Most important teacher/most mindblowing lesson

musicismylife78musicismylife78 Posts: 6,116
edited July 2008 in All Encompassing Trip
I was lucky enough to have teacher all my school years who were influential.

However. Most likely the most impressive lesson by a teacher ever was this doozy:

It was a drama teacher. First and only drama teacher I ever had. First day of class she introduces herself and has everyone get out multiple sheets of paper. We spend the whole 80 minute period, writing. She has us write down our life story. Our interests. Our hobbies. Our passions. About family, about friends. About what makes us tick, what makes us who we are. We write down our future plans. We write down our predictions for what we will be our professions.

The end of the class brought alot of cramped hands, but what the teacher did next will always haunt me.

She gathered all the papers, all our writings, that we spent 80 minutes on. And she tore them up. She then threw them in the garbage, and walked out. The class was silent. She didnt say a word. She just took off.

I cant remember if it was a few minutes later, or the next day, but she explained, that "thats what it feels like to not have a voice, to not be heard". Cant say i really enjoyed the class overall, but how could a class possibly live up to THAT cant of anticipation, after something like that? The point and lesson is something I will carry to my dying day

Quite an amazing lesson.
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • I don't have anything as specific as one lesson to talk about, but I was lucky enough to have two great teachers.

    The first was my History teacher for 3 years, Mr Hare. He was by far the funniest, most charismatic, and most intelligent teacher I've ever had. Over the course of the 3 years, he hardly ever touched the textbook - he'd take a quick look at whatever topic we were due to cover, and then just talk, and talk, and joke, and talk. He is single-handedly responsible for my love of history.

    The second, and probably more important, was my English teacher for 4 years, Ms Flynn. She always - always - pushed me to be as creative as possible. She never cared if I didn't have the homework questions answered, as long as I could bullshit a good answer in class. She always marked my essays really, really critically, to push me to writing the best stuff I could.
    Smokey Robinson constantly looks like he's trying to act natural after being accused of farting.
  • The first story was pretty sad. I feel for teachers sometimes.

    I always remember playing cricket in maths class. On more than one occasion. hahahaha
  • Jeremy1012Jeremy1012 Posts: 7,170
    I had two totally brilliant teachers for A-levels. My history teacher was just the most sound guy in the world. The first teacher I ever had who TRULY treated his pupils with respect. He didn't talk to us like he was better than us but he also didn't go to the other extreme of trying to be "down with the youth", he just treated us like adults. He never marked homework, we just gave feedback on it in lessons so it was easy not to do it and just bullshit. He ALWAYS seemed to know though and he would ask you and generally people told him the truth and he never raised his voice once, he just told us calmly and politely to leave the room and allow him to devote his time to people who wanted to work. He was the coolest guy. Used to refer to me in the third-person when going over essays with me: "Ok... you know I'm a big fan of Jamie's writing, BIG fan ok? It reads like a dream ok? It's a bit light on the historical analysis though. I love Jamie's writing, you know that, but I can't grade this higher than a C... I mean, I want to... and it's probably only really worth a D but I can't go that low... I mean, it was really enjoyable to read yeah? It just had no history in it, did it Jamie? I mean it's largely bullshit isn't it? Well-written bullshit, but ultimately bullshit right? I'm going to give you a B". :D The guy was a legend.

    The other one was my english lit teacher. I was always the man at english. Shit at EVERYTHING else but totally owned English from the age of around 13 onwards. This guy loved Dylan, Classical music, introduced me to foreign cinema. We would talk shit about what Bob Dylan's best album was for an entire double period. Other students actually walked out. He lent me Ingmar Bergman and Pedro Almodovar films, wrote me the most ass-kissing personal statement for university ever and was generally a decent guy. I used to give him a lot of shit about the fact that he didn't watch Miles Davis at the Isle of Wight in 1970 and that he hated jazz but the guy was THERE and saw Hendrix and Jim Morrison. Coolest teacher ever.
    "I remember one night at Muzdalifa with nothing but the sky overhead, I lay awake amid sleeping Muslim brothers and I learned that pilgrims from every land — every colour, and class, and rank; high officials and the beggar alike — all snored in the same language"
  • AmentsChickAmentsChick Posts: 6,969
    One word...

    Ishmael
    This is the greatest band in the world -- Ben Harper

  • One word...

    Ishmael
    Haha, well said. I read that for the second time just the other week, and it opened my eyes all over again, to things I never even noticed the first time through. Incredible book.
    Smokey Robinson constantly looks like he's trying to act natural after being accused of farting.
  • musicismylife78musicismylife78 Posts: 6,116
    The first story was pretty sad. I feel for teachers sometimes.

    I always remember playing cricket in maths class. On more than one occasion. hahahaha


    if your talking about my post, it wasnt sad. The teacher wasnt upset. She didnt do it cause she was pissed at us. She knew full well what the hell she was doing. She planned it out from the minute we walked into class.

