10-second review: The 2009 Presidential Address delivered at the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) annual convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on November 22, 2009 by Kylene Beers.
Title: “Sailing Over the Edge: Navigating the Uncharted Waters of A World Gone Flat.” Kylene Beers. Research in the Teaching of English (February 2010), 340-352.
Quote: “In public schools, teachers take students as they are, respect all as they are, and promise to teach all, as they are. It might be the plaque on the Statue of Liberty that says, ‘Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.’ But it is public schools that live that message daily.”
Quote: “…we must remember that the best teachers are thoughtful, creative, independent thinkers—not passive, restrained script followers; the best teachers teach from a cornucopia of pedagogy, choosing the right instructional strategy for each student; the best teachers value the probing question from the curious—even angry—student far more than the right answer from the passive one. The best teachers demand that each child receive the best education, and the best teachers have never needed a mandate to leave no child behind. The best teachers, like good leaders, have the courage to overcome obstacles, the courage to sail into the unknown….”
Comment: A bit idealistic, I guess, but worth reminding ourselves why we are teachers. RayS.
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