Todd Grimes: Reflecting on a career in education

For many, these past (rather trying) several months have produced an abundance of introspective reflection. Myself included. It has provided me opportunity to thoughtfully consider many parts of life that I have taken for granted for way too long.

Nearly all of my life has included involvement in formal education – either as a student or as a teacher. Consequently, many of my recollections – during much of this past year – have included my time spent as a student (nearly 20 years) and as a teacher (just shy of 30 years).

To say things have changed in education over those years would be quite the understatement. I still remember hand cranking out copies on the old mimeograph machine during my student teaching days at Madison High School. I remember early in my teaching career (at Hauser) going to the guidance office to enter student grades using what I believe was the only computer in the school. Then came the exciting time when each teacher received a desktop in their classroom. It was nearly surreal when schools started putting in computer labs for students. Now, it is rare for students not to have their own school-issued technological device on which to do much of their work. Pencil meets paper only a very small fraction as much now as it used to.

Most recently, the pandemic has turned the world of education upside down as all of our state’s students and teachers learned and taught remotely as a means of “eLearning” during the final quarter of last school year. So far in this school year, the pandemic continues to throw hard-to-hit curveballs at education.

I can’t think of any single way education has changed more than in the way of technology - from its more common widespread availability to the importance placed upon it.

However, many of the most important ingredients of a quality education are similar to what they arguably always have been. I would place quality student – teacher relationships at the top of that ingredient list. For that matter, the same could be said for life in general. Establishing positive, meaningful connections with others seems to be the main driving force that dictates the trajectory of our quality of life.

As an educator, I’m not sure the importance I have always placed on relationships has ever been more evident than now. The current pandemic has put more than just a bit of a twist on teaching these past several months. If nothing else, it has more firmly entrenched my belief that there can be no replacement for face-to-face, in-person interactions. Try as I might, I don’t believe seeing (and trying to teach) students through a computer screen could ever adequately replace the advantages in-person opportunities provide – especially for someone as “old school” in their beliefs as I am.

Being able to greet each student as they enter the classroom, wishing them well as they exit, having a chance to incorporate laughter/humor regardless of the content of the lesson at hand, having the opportunity to get to know students as individuals and show interest in their lives beyond the four walls of a classroom…all go a long, long way in increasing the quality of relationships between a teacher and their students.

The body of research emphasizing the importance of quality relationships between students and teachers continues to expand. Quality relationships result in higher levels of academic achievement and more engagement in student learning. As many students across the nation have still been involved with some form of “eLearning” this school year, the number of students with failing grades has ballooned.

No doubt, it is much harder for most students to stay engaged and enthused regarding their education while doing it through a computer screen. I have so many fond memories of many of my teachers. All of those memories exist because of the relationship that existed between us.

One of my elementary teacher’s discussions about the importance of passing out “warm fuzzies” to others and the “life recipes” I wrote in his class – over 40 years ago - are memories that have never left me. The use of humor used by one of my high school teachers helped show me the importance of laughter as a potential bonding agent in any human relationship. The extreme enthusiasm of one my college professors became contagious as I sat on the edge of my seat in his class. I remain forever grateful to all my teachers that made such a lasting impact on my life. I’m certain those special memories would have been “few and far between” without the chance for personal, in-person interaction.

As a teacher, I truly cherish the memories I have collected over these past 30 years. Those that are the most memorable involve (almost exclusively) the relationships I have been fortunate enough to build with students. Behind my desk at school are cards and framed letters that I have received from former students over the years thanking me for being their teacher – and friend. Sometimes, with tears in my eyes as I read them, I can’t help but think if I ever adequately thanked them for their kindness. At the risk of sounding perhaps a little cliché – and even a bit corny – I often learn just as much from students as they do me. Education – whether at school or in life - is at its best when the lessons go both ways. There is so much to be learned from one another.

Sparking the curiosity of students and being able to go “off course” from the existing topic-at-hand can be incredibly satisfying. Sometimes the lessons students need the most have nothing to do with the most carefully laid-out lesson plans. Conducting demonstrations/having discussions that result in probing questions from students can result in developing and deepening human connections. Recognizing and conversing with former students years later leave no doubt that I chose the right profession for myself. School reform pioneer, Dr. James Comer, once stated, “No significant learning can occur without a significant relationship.”

If any good has come out of these difficult past several months, it has given me the opportunity to once again feel grateful for those things in my life that I had become a champion of taking for granted on a regular basis. Suffice it to say I have begun (and plan to continue) to do much better at expressing my appreciation for all the relationships with family, friends, students… for which I consider myself incredibly fortunate. Often times, I catch myself wondering what I have done to be so lucky.

American essayist Cynthia Ozick wrote in simple fashion, “We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.”

For those near and dear to me, I plan to let them know – on a more regular basis – just how grateful I am to have them in my life. Let me start right now by saying “Thank you.”