Every kid needs a champion
Two weeks ago in the middle of the Olympic Games, our country held its collective breath as our young, emergent star Andre De Grasse lined up alongside experienced heavyweights Usain Bolt of Jamaica and Justin Gatlin of the U.S. for the 100-metre final.
What stood out was the poise and relaxed confidence with which this slight 21-year-old rookie carried himself. Asked about the source of his confidence, De Grasse paid tribute to the supporting roles of his parents, coaches and mentors, teammates and even his rival, Bolt. We all cheered as he won bronze, then went on to win two other medals. A few days later, De Grasse tweeted: “It takes someone strong to make someone strong.”
Every child, in order to be successful in life needs at least one adult who believes in their potential and helps them believe in themselves. For many children, that someone is their teacher.
Ten days from now marks the beginning of a new school year for tens of thousands of students across Niagara — for the approximately 58,000 students who will begin at District School Board of Niagara and Niagara Catholic schools, those in French schools, the more than 28,000 students who will study at Niagara College and Brock University, thousands at private schools and many who will stay home to join the ranks of homeschoolers.
The ultimate goal of education may be farthest from the mind of the child who excitedly collects new school supplies, or the parent looking forward to a break from the summertime challenge of keeping their child engaged.
The student moving into residence for the first time may have a better idea why they are there.
For many, the question is irrelevant — we go to school because everyone does, and everyone has to. Some would cite the purpose as college and career readiness, some economic prosperity, or social status as ultimate goals.
Unless students can be educated to have a sense of emotional well-being, hope for the future, passion and engagement in their learning, all of these other outcomes become huge obstacles.
The great Maya Angelou once wrote: “This is the value of the teacher, who looks at a face and says there’s something behind that and I want to reach that person, I want to influence that person, I want to encourage that person, I want to enrich, I want to call out that person who is behind that face, behind that colour, behind that language, behind that tradition, behind that culture. I believe you can do it. I know what was done for me.”
The beginning of another year is a great time to engage in a bit of possibility dreaming. Students and teachers quickly fall into the reality of dealing with the daily mundanities of school. It may be the apathetic or discouraged student, or the child whose is hungry or unrested, or the student who is being bullied, or has learning disabilities, or whose poor social skills preclude good classroom relationships. It may be that life’s ultimate lessons are built on the building blocks of daily lessons, and these can seem mundane and boring, prompting the age-old question “Why do we need to learn this anyway?” Managing all this in a way that makes learning accessible, exciting, fun and fulfilling is the magic that teachers and professors in myriad settings across Niagara will do every day.
Education is not like the Olympics. No gold medal for taking notice of the individual child, pointing out their strengths, making them believe in themselves against the odds. No standing on the podium hearing your anthem played for creating unique learning opportunities that will develop individual skills and set students on a pathway. No waving the flag for giving a simple high-five, word of encouragement or positive comment on a paper. No milliondollar endorsements for building a student’s skills or inspiring new confidence.
Just the satisfaction of seeing students thrive, move forward on a positive pathway, win some medals of their own along the way and, yes, perhaps even compete in the Olympics. Best of success to all students, teachers, professors and parents in this new school year.