341/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. In teacher world, the normality is to teach other people’s children. People that you don’t know. However, sometimes you end up teaching people you know through friendships or familial relationships. For me, that hasn’t really ever happened except very early in my career, I substitute taught (one of only two times in my life) and ended up with my cousin and his friends in my class. What does happen for me – quite often – is that my teacher friends have ended up teaching my children. Many of them saw them as babies and then ended up having them in their classroom. Yes, it’s awkward for my kids, my friends and me but all parties have gotten used to it. Ornella is one of these teacher friends who ended up teaching my daughter – the daughter that she saw me bring to Burnett when we both taught together. Ornella ended up being her counsellor in high school and I am so, so very glad that that ended up happening. My daughter had a great tight-knit group of friends in elementary school. The graduating grade 7 class went on to two different high schools – 80% to Steveston and 20% to McMath (at that time, it has reversed the other way around for my son seven years later). Unfortunately for my daughter, her entire friendship group ended up at Steveston and she was lone warrior to battle McMath and what a battle it became because of the mean girls who accompanied her from Westwind. She wanted to transfer to the school I taught at and I entertained those notions until Ornella phones me and gave me friend to friend, parent to parent and counsellor to parent advice which was to stop giving her an out. She may struggle that first year but Ornella would be there for her to guide her and get her in the right classes. I remember my daughter going to see Ornella to figure things out and I felt at ease to know that I had a friend in my corner to help my child out. Besides being an advocate for my daughter, Ornella and I have a good friendship. Yes, we haven’t seen each other in ages (which will be remedied this weekend) but oh the laughs and stories we share when we do get together – she remembers every Randy-ism that has taken place and sadly there have been many and I’m sure I will be hearing about a few this weekend but I look forward to it because it comes from a place of friendship. Thank you Ornella for being there for my daughter and for being an awesome friend to me!!
Category: teacher
June 29 – McNair
340/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. I didn’t think this group was going to make the cut but it has. Last night was the McNair staff year end windup party and it was epic! I realized as I was socializing that I enjoy these people and that I have made quite a few friends over the last four years and I didn’t think I was going to when I first started. My initial two years were basically hell but I am also to blame as I believe I made it a self-fulfilling prophecy in that I was not going to like McNair and I made it happen. I also tried to apply out of the school to other jobs at other schools but each time I did, someone who was laid off got top priority for the jobs I wanted. This was the first year that I didn’t apply for any job and that is when I realized that I actually like it here. Yes, the students at this school have a lot to do with it but the social being that is me thrives on the relationships and I’ve built and I’ve built quite a few good ones with co-workers here (sadly having to say goodbye to a few of them today as they are leaving the school through no choice of their own). To my colleagues and friends at McNair, thank you for accepting me into the school when I really didn’t accept myself here and for bearing with me until I made McNair my home. I look forward to working with my McNair buddies for years to come – okay, six hopefully before I retire! 😉 In your honour, I will be sipping many a drink on a patio as summer is officially here!
June 28 – i learned from the best
339/365 people to thank who have had an impact on me. I’m going to say it – basically, only one or two classes in all my seven years of university at UBC enrolled in the Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Education and Master of Education degrees actually taught me anything worthwhile. I can’t even remember the countless courses I had to take for the sake of having to take them – basically jumping through the hoops in order to get my required degree – and most of them did not matter and taught me very little. Yes, some will argue that the courses and university education in general “taught” me how to think. No, I knew how to think – that’s how I got into university in the first place. So I go back to my belief that very little of the education there was of value to me personally. I had some great professors and Kimberly Schonert-Reichl is in the top 5, if not in the top 3. I had to take several electives during my Masters degree and I decided to take her course under Educational and Counseling Psychology – it was Social Emotional Learning in Adolescents (or some theme around that). I thought that yet again, this would be another filler course that I just had to get through and complete what was required of me but as I’m sure you can guess, that was not the case. Kimberly was very easy going and her nurturing personality came out in class. Different people brought in food to the class weekly to share while the lecture was going on – an idea that I “borrowed” from her when I was teaching at UBC myself. She was heavily involved with the Roots of Empathy program which she described during lectures and imagine my surprise when I learned that my son who was in Grade 1 at the time was involved in said program in his classroom! She allowed digression from the course syllabus as long as the work challenged and inspired us. I ended up completing an intensive, fact-filled research paper on Relational Aggression (basically Mean Girls) to better understand what my grade 8 daughter was going through and to also relate to the high school girls I taught. This was the first assignment in all of my university career that I thoroughly enjoyed completing. After reading it, she suggested that I get it published but I was too nervous to even entertain the thought; however, I have shared the paper with several colleagues and a few of my students. I want to thank Kimberly for being such a wonderful educator who not only inspired me with the way she taught but also allowed me to get interested in what it was she was teaching which benefited me on a personal level. How I wished all my professors were like you!
