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How important is the role of teacher
Importance of teachers
How important is the role of teacher
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Hello, Class of 2012.
We're graduating.
June 12 is the day we have worked toward for the past 12 years. We have reached the time where we say good-bye to Hayes and hello to our futures outside its hallowed walls.
Our teachers have taught all they can about life's many obstacles and pitfalls, and even taught us a few tricks on how to work them out. Every year we have met new teachers who have made such an impact on our lives that we keep in contact throughout the years. They gave us memories to cherish and keep with us. They have been there for us when we needed them, and they never complained. We knew we could always go to them with our problems and not be judged. We have had our star athletes, our strong academic students, and our extraordinary artists and performers. But I believe the strong, the extraordinary, the stars of Hayes High School were and always will be the teachers. We will never forget them.
We're graduating.
The stars in our life are not only found inside Hayes' walls, but elsewhere. These people have to put up with us every day and every night. They hav...
The thirst for something stable is evident as the children show their awe of the physical world. As an adult explains the stars to Mazie, Olsen writes: "As his words misted into the night and disappeared, she scarcely listened‹only the aura over them of timelessness, of vastness, of eternal things that had been before her and would be after her, remained and entered into her with a great hurt and wanting." (33) The present, the words describing the stars, hold no intrigue for Mazie; the idea of a permanence stronger than the Depression does. Two pages later, Olsen writes of Mazie stripping corn silk: "Šshe would dream of weaving it into garments incredible. But the tassells withered, grew brown and smelly, and she had to throw them away." (35) Her actual life results only in death, and she must again call up something enduring, "a poem learned from Old Man Caldwell." (35)
As a public high school teacher, I have seen hundreds of students walk in and out of my classroom over the last 12 years, and Alejandra is in the top 1% of students who have had a positive impact on me. I cannot say enough about her character and integrity. She is resilient and has been an encouragement to me and countless other students and teachers—on and off campus. We will miss her positive presence next year.
Throughout my high school tenure at Roncalli High, I’ve been graced with some of the best teachers around. They have taught me to have pride, passion, and courage in everything that I pursue. Roncalli is a school where excellence is our average and the students are pushed to go farther than they think they can. These specific values have stuck to my heart and I know will carry me through my collegiate years.
Looking back on my three years at Twin Cities Academy, I find myself wondering how all these years came and went so fast. I still watch myself walking through the same halls and sitting in the same classrooms as I did back in 6th and 7th grade and I’ve seen myself grow so much, mentally, socially and physically. I still remember everything that has happened throughout my years, the best of times, and the worst.
When I was in elementary school, I loved to read. I was a total nerd back then ... okay maybe I still am, but one thing has changed. Now I don't so much like reading. My favorite poet was Shel Silverstein, who wrote "Where the Sidewalk Ends." He seemed like he was a total hippie, but that's cool because I like hippies. My grandma is a recovering hippie. I like her too. Anyway, Shel Silverstein wrote about the coolest things. He wrote about magical erasers, eating whales and a boy with long hair flying away from people who were taunting him. He captured all of the things that I loved without knowing that I actually loved them. Now you may ask, how does this hippie relate to our graduation? Well, he wrote a poem entitled "Traffic Light" and this is how it goes:
To the County High School Class of 2012: As you sit in front of me, I know what most of you are thinking at the moment. There are those who are already pondering about what life without high school will be like; those who are debating whether or not to tell your crush tonight about your whispers of adoration you’ve secretly held for four years; some simply want to get out of that ungodly chair, get that thing that isn’t really a diploma but only tells you when to pick up the thing, and then be the first one on the green bus to the grad party — you know who you are. And the rest, well, the rest aren’t even paying attention, you’re thinking, “Great, here comes one of the valedictorian speakers. Next up: a boring speech straight out of the pits of scholarly hell.” And it’s OK, I don’t mind — that sort of thing comes with the territory. But tonight, I ask that you give me a chance to break that stereotype so that I may address you in the full splendor that you deserve after 13 grueling years of work. I do not want to be known as your “valedictorian” as I stand here, c’mon guys, there is no time left to place labels on people anymore, instead I ask that you accept me as one of your peers — and as a man who will enjoy becoming a graduate alongside you.
