When Bob Hattman asked me to
commit
to paper an analysis of why John Smith was a great teacher, I responded
with my
usual equivocation. Teachers are
probably the poorest analysts of their peers’ special brilliance for
the simple
reason that we are so seldom exposed to the specific application of
each
other’s talents. Education is, in many
ways, a very independent and sometimes lonely profession. We
meet as a faculty on a regular basis, have
contact with each other in the halls and at the lunch table for idle
conversation, and sometimes share personal philosophy while watching a
sporting
event, but when it comes to the time to teach, we each take whatever it
is that
we know best and trust most, close the classroom door, and do “our
thing” in a
way that no one else can fully comprehend.
The people most directly exposed to the genius of each individual
teacher are those least qualified to evaluate that genius objectively –
the
students. And so it is that the best
educators must simply know in their hearts what to do and
how best to do
it (“best” meaning most effective for that particular teacher’s style
and
personality), then proceed with full faith and confidence on the path
that
seems clear to them. Perhaps Bob was
right when he said to me, “It’s much more an Art than it is a Science”.
Be that as it
may, I think it is
possible to infer a great many things about what it means to be a
quality
teacher by careful observation of a good educator’s thought process and
actions. If a
picture is indeed worth a
thousand words, then a man’s actions speak infinitely more eloquently
about his
beliefs and abilities than he could adequately put into words. John and I may have
disagreed about the best
approach to take in certain circumstances, or about the usefulness of
certain
educational “tools”, but that should not diminish the respect I had for
his
ability to put his thought and belief into action.
From the residue of his action, I believe I
can discern some lessons that are valuable for any teacher in any
situation.
John T. Smith, Jr. was a man of
action. Not like a
superhero, mind you,
but far better, because he was real.
Dave Cooper remarked to me at John’s funeral how he had
given a paper to
John, requesting input about the construction and quality of the
writing
itself, so Dave could help his students not only write science better,
but
improve their writing skills in general.
Even though he told John specifically not to rush on the
response, John
returned the paper to him by the end of the day.
It was a simple part of John’s philosophy to
take care of any task that needed to be done as soon as he could
possibly get
to it. Do it now!
may have been
tattooed on the inside of his eyelids for all I know, and he may, in
fact, have
never actually slept. The
reality is
that John simply accomplished more than anyone else because he knew how
to use
all his time effectively. He
had a
natural talent for keeping track of every task that he needed to
complete, and
always having it done well before its deadline.
I never saw him with a datebook or memo pad, yet he never
seemed to
forget anything that was requested of him, perhaps because he knew he
would
have the job done before he could forget to do it. As a result, I seldom saw
him pressed for
time and straining at deadlines the way most of us are when grades are
due, or
other tasks come up. He
volunteered for
incredible amounts of extra work (and consequently often took loads off
the
rest of us) because he had the organizational skills and work ethic to
complete
them more quickly and efficiently than anyone else could. He had a system for
virtually every task and
used it to produce a prodigious amount of work.
Though it has become cultural jargon to label such people
as “anal”, the
reality is that any less-talented person could
accomplish,
with a
datebook, sticky notes, and a bit of insight and self-discipline, every
bit as
much as John did.
Tired is
a worn-out term.
It is also fashionable to excuse ourselves
from developing our skills or achieving many of the necessary daily
tasks of
education by giving in to fatigue.
Several people mentioned to me that John’s list of
activities was quite
long and arduous, and some openly wondered if he simply did “too much”. If he could have responded
verbally at that
moment, I’m certain he would have shouted, “No!”
John knew, as I think all great teachers do,
that you can draw energy and strength from working with and for that
which you
love, and John found a way to love almost everything
and everyone.
He simply never used the excuse that he was
too tired to give any task his best effort, nor was he too exhausted to
care
about his students’ concerns.
Though John was no sort of athlete,
he could often be seen in attendance at sporting events in which our
students
competed. He knew
it was important to Be
Involved in various aspects of his students’ lives.
Our students (and I’m sure those in other
schools as well) frequently ask their teachers, “Are you coming to the
game
tonight?” Most of
the time, this inquiry
seems casual enough, but the underlying question is, “Do you care
enough about
me as a person to engage yourself in my life beyond your classroom?” John knew that children
need us to play more
than one role in their lives, and he willingly joined in the aspects
that carried
beyond English class. One
need look no
further than the amazingly long list of children for whom he served as
godfather to realize how extensive his involvement was.
The level of commitment this required was
great, but John knew that his commitment would pay dividends in a
multitude of
ways. Teachers who
are involved are
actually investing their time, and they get repaid many times over.
