The students in my MARKETING class gave me a Christmas card at the end of our last class. All the students in the class signed it and many wrote messages, too. The message in the middle of the card was “Happy Holidays to the best teacher ALIVE!!!” Some people wonder why I’m still teaching. Here’s one reason why.
I have no doubt you deserve this and more. Congratulations for being one of the few college teachers that regards it as a privilege and not a chore. I have one in my house too.
I (and Phil and Megan and Patrick) have the best job in the world, Patti. Teaching at the college level gets more difficult every semester, but I enjoy most of my students. They make me laugh every day! But their lack of knowledge and the number of personal problems they struggle with concerns me.
Nice. I’m sure it had nothing to do with grades.
No, seriously, that’s really good. There jsut aren’t that many inspiring teachers out there and when you have one you should appreciate him/her.
I try to do my best for these kids every day, Jeff. I think all Inspiring Teachers have two important qualities: they know their subject and they’re passionate about it.
Jackie has seen some of her students come back over the years. One of her most inspiring is a girl she had two years in a row (Jackie moved from second to third grade that year) who always said she was her favorite teacher.
She is now a teacher herself.
Good teachers inspire their students to transcend their circumstances, Jeff. When students return to visit with their former teachers, it’s a sign that their lives have been changed.
George, congratulations. I’m sure it must be gratifying to have your students go out of their way to express their appreciation for you.
Students let you know if they like you…or not, Drongo. They’re fairly transparent.
That’s very cool, George. Thank you for sharing it with us, modesty be damned (as Bob might say) While I can remember a few of my high school teachers, none of the college teachers and professors made much of an impression on me, only the subject matter and papers, labs, tests and reading. Not that I disliked them, or that they weren’t expert and enthusiastic about the subject matter, just that the subject matter was more important to me.
Anyway, Happy Christmas to a fine teacher who communicates his enthusiasm and knowledge to his students. Well done, George.
Thank you for your kind words, Rick!
I was going to crack wise, but why be an idiot all my life? Congrats for a job well done.
Trust me, Bob, many of my colleagues did crack wise at the “Happy Holiday to the best teacher ALIVE!!!” message. One wag said, “Your students must have have plenty of better teachers than you, but they’re DEAD!”
Not the type of holiday greeting I would expect from your site, George, but it is something very special. Knowing that you are making a difference with your students is a great way to slide into the Christmas season. They are many good teachers at all levels out there; I hope they get the same type of acknowlegement you did.
(PS, If it were me, I’d have the card framed and on prominent display.)
Thanks, Jerry! I’m usually more restrained, but that student comment was too good to resist sharing.
Congratulations on being good enough to be recognized so tangibly (though the all-caps on ALIVE seems almost threatening somehow)…and good on you, as everyone else says, too…
The ALIVE was just punctuation, Todd. The student who wrote that comment is an “A” student who has taken several of my classes.
Something your colleagues did quite tumble to, the implied threat…
Didn’t, that is…
Emphasis! And appreciation. And, I suspect, richly deserved.
Your students can also tell that you honestly care about preparing us for the future so that we will have better lives. As one of Dr. Kelley’s former students, I can confirm that he is an awesome professor!
You are too kind, Lauren. It helps when I have excellent students like you in the class!