Who Is The Teacher Today?
“Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6)
How many years have you spent in school? I added it all up yesterday and came to a grand total of 22 which is roughly one third of my life. (Now if you love numbers, you should be able to figure out how old I am. LOL)
Do you remember your favorite teachers and why they soared to the top of you like-list? My favorite was Mrs. Harrison, my second-grade teacher. She was an educator before her time. We always had these amazing science projects that were really cool—like duck eggs hatching and ant colonies and bee hives. She was kind but strict in her own way yet everyone loved her. No one was ever left out. I wanted to be just like her. What she taught stayed with me and it wasn’t the academics.
How about the teachers that caused you to tremble inside, visit the nurse frequently or maybe you wished they would find a new job? I had plenty of them along the way. They are the ones that hurt my feelings, made discouraging comments and did not want to give me the time of day for extra help. I always felt so badly for other kids when the frustrated teachers would just verbally abuse them.
Let’s talk about learning that goes on today. Who is really teaching? Yes, there are those with the title of teacher but how much time is actually spent with academics? What are the kids learning? A certain amount of education happens within the walls of the school but what about life skills, manners, social skills and the other non-academics?
Time and time again, when teachers talk it is not about how intelligent a child might be; generally, it is about their manners or attitude. Who is the teacher?
Spending hours on electronics probably is not the best teacher. By the way, have you ever really watched the kids play these games? I know times are different now but who is the teacher?
Playing with friends in the presence of adults who cannot control their language is not ideal either. Perhaps they play at friends’ homes with no adult supervision because mom and dad are working. Who is the teacher?
Why is this so important? If we don’t teach our children/grandchildren how to live godly lives, there are more of “the others” than there are of us Christians. Who do you want as the teacher?
Heavenly Father, please protect our children and help us to embrace the role of teacher in their lives. Shield them from the evil in the world and give them strength to stand up for You. AMEN.