John was enthusiastically open and
honest with his opinions and did not hedge when discussing the truth. His students knew they
could trust him to
tell them exactly how he felt about any issue (and why), even if they
would not
be happy about the results. Still,
he
also knew that it was important to Be Loyal.
That meant that you could have his honest
opinion on any subject or student, but that did not give you the right
to show
disrespect toward them. Even
if he
disagreed with a friend on an important subject, he would valiantly
defend that
friend to any outsider. He
kept those
values in proper perspective, as we all should.
I have been to several coaching
clinics run by famous and accomplished coaches, and the first bit of
advice
they give on being successful is, “Be yourself.”
John knew how to Be an Individual and
was never afraid to ‘bare his soul’ to his peers or his students. He was unique in his
talents and interests,
and was not ashamed of his weaknesses, nor arrogant of his talents. He simply was
who he was, and he
enjoyed being a special and unique individual.
By being himself, he could effectively encourage his
students to be
themselves as well. For
the younger
students especially, those in Junior High who regularly face the
ridicule of
their peers for any quality perceived as “different”, there was a
strong, sincere
message that being oneself was not only OK, but necessary.
That also meant that we should Be
Diverse. John
enjoyed an eclectic
range of interests and activities.
Some
of them he knew quite well. His
interest
in reading spawned prolific writing.
His
interests in science fiction and Star Trek colored his personal
philosophy. His
interest in computers
helped him create numerous educational opportunities for his students
(and,
ironically, for unknown e-mail pals in other countries). His interest in his
students caused him to
work to learn about the things they found intriguing or compelling. This also links to the
lesson that we should Keep
Learning. John had
a broad range of
knowledge, but he was always active in learning more.
He knew that an energetic mind kept one alert
and engaged. We
often sat together at
games, where our conversations frequently turned hilarious. After exhorting the boys
to “Show ‘em your
stuff!”, he’d ask me about the nuances of the play they were running. After bellowing at the
referees to get a call
right, he’d ask me what the rule was, whether it had actually been
broken, and
by whom. Though the
basic elements of
athletic competition seemed to avoid his grasp, he always wanted to
know what
was going on. Even
if he had to be
taught the lesson 5 times (in the same game), he’d keep inquiring,
because
knowledge was indeed power to him.
One of my first memories of John
after he joined me at PCHS was from his participation in Mass at St.
Francis
Xavier. He went up
to the lectern to do
the readings for that evening’s service.
It is one of my pet peeves that people who speak in
public, especially
at an event that calls for their passion and investment, often mumble
their way
through whatever assignment they’ve been given.
John proved immediately that he was my type of guy,
speaking loud and
clear, and in a way that left no doubt that the words were meaningful
to him,
and should be meaningful to us all.
He
knew that every task demanded that you Give it Your Best. Whatever he did, for
whomever he did it, whatever
the venue, John gave his very best.
In
the end, it is that which makes all the other lessons compelling.
John’s final prayer with us all was
built around the subject: When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade. I would hope that this
epistle would prove
that I am trying to live out his lesson.
Teachers seem to seldom get what they hope to get. Every test has someone
fail it. Every
lesson has someone miss it. Every
great idea gets shots full of holes by
someone who doesn’t fully grasp it and doesn’t care to.
Almost no good deed goes unpunished in some
agonizing and unpredictable way. Many
of
the teachers you come in contact with will have given in to the despair
all this
will have caused them. Somewhere
along
the way, someone will suggest that it’s better to just give up, go with
the
flow, stop making waves, and do just enough to get by.
Well, John would never have tolerated
that. There is a
best case to be made
out of all situations, and the only way to sleep well at night is to
know that
you’ve made the best out of whatever ridiculous thing you’ve been asked
to do
that day. You can’t
do so by feeling
sorry for yourself, or looking for excuses, you simply have to take the
responsibility that comes with your job and seek the best possible
outcome.
Then,
Be Happy. John’s
sense of humor kept him, and often
many of the rest of us, sane. Finding
the humorous quality in any event or situation keeps a person young at
heart,
and we must try to be so for our students.
John could be very serious about important issues, but he
was never so
serious that he refused to laugh at something silly within those
situations. It is
amazing how much
brighter the day becomes when we can see the humor in whatever assails
us.
In
closing, I would like to remind
you of a favorite Bible phrase that kept coming to my mind at John’s
funeral. In many ways, I consider it the
most important phrase in the Bible, because of its implications about
what is
our most significant charge. It is the means
by which every end in the scripture can be
realized: Go
thou and do
likewise.
We can do no less than our
level best to imitate the actions of those we know to have been good
role
models. It is by our actions that we
will be judged, and by that criterion, John Smith was an excellent
teacher.