Sometimes we can feel alone in education.
We might be the only one teaching in our classroom, the only one driving the bus, the only secretary in the front office, the only coach on the court.
This pandemic has made many of us feel more alone, as we cut back on time with family and friends to protect ourselves and others. Sometimes we have had to teach our students from a distance. We can’t high five or hug or have circle time in the mornings like we usually do. We can’t play together or learn together or practice together or eat together.
Some people seek to make us feel even more isolated by pitting teachers against parents and administrators against their communities. Divisive political talking points make us feel worn out in a time when we’re already tired. It’s disappointing. It’s demoralizing.
But this is what I see in our public schools: Adults doing every single thing they can to give our children the best education possible.
I’ve seen career educators mentoring new teachers who are starting their careers in the most chaotic time in memory.
I’ve seen school employees of every stripe reassuring one another and offering support, including literal shoulders to cry on.
Principals work as substitute teachers. Coaches drive bus routes. Teachers fill in for their sick colleagues to keep the school doors open.
The virus will not divide us. Politics will not divide us. School is about teamwork. It always has been, and it always will be.
So thank you to all the education employees who are still working in service of our children in spite of conditions that overwhelm us all.
You are not alone.
