Sad Day for Education in Sierra Vista

I am sure that many of you know by now that the override failed miserably....*sigh*. It's very easy to slip into a dark funk at a time like this. I think for many of us teachers it feels like the community just backhanded us in the face. I know that we are not the only district going through record breaking budget cuts and pay freezes, but after teaching in Sierra Vista for nine years it is quite apparent that the majority of the community does not support public education. I read the comments in the online version of the Herald and it is amazing to me how uneducated the people making them are. I just wish that people would do some research and get their facts straight before commenting publicly. I mean how much more can we reasonably take? We have more kids in our rooms (which will increase again next year with the closing of Village Meadows), less pay (and a possible 5-10% pay cut next year), more expensive benefits, less time to teach with higher demands, no planning time but yet more district meetings that takes our after school "planning" time away, and kids that have an abundance of educational, home life, and behavioral issues. I spoke with at least 7 teachers at PDS (mind you, it's the best school in the district; these are great people) who are now planning on pursuing other career options for next year. *sigh*

I walked into my classroom feeling defeated. But then, I saw this face.....

And this one.....

And these.....

and I realized that these faces are the reason that I can endure all of the rest. These kids need good teachers. If we all leave the profession what's left for them?

I don't have the answers to the many questions that loom over public education. I know that at times, my job sucks. But it's not the kids who make it that way. It's time to shut the door on negativity and remember why I got into the profession in the first place. To make a difference in the lives of children by instilling in them an intrinsic motivation to learn and be moral human beings. To guide them in discovering their gifts and teach them how to be life long learners. To enjoy them, be silly with them, and love them.

"A hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much money I had in the bank...but the world may be a better place because I made a difference in the life of a child." -- Forest Witchcraft