Denis Gray is a law and justice teacher at Brighton High School
in Boston, Massachusetts.
I teach in an urban high school, and it's a good school. For me,
there are three criteria for what makes for a good school:
- The vast majority of its teachers want to have maximum impact
on students through instruction.
- Students have internalized the value of education and want
to learn.
- Most importantly, the educational and ancillary needs of all
students are met.
To say the least, making this a reality in the lives of students
does not go unchallenged. Students continually test us to determine
whether we are "for real." Someone has said, "Students do not care
what you know until they know that you care." Difficult students,
in particular, test us. They test our patience, our self-control,
our professionalism, our integrity, our faith, and our hope. Then,
there are the self-doubt questions, "Am I a good teacher?", "Could
my actions be interpreted as racist?", "What could/should I be doing
that I'm not?"
There are many models and methodologies for instructing and learning.
Most of them assume that students
want to learn. Yet the
reality is that for many students, there is a profound disconnect
between education and success. They see that multimillion-dollar
athletic contracts are signed by high school students. Colleges
that should know better are not interested in ensuring that their
athletes graduate. Many of our parents shower their children with
the latest designer clothes and sneakers. Many of my students have
part-time jobs to ensure that they always have pocket money. In
their minds is the question, "If I get what I want now, why do I
need an education?" Then there are issues of alienation and mistrust.
Many students view the education we are trying to give them as the
attempt by the "establishment" to "mess with their heads."
Of the three criteria, I believe No. 3 to be the most important.
Today's urban school, as a matter of social conscience, must address
psychosocial needs of its students as never before. Today's teacher,
as a matter of personal conscience, is required to assume many roles
in students' lives, including being parent, protector, counselor,
and confidant. It is a tough and complex job, but it's a job I love.
