The perks of being a teacher...

One of the perks of being a teacher isn't' a company car (who would want to drive a yellow bus everywhere), isn't an amazing retirement plan, isn't an incredible wage, and isn't having to resolve conflict with students and parents. Often it comes in little ways. Student papers are a source of great wisdom at times and other times perfect for illustrating the pitfalls of spell and grammar check. These papers also demonstrate student understanding -or misunderstanding.

I was recently reminded of these when a colleague emailed several of his student blunders to me and some that are not his. Here is a segment of what he sent to me...

********************

George Washington married Matha Curtis and in due time became the Father of Our Country. Them the Constitution of the United States was adopted to secure domestic hostility. Under the Constitution the people enjoyed the right to keep bare arms.

Abraham Lincoln became America's greatest Precedent. Lincoln's mother died in infancy, and he was born in a log cabin which he built with his own hands. When Lincoln was President, he wore only a tall silk hat. He said, "In onion there is strength."

Abraham Lincoln write the Gettysburg address while traveling from Washington to Gettysburg on the back of an envelope. He also signed the Emasculation Proclamation, and the Fourteenth Amendment gave the ex-Negroes citizenship. On the night of April 14, 1865, Lincoln went to the theater and got shot in his seat by one of the actors in a moving picture show. The believed assinator was John Wilkes Booth, a supposedl insane actor. This ruined Booth's career.

***************

Those weren't from his classroom but they are entertaining. The example, below, is from my classroom 3 years ago.

***************

Public meetings were important in the American revolution. The angry merchants would meet in public where everyone could listen and watch their debates. Sometimes these public meetings took place on the front steps of important buildings. Both public and private gatherings inflamed the people against the British. The British tried to stop these public meetings because it was embarrassing to the king but this encouraged the colonists to meet publicly more often and in larger groups. Eventually this lead to war. We won the war and one of the reasons was the meetings –both private and public- which allowed people to express their ideas.

****************

Now there is nothing amazing about that paragraph (other than the historical inaccuracies). What was supremely entertaining about it, though, was the spelling. I have edited the above paragraph but the original student version didn't use the word "public". This student left the "L" out of "public". Now, reread the paragraph with your newfound understanding.

Funny, no? I see these little simple things as perks for a teacher. I may not get paid much or get to drive a big yellow bus to work but my life will be longer because of the laughter I occasionally get when I read student papers. I am also encouraged by the majority of papers I see that are quality work. It gives me hope for the future of our nation and educational systems. When these papers cross my desk it is usually a great time to talk about how we communicate and how to use technology to our advantage and not our embarrassment.

I have other student blunders posted on this blog on “December 19, 2006” “April 1, 2006”, & “April 13, 2006”.