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Teacher frustrations, struggles, and the need for kindness

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 How is it still the year 2020? 

As a teacher, I feel like this year has had a lot of lows. We went from in the spring caring about teachers and celebrating them for taking care of our kids and getting them lunches and doing the impossible overnight to now, we criticize everything that they aren’t doing well or enough of. Why haven’t they called the parents multiple times? Why is my kid failing? Why can’t we be in the building? Why do we have to wear masks? Why? Why? Whyyyyyyyyyyyy? 

I get it. I really do. This isn’t the way we wanted this year to go. Parents are at their wits end, (teachers are parents too!), and teachers are starting to really question their choice of career or whether they should retire. I know I have at least thought about it, and I think others would be lying if they said otherwise. I’ve seen a few good teachers jump ship, and it makes me sad. Schools would be better with those teachers still in them. Yet,  I feel like teachers have become dancing monkeys on the screen. We must arrive on screen at the right time, put on brave and happy faces, and teach to the best of our ability no matter how we are feeling. Not trying to speak for other teachers, I’m human and some days my brave face falters. 

Maybe some of us have forgotten but teachers aren’t entertainers? We are not here to make you happy and feel good. Learning sometimes hurts. Sometimes learning is fun and sometimes it is not. That’s just life, people! Aren’t we supposed to challenge our students to become smarter and better people? Then, why does it feel like I’m suppose to accommodate and compromise more than push and challenge? 

Perhaps I am alone in this thought. 

All of this does not mean I lack empathy and sympathy for my students. They miss friends, sports, social interaction, and we teachers miss our students. I miss seeing their faces and talking with them more. It’s hard to be there to support them over the internet. Plus, growing up is hard, and during a pandemic, I cannot fathom. The desire to go and do something, anything must be constant.

I feel the same, trapped in this routine schedule that feels limiting and less secure then it should, yet that might just be because we all know we live in flux. Everything is changing and this year, it all has changed so quickly. Things may be day by day or hour to hour. Other people’s decisions run our lives, and yes, it is frustrating. 

Ok, let’s be real. It sucks. 

In my humble opinion, we all need to extend to each other some grace. We are all struggling together, and as my husband and I previously came to the conclusion of we all could really use a little slack.

 I hope this season, if you read this, that you gift that gift of understanding and empathy to others. That kind of grace is kindness.

And really, couldn’t we all use a little kindness and grace at the end of this year? 


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