It was my first year of teaching and it's a day, I'll truly never forget. It's one of those moments in our history where like the JFK assassination people remember exactly where they were when they heard the news.
For me, I was on my way to work when the news came over the radio. The radio station I listened at the time to is well known for their morning show and the banter that flowed between the two co-hosts. The banter was gone, replaced with disbelief and shock as they read the news feeds. I was stuck in stop and go traffic, torn by an urge to return home to my family. Of course, as a teacher it is a little bit tougher to not show up, especially when you know you are responsible for some thirty students. I also knew that for some of my students, this moment of extreme instability, needed to be met with the stability of knowing that their teacher would be there.
It wasn't an easy choice to make, but I also knew that my own three children had the good fortune of being in a cohesive, dependable family. All three undoubtedly knew that when they got home from school, we would talk of the events that had transpired with the guidance that comes from being caring parents. This could not be said for quite a few of my students. They would need an adult who could talk about these tragic events, assure them that they were safe, and get on with the regular procedures of the day.
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2 comments:
This theme of being the stable adult in our students' lives seems to be prevalent this week...
How old were your own children at the time? How did your school (and your kids') handle the events? I've heard, from a lot of my community college students, that their schools tried to cover up what was happening, and they resented the hell out of that - and still do to this day...
Those students were lucky to have you as their teacher.
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