Let’s Help our Teachers



This is Kelly—she teaches full-day Kindergarten. Her classroom welcomes young learners each new school year at a time when everything is new and just a bit scary for those kids. But Kelly connects with each child —developing a relationship that both welcomes and inspires each one to explore a bigger world. She’s the reason some parents outside our district choose our school for their kids. She prepares and equips students for the next grade—and does so with a zeal that the kids take with them. Those little kids feel a bit bigger and more confident in their world. 


But like many of her fellow teachers, the pandemic has made education challenging. Kelly's lessons include protection from Covid while also helping her kids master the required skills. I can’t imagine how hard it is to teach new words while wearing a mask. How about play time—where social skills are learned, but social distance is required?




This is year three with schools impacted by the pandemic. Teachers face the daunting prospect of getting students back to grade level while moving forward with regular coursework. Recent test scores reveal that many students are behind at least one grade level in reading, while math scores are even worse. This isn’t only daunting, it’s exhausting, and perhaps even impossible to move forward and while simultaneously catching up. A recent survey indicated that 48% of teachers felt like quitting—just in the last month. It’s understandable.


It’s tough in the medical field too. One of our local healthcare workers shared on social media that when a patient comes to the emergency room, “We know they are having a bad day, but we’ve had a couple bad years. So please be kind.” It’s the same with our teachers—they’ve had a bad couple years—please be kind.




I’ll get to the point. If you know a teacher, offer your thanks. If you have an extra hour a week, maybe you can volunteer to do something—either in the classroom or perhaps something that would ease a burden at home (I’m available to clean your house, Kelly). If there ever were a time to support our teachers, it’s now. They are weary warriors on the frontlines of a battle they didn’t expect to fight.


There are over 45 million K-12 students in America.  We already have a teacher shortage in our nation. We can’t afford to lose more of them. Perhaps with some genuine appreciation for their plight and actual support we can keep our teachers teaching in a time that will one day be in our history books.

 

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