by Guy

Created on: March 05, 2007   Last Updated: May 02, 2007

Remembering they are people

I have seen a teacher cry today. It was a student that did it to her. So I consoled her and told her that the student didn't mean it. They really had not idea that what they wrote was no what they meant. It was not a personal attack. Kids do not think of their teachers as a person.

But, the problem still remains. We as teachers are not really looked at as people. We are expected not to react like other people would react. We are expected not to get angry. We are not expected to show compassion in a hug or a touch. We are not suppose to hurt by harsh words that are said to us. We are not people. We are teachers.

But I say that we are teachers and we are people. We have feelings. We care and we do get attached. We do favor kids. We try hard to make sure all are treated the same but it is hard because we are people with feelings and likes and dislikes. We try not to get angry but it is hard when you have a teen pushing those buttons and knows it. It is hard not to lash out verbally and show emotion. We are teachers and we are people.

It is hard to leave the cruel realities of life at home and walk into a school as if nothing happened the day before. I am not to show the stress of a wife that had to go to the hospital almost out of blood. I am not to show that I am worried about a child that is deathly ill and suffering at home while I teach atomic structure. I am to teach as if I was not just told that i was released from my job. It is not my job to let the harsh realities of my life to be seen in the classroom. But, sadly, we are people and we have feelings.

We have a job where we cannot hide from people to mend those wounds. We can't just go into a cubicle to do the job and just leave at the end of the day with not a word to anyone. We can't just walk in and run the line of a factory without saying anything to anyone. We have to be with kids and parents. We have to put aside our pains and worries and stress to teach with the persona of a person that has none of those problems. We are not to show our problems and we can't hide.

So this is my plea. Before you are quick to judge a teacher's reaction or behavior, think our how they may be feeling at that time. Maybe they have forgotten that they can't be teachers and they were being people. People how have feelings and emotions. Maybe that would explain why they are acting the way they are. Also, before lashing out at them, think about how it will make them feel. They so have feelings. Really, they do. And they can be hurt just as easily as yours.

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