Grandparents Generation

The following information was given to me from a mid-70 year-old woman named Janice, all of these words are her own:

When I think of my school years, I have many, many positive and happy thoughts.

I started to school at age 5 in (private) kindergarten in the home of Mrs. Rose. There were about 15 children in the class. Mrs. Rose was wheelchair bound, though we never thought that was so unusual, and it certainly did not negatively affect her interactions with us nor the activities that we enjoyed together, including singing (with her playing piano), dancing, games, listening to read-aloud stories, dramatic play, painting, drawing, making crafts, and exploring through many projects. It was evident that Mrs. Rose loved us by the way she responded to us. Our days were happy and fulfilling. That was a wonderful way to begin my formal school years, and the years that followed were much the same.

In first grade my teacher was Miss Janet Rose who had just finished college and my class was her first; she was wonderful, and there is no doubt that I was her pet, as the saying goes. She brought the class to my house when I had to be absent due to measles. They stood on the sidewalk outside my house, and Mother let me walk onto the porch to wave to them and say hello.

I also remember that in grades 1-4, we had reading groups meeting with the teacher, who used a big book to teach reading. Then we were given individual texts of the same story to read with a partner and to ourselves. I loved this experience and it helped broaden and cement my love of reading. There was no doubt that my teachers loved children and teaching --what a joy! Until I got much older, I thought that all teachers loved children and teaching.

My relationship with all my teachers, except one, was positive, caring, and appropriately affectionate. (I had one teacher (4th grade) who evidently didn't like children or her job, it seemed. She was sharp, snappy, and quick to grab a ruler and hit the palm of an unfortunate student. I was on the receiving end of that ruler at least once or twice. Another one of her practices was to draw a small circle on the blackboard and, if a child misbehaved, he or she was to stand with his or her nose in the circle for a long, designated time. Talk about embarassment and humiliation, that was it.) I recall all my other teachers as being truly interested in students. They made sure each child understood lesson content and they always helped when it was needed. Students were also allowed to assist others in the class in an appropriate way, not giving answers, but explaining carefully, etc. All through my schooling up through 12th grade, we students were expected to "behave" in polite and mannerly ways. We were to show respect to everyone in our class including our teachers. That positive expectation was in the configuration of a circle where respect was given and received by all in the classroom.

My kindergarten teacher, my first grade teacher and my second grade teacher as well as my seventh grade teacher and my high school English teacher all stand out in my mind as teachers who not only taught me but who inspired me not only to learn and do my best, but to be the best person I could be. Their love for what they taught was evident, and it appeared to be a cycle, where the teacher and her love for teaching and learning was given, and we as students received it and then returned it to the teacher, and the cyclical pattern continued.

My desire to teach was fueled by the inspiration these teachers ignited in my life, and I am thankful for what they have meant to me and others.

I never doubted that I would attend college. My parents expected me to go to college; it was a given. I was definitely supported by my parents and later, my husband.

When I was a teenage helper in the nursery at my church where I assisted a teacher with the young children during the church hour in another meeting room, I found that children were following me almost like the Pied Piper. I found that I had a special talent for recoginizing children's needs, concerns, likes, and feelings. The empathy that I exhibited to them made a special bond between us, and they trusted me, a trust not to be treated lightly. I've called this talent a sixth sense and it has served me well in my many years of teaching.

Having an education is one of the most important things that a person can pursue. I say pursue because education does not have a final date of completion; it continues long after you stop learning in a formal setting like elementary, middle, high school and college. Learning should be a life-long pursuit, not only as a means to learn "something" but as a pattern of life that broadens one's perspective and extends one's tolerance and understanding of others. Interactions with others where one is patient in hearing someone else's ideas and thoughts, even those that differ from one's own, make for a fruitful and rewarding life. Pursuing an education is not always a means to an end, but a beginning of self understanding as well as respect and understanding of others and the world around us.

The next interview was with my grandmother, KK, who is 80:

When I asked KK what comes to mind when she thinks back on her schooling, she said she only thinks the happiest of thoughts. School was such a great time for her and so many positive things came from her educational experience.

KK claims to have had the best teachers any child could wish for and she grew up thinking that everyone had it as great as she did. She could tell that the teachers loved their jobs and because of that, the feeling was reciprocated.

KK met all of her friends early on in life. She literally knew every person in her school and easily fell into a close-knit group of girls that did everything together.

When asked about furthering her education KK said, "My parents raised me with the idea that girls should have a solid educations just as boys were expected to. Like when Sunday rolled around, you didn't ask, 'Are you going to church?' It was just expected. That is how it was with furthering my education. I truly felt that I needed it to get through life."

The final interview was with an elderly woman in my community, Cora Katie:

Upon asking Cora Katie about her educational experiences, her face immediately lit up with a smile. She said that not a single teacher came to her mind that wasn't a great teacher- that didn't enjoy her job. All of her teachers were either from her hometown or right outside of it, meaning most of her teachers knew her family personally, which she enjoyed.

Like KK, Cora Katie also met all of her closest friends early on at school. The bonds made in the classroom have literally lasted a lifetime.

Although Cora Katie did not pursue a college level education, she says that doesn't in any way lessen her thoughts on the importance of education. When she was growing up, most girls were in no way expected to further their education and Cora Katie married shortly after graduating from high school. Since raising her own family though, Cora Katie has always stressed the importance in challenging oneself and striving to learn new things at every opportunity.