How Much Do Kids Love Their Teachers? Just Ask These Los Angeles Students
Fri, 09 May 2014 16:44:41 PDT
When a teacher’s current students meet his or her former pupils for the first time, it’s inevitable that some typical questions are going to be asked: Was he or she a hard grader? Did he or she give a lot of homework? Sixth-graders enrolled in the Film and Media Magnet at Thomas Starr King Middle School in Los Angeles certainly had those kinds of queries about their teacher Joel Laguna. But this week at an afterschool Teacher Appreciation Week event on campus, the kids asked three of Laguna’s former students the questions every educator loves hearing: “How much do you miss him?” and “Did you all love him as much as we do?”
Laguna’s one of four educators profiled in the Davis Guggenheim directed documentary TEACH, which explores the triumphs and struggles of America’s education system through the eyes of teachers and their students. The event brought together King’s students, parents, staff, and district officials for a screening of the film. Attendees were also treated to a question and answer session with Laguna’s Advanced Placement English pupils from Garfield High School that we meet in the documentary, Gilbert, Jennifer, and Mixtli.
And like any excellent educator, Laguna let his students do all the talking.
One of the sixth-graders told the teenagers, “I never get bored in his (Laguna’s) classroom.”
“Yeah, Mr. Laguna’s classroom’s energy level was ‘up there’ and I was just like, ‘whoa,’” replied Gilbert. “I’m glad I had him in the morning because it woke me up. He did things that were out of the ordinary but they were really cool,” Gilbert told the younger kids.
Along with sharing how much they appreciated having Laguna as a teacher, the trio of teenagers, who are currently all juniors at Garfield and will be the first in their families to attend college, were also honest about the challenges they and Laguna faced in the classroom, like overcrowding.
“The amount of kids that were in the classroom affected the way he was teaching,” said Jennifer. “There were 45 kids in there,” she told the crowd.
“More like 59 kids on the first day,” Laguna, corrected as he sat on stage next to the teens.
But Laguna managed to handle the challenge of such a large class. “He had more kids to deal with, but he did it individually where we each got a big piece of knowledge from him and one on one sessions from him,” said Mixtli.
When asked if they want to be teachers, all three teenagers expressed concerns about teacher salaries. “I don’t want to struggle like how my parents have,” said Mixtli. Instead, they all hoped to go into business and law.
Los Angeles Unified School District Board Member Monica Ratliff, who taught in the district for 12 years told the crowd that she hoped “Movies like this (TEACH) will change the mindset,” that teaching isn’t a sustainable career. Ratliff, who is also a former lawyer told the attendees that teaching “is harder than being a lawyer, and it doesn’t pay as much. But it should.”
The students also weren’t sure if they could handle the responsibility of being an educator. “To me it would be scary because teachers have so much power—they can either discourage or encourage,” said Jennifer. “Getting that praise from your teacher is like, ‘Yes! we made it,’” said Jennifer. And, she added “you always remember the things a teacher says and does, both good and bad.”
King’s principal, Mark Naulls, who has worked in education for over 21 years, was the former administrator at Garfield and hired Laguna on at King. Naulls said he offered Laguna the job because he “had this sense that he would really resonate with our kids. He was just a selfless person and so energetic—he was up for anything.” When Naulls moved to King and talked to Laguna about his vision for the school, Laguna wanted to be part of the King team.
“He’s been a breath of fresh air and brought a lot of enthusiasm and excitement,” said Naulls. “The families speak so highly of him when they come in and observe lessons.”
Seventh grade English teacher Adriana Diaz, who is new at the school, said that working with Laguna and the rest of the team at King has been an incredible experience. “The relationship between a student and teacher is vital and pivotal, said Diaz. “The whole staff cares so much. We’re building a community here,” she added.
Related stories on TakePart:
• Apples, Shmapples: Here Are Some Awesome Treats for Teachers for Appreciation Week
• Public Schools Are Getting More Diverse—but Where Are the Teachers of Color?
• Weekly Wisdom: The Most Inspiring Education Quotes of All Time
Original article from TakePart
