The Impact of Good and Bad Teachers

Who was your favorite teacher at school, and why?

For me, it was Mrs. Robinson in Kings Manor Secondary school in Middlesbrough, in the North East of England.

You see, I was a good student, but math was always a struggle for me. I was naturally talented in the humanities, and so I excelled in subjects like English and History with very little effort, but math was always my Achilles’ heel. The two years I was in Mrs. Robinson’s class were the only two years that I excelled in math. Because she believed in me, I believed in myself. She taught explicitly with lots of practice and drills. If there was one class in which I was guaranteed homework, it was her class, but that consistent practice is what helped me to finally understand math concepts that had always seemed nonsensical to my right-brained creative self. She celebrated my victories, and I rose to the top of her class. For the first time ever, my report card reflected “A”s in math.

In fact, I did so well in her class that the following year, I was moved up to the higher-level math class. I remember that she had a part to play in advocating for this vertical move and promotion. As a teacher, I now understand this, and I have done the same for many talented and/or hardworking students who needed to be challenged with more advanced material.

Unfortunately, my new math class was full of White and Asian males who were very advanced and talented in math, and my new teacher (a white male) seemed to have zero interest in helping me (a female and Black student) to rise to their level. I was pretty much ignored for the two years I was in that class, and I barely kept my head above water. In fact, the only reason I passed my GCSE math exam was because I explained the situation to my dad and begged him to pay for a tutor to help me after school, which he did. But what would I have done if we couldn’t afford the extra tutoring? It’s sad to say that I would have been better off staying in Mrs. Robinson’s intermediate class for the next two years, not because I didn’t have the ability to keep up in the advanced class, but because my new teacher could not be bothered to help me keep up. The irony was that Mrs. Robinson’s intermediate math class was very large and the kids were loud, but I still felt seen and I was able to learn so much. In comparison, my new, higher-level class was very small. After fifteen years of experience in the classroom, I realize that, because of the smaller class size, it would have been very easy for him to differentiate his instruction to include me in his class, but he chose to ignore me instead.

You see, teachers can have a huge and long-lasting impact on students. What we say and don’t say, what we do and don’t do, and the way we treat our students can either help to propel them into success or discouragement. Mrs. Robinson propelled me into the former; my new teacher condemned me to the latter.

As a teacher, I have always sought to be a Mrs. Robinson. I even modeled my own teaching style after hers. Students always complained that they did SOOOOOOOOOOO MUUUCCCHHH WOOORRRKKK in my class, but they also acknowledged that they learned a lot and enjoyed the class. “You made English fun!” “We laughed a lot in here!” “You gave us a lot of work, but I learned so much!” “My kid has always hated English, but this year he loves it!” are common refrains I have heard over the years that always encouraged me and let me know I was on the right track.

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On episode seven of the Education Today Podcast, I spoke with Clarey Walker about how his village of teachers, family members, churches, and neighbors helped him to go from his humble beginnings in Gainesville, FL, to now working in the Pentagon as part of our intelligence community. And he is very explicit in stating that he owes a debt of gratitude to the teachers who believed in him and pushed him to aim high; and the family members, neighbors, and churches who provided funding and helped him find scholarships that enabled him to attend field trips and student conferences in DC that helped to propel him to where he is today. He is even still in touch with a certain teacher (His own Mrs. Robinson) who has been in his life since 9th grade and has been fundamental in encouraging him to strive for greatness.

And now he’s giving back to the community that gave so much to him by creating a leadership academy program and scholarship for students in his former high school in Gainesville, Florida. You can hear the full episode here: https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/KO3Iffovfyb