EdCo members Joel Bezaire, 7th grade math teacher at USN, and Jennifer Weinblatt, 6th grade ELA teacher at Harding Academy, share what keeps them going on tough days. As teachers, we weren’t at all surprised by their answers.
*originally published May 25, 2021
As the school year comes to an end and we reflect on this challenging year, we recognize that it was filled with many tough days. Even in a typical year, teaching has its ups and its downs, and we as educators look for reasons to keep at it. But it really isn’t a surprise that so many do keep going, no matter what those challenges are, because every day we arrive to a room full of spirit, a room full of kids.
That’s the answer we got from EdCo members Joel and Jennifer when they were asked, “What keeps you going on tough days?” Of course their answer was, “the kids.”
“It’s the kids,” Joel tells us. He continues, “I can help this, I can work with this, I can just be there for this person and be a help. It gives a perspective, if this report doesn’t get written on time, it just doesn\’t get written on time. This is what I’m here for and this is what I’m here to do.”
Jennifer feels the same way, “the energy I get daily from these kids.” That’s what keeps her going. “ I can come in feeling grumpy and overwhelmed and the kids come in and it just changes the mood.” She reminds us that with kids, “you can just be yourself in this world.”
“That kind of energy just keeps you moving forward,” Jennifer says. And that’s the sentiment we are going to take into the summer, where you’ll find that teachers aren’t really on a break. And that’s the sentiment we are going to take into next year when a new set of faces comes before us.
We are here for the kids and they’re what keep us going, even when the going gets tough.
The Educators\’ Cooperative is a non-profit organization that provides a professional learning community for K-12 teachers. Created for teachers by teachers in 2016, EdCo provides professional development and support for educators to collaborate across sectors, disciplines, and career stages. EdCo aims to revolutionize teacher development and leadership by focusing on the essential agency, autonomy, and common ground all teachers share. EdCo is based in Nashville, Tennessee with a reach far beyond that physical location and potential for replication in communities throughout the nation. When educators collaborate, the future of education is greater than the sum of its parts. Please visit educatorscooperative.com for more information and to sign up for our newsletter.