Sharon M. Draper Thoughts on Teaching & Learning

A good teacher smiles while she's teaching. She smiles because she is comfortable not only with her subject matter, but also with her classroom and her students. She smiles because children respond quicker to encouragement rather than disparagement. And she smiles because at the end of a very long day, with papers to grade, and forms to fill out, and meetings to attend, a child may peek his head in the door and say, "We gonna write poems like that again tomorrow? That was fun!" That is when I smile.

Each generation benefits from the knowledge of the past. However, society must grow with the volume of information; no longer will the simple repetition of patterns be sufficient. The body of new information increases exponentially with each succeeding group of learners; therefore, the responsibility of the instructor becomes greater.

What moment of magic will change the darkness of the problems of today's education system into luminescence? Metaphors are lovely, but fail to cover the harsh reality of overcrowded classrooms, bankrupted budgets, political apathy, and increased social responsibility. The social problems of the community--drugs, gangs, apathy, violence, poverty--become inextricably intertwined with the educational system, and schools, which were not originally designed to address these problems, sometimes become the only resource available for families with sever social, physical, or even financial problems. The major public education issues today are the same issues that are affecting and destroying the larger society.

The only constant in the continuum of educational expectations is the teacher. The teacher guides, instructs, and encourages the continuous and ever-changing mirage of young faces. It is the constancy and consistency of the presence of the teacher around which the educational cycle revolves. Teachers, if they are to be what we have asked them to be, must be respected as individuals, scholars, and professionals. Teachers must be celebrated for moving civilization from ignorance to enlightenment, from apathy to responsibility.

The teaching profession can be strengthened and improved by doing just that--treating teachers as professionals. If true professionalism is instituted so that the community, other professionals, and the society in general looks to teaching as a respected profession, then the educational process and the accountability of the individuals involved will be greatly improved. And we, as practicing professional educators, must fulfill the expectations of the public by providing quality instruction in an environment that is both supportive and rewarding.

The mission of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards is to establish high and rigorous standards for what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do, to develop and operate a national voluntary system to assess and certify teachers who meet these standards, and to advance related education reforms for the purpose of improving student learning in American schools. National Board Certification can be a significant catalyst for change. It can offer new incentives to current teachers, increase new and qualified people into the field, and decrease the loss of quality educators.

I share my pride in being an educator and encourage the best of my students to go into education. I am proud to say that dozens of my former students are now teachers.