SEVERAL days ago, I mentioned in a post of watching the 2006 television film
“The Triumph – The Ron Clark Story”.
The film reminded me of the important task
that teachers take on to educate our children.
In many cases, they have to use a lot of
creativity and innovation to first draw the attention and interest of students
who are uninterested and unmotivated in class.
That was the challenge that the American
teacher, Ron Clark, had when he left his school of four years in Snowden, North
Carolina, to go to Harlem, New York City.
Photo: Ron Clark. - Picture
by SHEREE SEGURA
Clark had a unique ability – he knew how to
motivate students to get them to better their test scores.
In Snowden, in his four years there, his
class of Grade 3 students was placed top in the county for four years in a row.
But he wanted more challenges – he did not
want to settle on his successes where he was.
His parents did not want him to go but
he told them: “I love it here but I’ve got to move on, Mum.
“New York public schools are desperate
for good teachers. “Newspapers say they are begging for them.”
He then turned to his father and said:
“Dad, every year I tell my students to go for what they want in life. Dream big
– take risks.
“It’s about time I started living up to
my words. I am going to miss you guys but I’ve got to go.”
The mother said: “We
understand sweety. Bye.”
How Clark managed to turn
around a group of students in the lowest placed class of unfocused, troublesome
fifth-graders in a school in Harlem to beat the other three classes in the school
and having all the students in class passing is the theme of the movie.
One of his students, a
girl, (whose mother did not have the faintest idea about her academic abilities)
scored perfect scores in English and Maths, a feat that no other student in the
whole New York district accomplished.
Since 2006, Clark has
been running his own school The Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia.
I take this opportunity
to thank all the teachers who have been giving their best in past years to educate
the children of this world. Without you and your dedication, there is no future
- of the children and of our nations.
Thank you and we wish
you all the best in 2014.
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