February 22, 2001
Subject: Wow!
So, as a home school
teacher you are feeling stressed. You are having trouble balancing all the
daily routines of teacher, mother, taxi driver and wife. Wow, welcome to the
club. As a classroom teacher I've been experiencing the same things, and much
more for years. I am glad you see that teaching is a full time job and that it
can, and too often does, eat into your personal life and intrude into family
time. Pardon me if I don't seem over sympathetic, it is just that I find a
certain degree of irony in the situations outlined in your article. Many
people pull their children out of school to home school because of over
crowded classrooms and stressed out teachers who cannot give the
"individual attention" their child needs. The response of pulling
their children out of school is one of the what exacerbates the problem.
Instead of slagging public schools for these serious problems, then
withdrawing children, why not raise loud voices to governments who direly
underfunded schools, and seriously underpay teachers? Instead of merely
standing up for their own kids, why not stand up for all kids? Instead of
hiding their light under a bushel?
Now that you and others
know, and hopefully understand, what teaching is all about, you'll have an
increased appreciation for what I and thousands of other dedicated teachers
spend our lives doing.
Thank you,
D. G.
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