Today’s Teaching Topic:
The Reward for the Work
The quote for the week is from Arne Duncan
“Money is not the reason that people enter teaching.”
Secretary Duncan’s quote is especially true of those of us who teach in Catholic schools.
Today’s Teaching Tip:
It’s not hard to find the rewards inherent in working with young people. Teachers just have to be cognizant of them.
The rewards are fiscal – they are far more important than that.
The calendar has turned. It’s December. Teachers, especially high school teachers, are now looking with new attention to all that needs to be done before the end of the semester at school. Curriculum concerns pound at them. Assignments that need to be graded laugh at them. Students’ attention seems to escape them. Oh, and teachers also have to prepare themselves, their families and their lives for Christmas and the Advent season.
I wonder if anyone keeps statistics on how often during this month a teacher asks “why do I do this?”
It’s not for the money, that’s certain. It’s really not even for the days off, though the coming promise of two weeks’ liberty shines like the sun during December.
The reward is living a life among the young. The reward is the journey with them towards knowledge and personal development. The reward is the companionship that teachers and students enjoy.
That’s the reward and I hope that I am ever thankful for it.
That’s my wish this Advent for teachers: be thankful for the real reward.
And There Came a Day... 