Dear Students, I am speaking just for myself, but it is also a reflection of what I hear from other teachers every day. I want you to know that we love you and believe you have a right to the best possible education. We work so hard to plan, grade, and set up, but there are only so many hours in the day, and the amount of time available to us to do the work of instruction has dramatically decreased over the last few years. I am not the only teacher who struggles with shorter lunches and longer supervisions, as well as long walks to far-off bathroom duties. The reality is that sitting outside of a bathroom is uncomfortable in many ways and does not allow me to focus on the myriad tasks required of me every day. The result is unshared documents on Canvas that need to be requested, videos that I didn’t realize would not play on the speaker system, a mad dash right before class to organize tests to give you timely feedback (tests that I worked on until the wee hours of the previous night), and perhaps just a general air of me constantly being stressed and feeling inadequate.
Daily bathroom time does give me some space to think about what I really want in life, to remember what it was like up until just a few years ago when we had more time to do our jobs, and to wonder if this is the best I can expect if I stay here. It gives me quiet time to worry about whether I was too rushed to give you a meaningful answer to your question, or if I have let you down that day in any other way. I would hope that you get to feel my love and energy when I am actually teaching, actually introducing you to new ideas and helping you understand the mechanisms and wonders of the world you live in. I would like to be more available to help you when you are struggling, but I literally do not have time in my day, so I have to hope that you have room in your schedule for an AIS. I don’t have a good way to end this letter, but I just wanted to explain myself. In calmer moments, I remember that I am a good teacher and that I love the profession. All of this rushing makes me doubt that on a daily basis, though. I just want to reiterate that I will continue to do my best and to keep working to give you the best possible education, but I’m asking you to please understand that when I seem a little disorganized, it has everything to do with being rushed at work and then exhausted at home.
Warmly,
Your teacher
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