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Appreciating Teachers

© Irene Taylor

Being a teacher is hard work! It is an often-thankless job that has implications far into the future. The lives teachers touch each day will grow to shape our tomorrows. In efforts to recognize the impact teachers have on all of us, many types of celebrations are held in schools throughout the world to honor and appreciate teachers for the invaluable work they do each day. In the spirit of Teacher Appreciation, I will be devoting my next two articles to the idea of thanking those who teach us.

Suite 101 will be holding a Teacher Appreciation Event during the month of May. Editors from many areas of Suite 101 have contributed articles on this topic. In this article I hope to set the stage for that event by giving a little of the history of Teacher Appreciation events, highlighting important educators and providing links to some interesting sites. Next month I will share two of my most cherished memories of being appreciated during my 25 year teaching career, along with ways you can honor your favorite teacher. Be sure to visit again in May and link to the many great articles found in the Suite 101 Teacher Appreciation Event.

Some History

"One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is the vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child." --Carl Jung

Those words speak of the need to appreciate our teachers. Both in the United States and in countries around the world, special days have been set aside to do just that. This year, May 9, 2000 will be National Teacher Day in the US. It is a day set aside for honoring teachers and recognizing the lasting contributions they make to our lives. National Teacher Day is celebrated on Tuesday of the first full week of May.

May 8-12, 2000 has been designated Teacher Appreciation Week by the National Parent Teacher Association, but its origins go back to 1944. An Arkansas teacher, Mrs. Mattye Whyte Woodridge, began corresponding with political and education leaders as early as 1944 about the need for a national day honoring teachers. One of the leaders she wrote to was Eleanor Roosevelt, who persuaded the 81st Congress to proclaim a National Teacher Day in 1953. In the late 1970s, the National Education Association lobbied Congress to create a national day celebrating teachers. Congress declared March 7, 1980 as National Teacher Day for that year only. The NEA and its affiliates continued to observe Teacher Day on the first Tuesday in March until 1985, when NEA and the National PTA established Teacher Appreciation Week as the first full week of May. The NEA Representative Assembly then voted to make the Tuesday of that week National Teacher Day. That date is celebrated each year in schools around the country.

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