Teachers

This is a very sensitive subject as I know many teachers, not only in my family, but among our friends also. Teachers do not get enough credit for what they do each day! I cannot imagine how hard it is to teach some children that do not have supportive parents to continue the teaching at home...it's a battle most teachers face to help these kids achieve all they can. I feel teachers have a very important role in a child's school years, as I continue to think back to many of my teachers that made a difference in my life. These same children are going to hopefully have those same feelings towards the teachers they have now! Once again, I think teachers are wonderful and very dedicated!
Now, on the other hand...like I said, I know of many teachers in our family and friends, and the majority really seem to enjoy the career they chose. They look forward to seeing the children learn and progress and seem to value their position, make us aware of their children's accomplishments (that's for you, Brenda, for all the hardwork you put in with those kids this year and their recent test results show that!). Then there are a few that frequently complain about the kids they teach, or the fact they even have to go to work...or that they didn't get a snow day like they were hoping for and so on. When I see or hear these comments, it makes me sad for them that they must not enjoy the career they once thought they would. Please don't confuse this with those people that may just complain in general about funding for the school, or how a principal won't listen to them, etc. Those are validated complaints that most people have at their jobs at some point or another. I am talking about those teachers that just don't seem to enjoy what they do and express negative thoughts frequently about their position.
If you would have asked me a year ago how I felt when I would hear these comments, I probably wouldn't have cared either way. But now that I am a parent of a school-ager, I am concerned for my child as I personally do not want my child in a room with a teacher that doesn't want to be there. How much can a child learn if their own teacher doesn't even want to be there? Are these negative feelings being portrayed to those students? I expect Brycen's teachers to care about what they do and look forward to seeing him every day.
Once again, I do not know what it is like to be a teacher and what they go through, but I do know what it is like to be a parent. I also know what it is like to be in a job that I do not care for (obviously I am not there anymore) and I definitely know what it is like to be in a job that I take pride in and love. Obviously with the way things are, it may not be feasible for people to just quit a job that they are unhappy with due to finances, but I really think these people need to make the best out of the job they are in...or need to be at least looking for something they would be happy with doing.
I don't want to seem like I am criticizing those that make these comments or to start a debate on how it feels to be a teacher (see above), but I really want those teachers to know how it feels to hear those things from the parent's point of view. Teachers are not the only ones that this applies to obviously...but this was just the example that keeps coming up in my life. Please, please, please take pride in the job you do as teachers, because only the most dedicated and patient people can be a teacher, and take pride in those little faces you see each day...don't consider teaching a hinderance or negative in your life, because once again, teachers are a huge part of a child's life and learning!