Dennis Anderson wrote an article for the Star Tribune about his English professor from the University of Minnesota-Morris. He writes: "An irony of great teaching is that it's a rare gift students don't appreciate until too much time has passed to acknowledge it graciously." Perhaps this is true. Perhaps it is true for far too many professions whereby we forget to thank someone for a job well done in order to help, serve, or encourage.
This weekend Sam was devastated that his English teacher wrote comments to help him improve his writing. He needed to add details that would help the reader see the scene. In addition, he needed organization. Of course, this brought him to tears since he felt he had worked on it--he had changed a few words. The piece he has now is witty and fun. After the tears were gone and the energy was renewed, he filled two pages with details about Thanksgiving and our crazy storytelling family. In fact, he even admitted this draft is much better than the older one. But he did not thank his English teacher for encouraging him to make his story better. Maybe he will...someday.
On Friday at the school play, I saw a former student who is now attending St. Thomas University. She was beaming when she told me she received 100% on her first paper in college. She went on to say how appalled she is at other student's writing. Being in this new environment has given her a new appreciation for her high school, maybe even for her English teacher.
My dilemma is clear. The way I "encourage" a student could potentially bring tears on a Saturday afternoon. Hopefully, there are more alums proud of their writing and thankful for the teachers who helped by correcting and directing.
