This week students are encouraged to thank their teachers for all their hard work, as it is National Teacher Appreciation Day/Week. National Teacher Appreciation Day has a bit of history to it. In 1953, Eleanor Roosevelt persuaded the 81st Congress to proclaim a National Teacher Appreciation Day. Congress declared March 7, 1980 as National Teacher Appreciation Day. The National Education Association continued to observe Teacher Appreciation Day on the first Tuesday in March until 1985, when the National PTA established Teacher Appreciation Week as the first full week of May. The NEA Representative Assembly then voted to make the Tuesday of that week National Teacher Appreciation Day. National Teacher Day is an “unofficial” National holiday.
Teachers make up a huge part of students’ lives. An average public school student spends about 8 hours in school 5 days a week. That’s 40 hours a week. In the United States, 3.7 million people work as elementary and secondary teachers in public schools. All of those teachers spend 40+ hours a week with students. Alexander the great once said “I am indebted to my father for living, but to my teacher for living well.”
Students owe a lot of what we know, and understand to our teachers. When Chaz Simpkins (’17) was asked, is there anything that one of your teachers has taught you that you will never forget, and if so what, he replied that they taught him “How to be responsible, because I used to procrastinate, and I learned that procrastinating won’t get me anywhere in life.” This just shows how much an impact a teacher can have on a student’s life. Most students have a memory or two like that, for example when Robby Monroe (’17) was asked to name his favorite teacher ever, and why, he responded by saying that “Mr. Minor, because he treats his students as though they are responsible and professional, and he helps guide his students.” It’s easy to see that the students have fond memories of their teachers, and will hopefully show them in some way how much they appreciate them this week. But how would a student show their appreciation? When Mr. Wichowski was asked what makes him feel appreciated, he replied that “I think it’s nice that local businesses support teachers, it’s the little things, they add up.” He also talked about how hearing a student say that they appreciate him that kind of recognition, makes him feel appreciated. Take some time this week to show your teacher some appreciation, if you can’t do anything particularly special, show your appreciation by learning, and being respectful. Aristotle once said “A true disciple shows his appreciation by reaching further than his teacher.” For ideas on ways to show your appreciation, or information on Nation Teacher Day visit http://www.nea.org/grants/teacherday.html or http://www.pta.org/parents/content.cfm?ItemNumber=3270