Reagan

With the recent passing of former First Lady, Nancy Reagan, and with a Presidential election looming (where we wish we could find another Ronald Reagan), I thought about the quote below. I'm not sure when Reagan said this (heck, I'm not even sure he really said it at all), but it got me thinking about teaching. There seems to be this mentality in the field of education that we can absolutely help every child in every way possible. When we (as teachers) see one of students that has gone down the wrong path, we always say the same thing. "We can't save 'em all!". That's not to say we don't try to help every child in every possible way (we do!), but if a teacher believes he/she can fix and/or save every child that walks through the door, they will drive themselves crazy and exhaust themselves in vain. The job of a teacher is to give 100% effort every day and to do everything in his/her power to steer the child in the right direction and to give them the tools necessary to be successful in life. The rest is up to the child and the decisions he or she makes as they grow older. As for me, I will do my best today (and every day) to help the children in my classroom.