I call her Target’s tiger teacher; she’s the adorable second grade classroom teacher who exudes an infectious enthusiasm for the upcoming school year while delivering her glittery list of necessary school supplies.
This television teacher is passionate and she’s obviously ready for the fortunate, albeit, imaginary students who will soon be entering her classroom community. Why? Because of her unbridled passion for her work. Yes, the commercial is meant to be funny, but there are so many teachers in the world who share her excitement for the work they do. A positive attitude is one thing, but genuine zeal for your work makes it all but exactly that, work.
Clearly the Target teacher is doing something that gives her joy. Wouldn’t it be nice if students all around the world could spend a year with a teacher who possesses the same fervor? Well, I think many of them do, and that teachers, especially in the states, are getting a bad rap these days.
Zest for teaching is mandatory, and in order for any teacher to do the job well, the person must be in possession of an intense focus on the students and their individual learning styles. In many cases this ardor and interest will be found at the subconscious level rather than the conscious, and more than likely most people will never recognize or acknowledge it for what it is and how imperative it is to being a teacher.
An enthusiastic teacher like the aforementioned tiger teacher is a teacher with a projected plan, an opportunity to manifest a vision, a clear and intended purpose. In other words, a teacher who knows what she wants, and who’s going after it with nothing short of crazed delight.
What happened to the respect that America used to give to its teachers? Why are teachers under such scornful scrutiny and why have they become targets for attack?
In the above Matt Damon video clip the cameraman states that ten percent of teachers fall into the “bad” category, but which profession cannot be held to the same standard? Let’s face it, one does not need to look far to see that other professions can and do far exceed the bad ten percent, just take a look at our Congress.