Good evening. Some of you out there may not realize this but those of you who attended Suntime Middle School have been with this guy for the last seven years. I would like to ask you all, not just Suntime Middle School grads and who all else, to join me in thanking Mr. Weather for his patience and dedication to the success of our education over the years. We are the Class of 2000. The first graduating class of the new millennium. The past four years have been pretty wild. We started out as a bunch of rats in a small cage, but as time went by we learned and matured and became big rats in a new small cage, but in any case, the cage door is now opening; the handlers turning us wild things loose. As we leave "Where the Wild Things Are," home to some of the best cat fights, fist fights and food fights this side of the Cascades, I have a little surprise for all of you sitting in front of me here tonight in your caps and gowns … we ain’t seen nothing yet!
When I was chosen to speak tonight, I thought that as a track athlete it would be appropriate to compare life to a race. Life is a race, a race to each milestone in our lives.
It is probably a mistake that I am standing here giving a speech for graduation. In fact it is probably a mistake that I am even graduating from this school at all -- believe me, just as most people in this class I have tested the limits of attendance, of sleeplessness, and of procrastination. At the beginning of my high schooling, I was even testing dropping out ... and if that wasn't a mistake, I don't know what was. After four years of Starr altering our minds, it seemed most fitting for me to spend my four minutes talking about mistakes. Thank goodness for them, by the way -- it is only when we truly screw up big time that we are ever stopped in our tracks -- stopped, briefly, to learn lessons of worth.
Along with finding my passion for theater, I also found one of my favorite teachers during my time in Junior High. His name was Mr. Rodrigue, and he was my homeroom and science teacher for both seventh and eighth grade. He was one of the first teachers that was every real with me. He was a very open and honest teacher who treated his students like adults. Mr. Rodrigue had this wit and sense of humor that made him more personable than any of my other teachers. I loved how he gave everyone in our homeroom nicknames, for instance, mine was “Higgy-Baby”. To this day I do not know how he came up with a name like that, but I know that while I was in his classroom, I was never called just Alyssa. While I learned many new and interesting things in his science class, I remember more of the life lessons that he taught during homeroom. He was one of the teachers that was there for me when life got rough, he looked out for me during and outside of class. For me, knowing that I had him keeping an eye out for me made me feel
When I look back to my young developing stages in life, I always ask myself where would I be today if it wasn’t for my teachers? Teachers are the ones who build our future generations. Preparing children and teens for higher education. Also playing a huge part in shaping children’s lives, enlightening them, and educating them about society and the world around them; the types of things that a parent doesn’t have time for, or just lacks the knowledge of. I think teachers are what help make this world go round.
We meet the teachers who will give us the instruments to join the orchestra of the world. We love them, admire them, respect them, and above all, learn from them. Forever into our future, we will tell stories and reminisce of the memorable teachers and classrooms that taught us so diligently. They teach us the information to decode life, and be able to support ourselves. We excel in the subjects we love, and take this excellence into our future careers.
I did not get to know many of you. So, I cannot be certain of how you feel, but, as for me, this year has been, by far, the most enjoyable and eye opening one of my high school career. Enjoyable because of the new, interesting friends I've made and of the fun times I've had, and eye opening because of my being forced to look towards the future. Not just day dreaming and imagining about the rest of my life, but finally having to sit down and make some definite decisions concerning it. For me and many of you, colleges have had to be applied for and decided on and scholarships filled out. Some of you have been looking into vocational schools or the military, while others will be going straight into the work force. Whatever your case may be, we've all had one thing in common in that we've been planning for our futures. Since the decisions we make now or soon will impact the rest of our lives, I'd like to take this time to share some advice with you all.
Mrs. Ladd was not the most popular, funniest, hardest, easiest, nicest, nor the meanest teacher. I remember her for some other reasons. When I think of Mrs. Ladd, I think about how hard she made me work. But I also think about how she challenged me. Most of all, I remember how she influenced me.
Let me begin by saying that I am very honored to be addressing the County High School Class of 2012 as students of this institution for the last time. We've spent these last four years creating some serious memories: four years of chieftain power, leaking roofs, questionable Homecoming skits, and musical principals. Four years of good teachers, bad teachers, new teachers, old teachers. Four years of youth, music, growing up and breaking free. Four rubber chickens, four yearbooks, four ASB presidents and four chubby bunnies.