When we returned to school this January, we had the honor to hear a presentation by the 2022 South Carolina Teacher of the Year, Ann Carter. It was extremely motivating and thought provoking. Her challenge to us as teachers was to be Gold Stars in our students’ lives.
The relationships that we make with our students can have a tremendous impact on their growth in the classroom, but it can also help to influence their lives on many different levels. We never know what a student is going through in their life prior to entering our classroom. We may be the only safe haven for them, or we may be the peace within the storm they are going through.
When Carter began speaking, she asked us to think about a teacher who had a great influence on our lives. The teachers who most obviously came to mind were not spectacular because of their teaching, but rather these teachers were special to us because of how they made us feel. Teachers who challenge us to become better people or support us in times of need are remembered more often than the lessons on their content. It’s true. These types of teachers humanize us. We are more than just a warm body in a seat. We are treated in such a way that we feel like we matter and can conquer the world.
Carter called these moments “gold stars.” She shared a story of how she managed to motivate her apathetic AP students by placing gold star stickers on their essays. The students were immediately upset because they did not know that there were gold stars on the line because had they known, they would have tried harder.
Whenever there are rewards on the line, students tend to push themselves harder for the reward. But how does this fit in with teachers?
As a teacher, I have often found that the students who work the hardest for me are the ones that I have managed to reach. For instance, the student who had Oppositional Defiance Disorder (ODD). He came into my class just wanting me to give him a reason to dislike him, but I refused to dominate him. I knew it would become a power struggle. Instead, he maintained his power while I maintained mine. I never challenged him. I made it his choice. Pretty soon, he had an “A” in my class. In fact, I was the only class where he actually completed the assignments. He was smart. He just needed to be given that “gold star.”
Gold star moments don’t have to be big extravagant displays. They can be simple moments where you take the time to pay attention and notice when you need to step in to offer help or maybe give space. Yes, some students require us to provide them with space. We don’t know what is going on at home or what happened that morning.
A former student shared a post of hers on Facebook not too long ago. She talked about having a night of no sleep after her parent made her get up in the middle of the night and rewash/wash dishes. She came to school tired with eyes red from no sleep. Her teachers jumped to the conclusion that she must have been doing drugs and sent her to the office to be interrogated. When she came to my classroom, she asked if I would let them write essays on “What I Wish My Teacher Knew.” I did this for them, and while the essays could be anonymous, some wrote their names. It changed my view of my students. You see, I took these essays home and read them one weekend and cried the whole time. Instead of students sitting in my classroom, I had broken children. Compassion became more important than a formative assessment. How can you teach a child who is depressed, hungry, stressed…
From this moment on, I prayed daily for God to give me the right words to say and to be observant to what was needed. Did I need to encourage a student? Did I have a student who just needed to have someone to vent to without judgement or punishment? When something happened in the world, did I need to teach, or did I need to give them an opportunity to talk about it?
I know that as a teacher it is too easy to sweep things under the rug and move on; however, we can make positive changes by being receptive to what is happening with our students. Students don’t always misbehave because they are bad children. Sometimes, there are extraneous circumstances that cause that one student to act out in class or for another to be sleepy and withdrawn. By being a gold star teacher, we can reach our students, impact their education, and make a difference in their lives.
