Our teachers, our unsung heroes

Our teachers are some of the hardest working people in the nation. While many of us are still sleeping or just climbing out of bed in the morning, teachers are already hard at work, motivating grumpy children and half-asleep teenagers, most of whom would rather still be asleep or playing outside than learning complex fractions or scientific theory.

Last week students made their way back to their schools to meet their new teachers and face the challenges of a new school year.

Many teachers enjoyed a well-earned vacation. Some may have traveled for the summer, others packed motor homes or camper trailers and enjoyed some peaceful times in nature with family and loved ones. Some, however, stayed in school, sacrificing their vacations to teach over the summer for those requiring a little extra help.

Teachers must possess an in-depth knowledge of the subjects they teach. They must also possess the leadership qualities necessary to teach less-than-enthusiastic children not only the facts, but the ability to analyze and comprehend them and why all of that is necessary.

Without the ability to inspire and stimulate young minds, all the knowledge in the world is useless for a teacher. Teachers must possess the dynamic skills required to keep wandering minds focused enough to understand and retain the complex theories they are learning for the first time.

Teachers live their lives largely without fanfare, even though they are some of the most important heroes in our society. While most of the rest of us punch out at five o’clock and head home for some rest and relaxation, they pack their bags full of tests, essays and homework assignments to be graded. They field telephone calls from parents, and make calls to parents to discuss their child’s educational development. They often make lesson plans, grade papers, and perform other duties long after their “work day” has finished.

These men and women are on the front lines in the battle to educate our children. They give boys and girls the tools they need to become men and women and illustrate that there is a limitless future for each of them. They welcome in a new group of kids (along with some familiar faces) every year and to many — for the year — they are almost like family.

They do this for a relatively small salary and amidst a growing disdain for the educational system. They do this in spite of a widespread lack of parental involvement and nowhere near enough community support. Imagine how difficult it can be to manage a couple of 5- and 6-year-olds, and then picture a room with 20 of them trying to learn how to read or count — with one teacher directing the entire show.

Often, parents will complain that teachers do not do enough to properly educate students. They complain of low graduation rates, dwindling test scores and overall poor student performance. However, in the same breath, they will complain that their students have too much homework.

If teachers send home a couple hours worth of homework a night those same parents will complain that their children do not have enough free time at home after school; the irony that the teacher is probably at home grading papers while their kids are doing that homework also will probably be lost on those parents.

No amount of praise could properly explain the importance of what these great men and women do. They are heroes in our society on par with those who run into burning buildings and who patrol our neighborhoods; they are deserving of no less adulation. They do this for the love of education, the love for children, and a sense of duty.

To all the teachers out there, I hope you had a wonderful summer vacation and have a very successful school year. Please accept, from me, a very humble thank you.

Mike Dingman was born and raised in Anchorage. He is a former student body president at University of Alaska Anchorage and has studied, worked and volunteered in Alaska politics since the late ’90s. His opinions, which appear weekly in the Anchorage Press, are his own. He can be reached at michaeldingman@gmail.com.