    The point wasnt that she was upset or angry at us, the point was, we felt silenced, and not heard, which was her whole MO
  • Kilgore_TroutKilgore_Trout Posts: 7,334
    I was lucky enough to have teacher all my school years who were influential.

    However. Most likely the most impressive lesson by a teacher ever was this doozy:

    It was a drama teacher. First and only drama teacher I ever had. First day of class she introduces herself and has everyone get out multiple sheets of paper. We spend the whole 80 minute period, writing. She has us write down our life story. Our interests. Our hobbies. Our passions. About family, about friends. About what makes us tick, what makes us who we are. We write down our future plans. We write down our predictions for what we will be our professions.

    The end of the class brought alot of cramped hands, but what the teacher did next will always haunt me.

    She gathered all the papers, all our writings, that we spent 80 minutes on. And she tore them up. She then threw them in the garbage, and walked out. The class was silent. She didnt say a word. She just took off.

    I cant remember if it was a few minutes later, or the next day, but she explained, that "thats what it feels like to not have a voice, to not be heard". Cant say i really enjoyed the class overall, but how could a class possibly live up to THAT cant of anticipation, after something like that? The point and lesson is something I will carry to my dying day

    Quite an amazing lesson.
    great lesson... might have to steal that one for myself when i start teaching... im an art teacher (or will be) so id say it applies quite well... all about finding your voice
    "Senza speme vivemo in disio"

    http://seanbriceart.com/
  • catefrancescatefrances Posts: 29,003
    my children are my most important teachers. they teach me patience, humility and the importance of just being there. :)
    hear my name
    take a good look
    this could be the day
    hold my hand
    lie beside me
    i just need to say
  • chadwickchadwick up my ass Posts: 21,157
    Her name was Sylvia
    She taught well

    I had this crush on her.
    She was the most important teacher in the entire universe.
    Why you may ask...

    Because she taught my pants how awesome it was to be a boy with an erection that lasted days and weeks at a time. The word swollen comes to mind. To you Sylvia...a hug of thanks..have a nice day.
    for poetry through the ceiling. ISBN: 1 4241 8840 7

    "Hear me, my chiefs!
    I am tired; my heart is
    sick and sad. From where
    the sun stands I will fight
    no more forever."

    Chief Joseph - Nez Perce
  • ByrnzieByrnzie Posts: 21,037
    I was lucky enough to have teacher all my school years who were influential.

    However. Most likely the most impressive lesson by a teacher ever was this doozy:

    It was a drama teacher. First and only drama teacher I ever had. First day of class she introduces herself and has everyone get out multiple sheets of paper. We spend the whole 80 minute period, writing. She has us write down our life story. Our interests. Our hobbies. Our passions. About family, about friends. About what makes us tick, what makes us who we are. We write down our future plans. We write down our predictions for what we will be our professions.

    The end of the class brought alot of cramped hands, but what the teacher did next will always haunt me.

    She gathered all the papers, all our writings, that we spent 80 minutes on. And she tore them up. She then threw them in the garbage, and walked out. The class was silent. She didnt say a word. She just took off.

    I cant remember if it was a few minutes later, or the next day, but she explained, that "thats what it feels like to not have a voice, to not be heard". Cant say i really enjoyed the class overall, but how could a class possibly live up to THAT cant of anticipation, after something like that? The point and lesson is something I will carry to my dying day

    Quite an amazing lesson.

    I like this story a lot.
  • ByrnzieByrnzie Posts: 21,037
    Jeremy1012 wrote:
    I had two totally brilliant teachers for A-levels. My history teacher was just the most sound guy in the world. The first teacher I ever had who TRULY treated his pupils with respect. He didn't talk to us like he was better than us but he also didn't go to the other extreme of trying to be "down with the youth", he just treated us like adults. He never marked homework, we just gave feedback on it in lessons so it was easy not to do it and just bullshit. He ALWAYS seemed to know though and he would ask you and generally people told him the truth and he never raised his voice once, he just told us calmly and politely to leave the room and allow him to devote his time to people who wanted to work. He was the coolest guy. Used to refer to me in the third-person when going over essays with me: "Ok... you know I'm a big fan of Jamie's writing, BIG fan ok? It reads like a dream ok? It's a bit light on the historical analysis though. I love Jamie's writing, you know that, but I can't grade this higher than a C... I mean, I want to... and it's probably only really worth a D but I can't go that low... I mean, it was really enjoyable to read yeah? It just had no history in it, did it Jamie? I mean it's largely bullshit isn't it? Well-written bullshit, but ultimately bullshit right? I'm going to give you a B". :D The guy was a legend.

