tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1339910176549966696.post6277087388322882144..comments2023-06-16T09:50:28.728-04:00Comments on I am a teacher et cetera: Crying in ClassJennifer Wardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01459363843692965338noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1339910176549966696.post-49232034803271440472009-09-28T11:20:43.715-04:002009-09-28T11:20:43.715-04:00Thank you so much. Your comment has also given me ...Thank you so much. Your comment has also given me a chance to revisit this post. <br /><br />I am still having students complete "This I Believe" essays. In fact, my students are in the midst of them right now. Each year, it is one of the moments that students look back on and remember as both the most difficult and most rewarding assignments in class. And, I'm happy to report that three of my students have been published on the This I Believe website. <br /><br />Over the last few years, I have really taken to heart what I've learned by including this assignment in my curriculum: when you ask students to do something worthwhile, to share of themselves, when you ask them to do something real - they will rise to the occasion and often times surprise you. They make me not just a better teacher but a better person each time I hear their stories, each time I learn about what they love and what they fear.Jennifer Wardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01459363843692965338noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1339910176549966696.post-33199206523388900472009-09-27T19:51:21.939-04:002009-09-27T19:51:21.939-04:00I know this entry was written two years ago, but I...I know this entry was written two years ago, but I stumbled upon it today. It is beautiful. Those are the only words that come to mind when I read about it. I wouldn't care usually, but after reading it, I had to say something. In today's society, people view teenagers as brash and unsympathetic. Looking at my own days in high school, yes we are. But the intellectual change your students went through interested me. For instance, I saw myself in that student who said that no one could change the world alone. I can tell I'm not the only one who thinks cynically, but maybe there's something deeper behind that jerky veneer some teenagers try to maintain. I thought things like what happened to you and your class happened in only movies (one could hope), but I was wrong. I would like to thank you for sharing this with the world. It is a wonderful story.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com