart of your classroom. You are the bucket
brigade, sometimes serving as search and rescue team members, refusing to
lose a single student. You surround your students with love and compassion;
you comfort them with a look or a word. You invite them to find ways to make
sense of the horror. You encourage talk and openness for students struggling
with feelings, thoughts, and beliefs.

You are the heroes. Thank you for taking care of our children.

Carol Brown Dodson
Former president of OCTELA
Retired English Teacher and Ohio Department of Education Consultant
cbrown1@insight.rr.com