Social networks are all the hype. Surely, that could go
without saying – but to what extent? It never ceases to amaze me what we learn
from sites like Facebook and Twitter. I mean, there are loads of problems with
them, and many people end up deleting their pages. But, for many, social
networks not only act as a place for interaction, but as a place for news as
well.
This “news” could be new pictures, personal videos, musical
discoveries, YouTube releases, or (even though this may seem crazy), it could
even be actual news worthy of reporting.
In this week’s blog, I chose to look at the rhetoric
displayed in a YouTube video that I was lucky enough to stumble upon on
Facebook. And I mean really lucky. The
kind of lucky that gets you excited about something on a much deeper level than
simply getting an easy topic for a school assignment.
This Def Poetry video, called “What Teachers Make” (by
Taylor Mali), is something that hits pretty close to home for me. My mom is a
single parent who works as a teacher – in a not exactly nice area. It is the same school that my sister and I
attended, and the same place where I fell in love with the profession.
In many ways, it makes sense for me to be a teacher. I love
people, don’t care about money, and think that learning for the sake of
learning and not grades is one of the most amazing things that someone can do.
To me, Mali does an incredible job with this poem because he
expresses the intangibles of satisfaction that being a teacher comes with. The
satisfaction of helping someone finally get it, and the drive the push the kids
who already do. He throws in the face of others the disappointment in his eyes
in those who only work for money, or a higher place in the societal hierarchy.
One of my favorite finds online ever, this video makes me so
incredibly proud. I realize that I have a long way to go to be able to boast
the same statements as Mali, but I hope that someday I’ll be able to.
I have actually seen this video before. My mother, who is also a teacher showed it to me once. Although the reasons for me seeing it were a little different. she felt I wasn't appreciating what a good teacher actually can do for their students and the sacrifices they make. It is really I opening. Even as the son of a teacher you don't really appreciate those who educate you. It also opened up my eyes to the sacrifices my mother has made for me. the time shes given to spend with us. I'm glad you showed this because I think it is something that we all should learn to appreciate.
ReplyDeletemy mother is also a teacher but this is the first time i've ever seen this video. I like how it focused so much on the inner rewards that people get from teaching and how it makes things like money feel so irrelevant compared to helping a child.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching this I immediately thought back to my high school German teacher. This whole video is exactly like the things she'd preach to us in class. She was the most impressive, influential, and inspiring teacher I've ever had. This video sums up her teaching philosophy so well it's so crazy. It makes me appreciate her that much more, and other teachers everywhere too for that matter. I really respect teachers and everything they do for their students.
ReplyDelete