You (yes, you!) are making a difference: The power of a single phrase - The first semester

We were a group of teenagers, trying to forge our own identities while seeking peer-approval and social acceptance. She was a first year teacher, struggling to engage a class that was off-task and out of control. Together, our characteristics combined to create a chaotic environment. As a result, years later, I remember very little about the content she tried to cover. But I will always remember the day she introduced one simple phrase.

Because that phrase changed me.

It was an excerpt from Henry James’ novel The Portrait of a Lady. We weren’t even studying that book at the time. Still, she wrote eighteen of its words on the board and said our only homework that night was to think about them. Her reason? She was worried about some of the choices we were making in the face of peer pressure, and thought it might help if each of us reflected on the following quote:

I don’t want everyone to like me; I should think less of myself if some people did.

The words were only posted for one day, and my teacher never mentioned them again. Still, for me, they marked a turning point. In the midst of figuring out who I was and which friends would influence me, they helped me steer away from some popular, but damaging activities. For some reason, in the midst of parental talks and after-school specials, it took those words to reach me. They triggered a thought process that helped me develop my own sense of integrity.

They also revealed the power of a teacher and the effect of one phrase.

She was a first year teacher, and she was struggling. Nothing seemed to go as she planned. In spite of that, she made a difference in my life. She introduced one idea that simmered in me for years, affecting my development as well as my decisions. In spite of all the first-year confusion, she had a powerful impact on an impressionable kid.

You may be able to relate to some of her struggles. I hope you can also relate to her desire to continually improve. But more than anything else, I hope that her story can convince you to take heart. In the midst of all your concerns about management, content and strategies, recognize that you are making a difference. You are affecting your students in important and sometimes intangible ways.

So keep working on your classroom culture, your curriculum and your pedagogy. Don’t forget that our goal is to reach every kid. But while you are working on those big issues and ideals, take advantage of the small moments that your position affords you. Find a student who is struggling, and say something positive. Tell them you are impressed with their effort. Admire their work, their character or something they say. Let them know that you’ve noticed their potential. Or simply reveal that you enjoy having them in class every day.

And recognize that even if you feel like everything could be so much better, you are already making a difference. You are a teacher. When you care, students notice, and it affects them. You (yes, you!) are affecting them in incredible and wonderful ways.