    The other one was my english lit teacher. I was always the man at english. Shit at EVERYTHING else but totally owned English from the age of around 13 onwards. This guy loved Dylan, Classical music, introduced me to foreign cinema. We would talk shit about what Bob Dylan's best album was for an entire double period. Other students actually walked out. He lent me Ingmar Bergman and Pedro Almodovar films, wrote me the most ass-kissing personal statement for university ever and was generally a decent guy. I used to give him a lot of shit about the fact that he didn't watch Miles Davis at the Isle of Wight in 1970 and that he hated jazz but the guy was THERE and saw Hendrix and Jim Morrison. Coolest teacher ever.

    These two stories are almost identical to my own memories of what turned me onto learning. Until my history class at college I hadn't really given two shits about learning anything at school. My history teacher sounds very much like yours. He was the first teacher that got me interested in learning the subject. He was quite laid back and treated us like adults. He earned my respect.
    And at school I also 'owned' my English class, right back from primary school I always came top on any English spelling test e.t.c. My teacher at secondary school used to lend me books and I'd lend her books in return. She lent me Michael Herr's 'Dispatches' and I lent her 'a Rumour of War' by Phillip Caputo. I used to sit in her office chewing the fat. She knew I was trouble and that I couldn't take school seriously, but she liked me anyway.

    Edit: I also remember that I was very chummy with the deputy headmaster. I used to go and sit in his office some lunch times and just chat with him. Only because he singled me out one day in a lesson that he stood in for and spoke to me like an adult and told me I was intelligent. I think he was the first person to ever show me any respect.
    It's funny to look back and remember that some days I'd be in the headmasters office next door being balled out for disrupting a class and making the teacher cry, or some such shit, and the next day I'd be sitting in the room opposite having cool, laid back discussions with his deputy head.
  • IndianSummerIndianSummer Posts: 854
    chadwick wrote:
    Her name was Sylvia
    She taught well

    I had this crush on her.
    She was the most important teacher in the entire universe.
    Why you may ask...

    Because she taught my pants how awesome it was to be a boy with an erection that lasted days and weeks at a time. The word swollen comes to mind. To you Sylvia...a hug of thanks..have a nice day.
    very nice. and innocent. i hope you find your Sylvia again someday soon.
    I have faced it, A life wasted...

    Take my hand, my child of love
    Come step inside my tears
    Swim the magic ocean,
    I've been crying all these years
  • prismprism Posts: 2,440
    i never saw him or heard him speak a lesson or even read anything he wrote. but the lessons this teacher has taught me are simple yet go beyond mindblowing. those are that this life is fragile, beautiful, fateful, often times funny and it's not to be taken for granted. that one can't worry about the little stuff, it's not about the 'what if's' but it's all about the 'what now's'


    for what this teacher has given me there are no words that can express my thanks....
    *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
    angels share laughter
    *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
  • IndianSummerIndianSummer Posts: 854
    chadwick wrote:
    Her name was Sylvia
    She taught well

    I had this crush on her.
    She was the most important teacher in the entire universe.
    Why you may ask...

    Because she taught my pants how awesome it was to be a boy with an erection that lasted days and weeks at a time. The word swollen comes to mind. To you Sylvia...a hug of thanks..have a nice day.
    how old were you when this happened
    I have faced it, A life wasted...

    Take my hand, my child of love
    Come step inside my tears
    Swim the magic ocean,
    I've been crying all these years
  • CityMouseCityMouse Posts: 1,010
    I was lucky enough to have teacher all my school years who were influential.

    However. Most likely the most impressive lesson by a teacher ever was this doozy:

    It was a drama teacher. First and only drama teacher I ever had. First day of class she introduces herself and has everyone get out multiple sheets of paper. We spend the whole 80 minute period, writing. She has us write down our life story. Our interests. Our hobbies. Our passions. About family, about friends. About what makes us tick, what makes us who we are. We write down our future plans. We write down our predictions for what we will be our professions.

    The end of the class brought alot of cramped hands, but what the teacher did next will always haunt me.

    She gathered all the papers, all our writings, that we spent 80 minutes on. And she tore them up. She then threw them in the garbage, and walked out. The class was silent. She didnt say a word. She just took off.

    I cant remember if it was a few minutes later, or the next day, but she explained, that "thats what it feels like to not have a voice, to not be heard". Cant say i really enjoyed the class overall, but how could a class possibly live up to THAT cant of anticipation, after something like that? The point and lesson is something I will carry to my dying day

    Quite an amazing lesson.

    Sounds a lot like a professor I had in college- really difficult subject, it's the week of the final, we're all up all night studying for this final, the prof is hosting all these study sessions that were going for hours at a time, and then we show up for the final and he's 20, 30 minutes late. and we're like "where is he???" He finally waltzes in and starts handing us little cards. each card has the grade we have in the class so far. then he says "ok, if you don't want to take the final you can go now. have a good break."
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