June 27 – Burnett
338/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. If you’ve read my Facebook posts in the last week, you no doubt have heard that I finally have consciously decided that I belong at the school I have been teaching at for the past four years – in fact, I had not unpacked my boxes in all those years on some subconscious hope of perhaps moving back longing for my old school – Burnett. It was not the students, it was not the building, it was not the teaching load – it was the people I worked with at Burnett. I remember upon leaving to teach at UBC (7 years ago) that I made a goodbye speech and in it, I was able to talk about a significant event that I had with each and every staff member from the janitor to the principal, from the secretary to the teaching assistant, from the teachers to the business assistant – that’s how involved I was with the social aspect and making connections with all of my co-workers. Of course, I didn’t know everyone on a deep personal level but I did know many and I valued that. Tonight, was a Burnett year end party and I was invited as I was and will always be (according to the hostess) a Burnetter at heart. I was excited and as soon as I got there, instantly old friendships were rekindled and current ones were tended to. I missed talking to my friends but I also realized that I have moved on of course physically but more importantly psychologically – the unpacking of the boxes was both literal and metaphorical. Yes, Burnett was my first real home for sixteen teaching years as I was only in Vancouver for two years (at a different high school each year) but I am no longer a part of the current Burnett. That doesn’t mean that I no longer associate with the school but now I accept and associate with the Burnett staff but belong at McNair – that’s where I am supposed to be. Tonight’s party revealed that Burnett had an amazing staff that I worked with over my career there and I am very grateful for sharing the space with such awesome people and want to thank everyone who made my time there enjoyable and I am so glad that I still keep in touch with so many of you – you made me that much of a better teacher! I do the Breaker Wave in your honour!
June 23 – u knew what was right for me
334/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. Some days I have no clue who I am going to write about and then all of a sudden it just dawns on me because of a thought or an interaction. Tonight, it was the latter – I was invited to a Vancouver Business Educations Teachers BBQ and I decided to attend. Yes, I teach in Richmond but the organizers remember me because my practicum and first two years of full-time teaching were in Vancouver way back in the early 90s. They also extend the invite to me as I was at most of the Vancouver high schools supervising student teachers when I had my gig at UBC. As I was sipping my big ass red solo cup of wine, in walked Shamim. I had totally forgotten about Shamim up until today. She was paramount in my decision to take a job in Richmond as a teacher. After my practicum in 1991 at Tupper in Vancouver, I ended up with two year long jobs in Vancouver at Britannia and Templeton. Although they were full-time, I did not have a continuing contract. I applied in 1993 for a job in Vancouver at David Thompson and through a series of circumstances, a job opportunity at Burnett in Richmond. I ended up with full time continuing contract job offers from both districts. This was unheard of (I was told). I was then given offers from both districts in terms of crediting me seniority if I took a position with their respective districts. My heart was set on taking the job in Vancouver. I phoned up Shamim, who was at the school and who had met me earlier. Small world in that I would either end up working with her at David Thompson or her husband Mike at Burnett!! She put it in the easiest terms possible: although, she and the staff would love to work with me in Vancouver at David Thompson, I lived in Richmond and the school was minutes away from home and I would be doing this job for a lifetime and needed to be close to home and that I needed to take the job away from where I was comfortable. I 100% thought she would have said to come to David Thompson and had that mind-set but after her talk, I took a lot of time to rethink my decision and well of course, I heeded her advice and the rest is history. I know I made the right decision but I’m so glad that Shamim was there to steer me in the right direction because my ship was stalled! I need people to tell me what to do and I so needed Shamim. I love teaching in Richmond and I’m so glad that Shamim didn’t spare my feelings and told me exactly what to do. Although I thanked you in person this afternoon, I need to thank you digitally so all know that you had a big part in me being the teacher I am in Richmond!! Kudos to you for knowing me better than I knew myself ; )
June 21 – one awesome student teacher
332/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. As I’ve said on a couple of occasions, one of the greatest professional development opportunities that I have ever had as a teacher is when I was seconded by UBC as Adjunct Teaching Professor. I taught student teachers how to teach but I got to learn at the same time. My learning took place when I got to be in their classes to watch them teach. First year was pretty damn easy as I was tasked with teaching and observing only Business Education teachers and my degree was in Commerce and I had taught, with the exception of Accounting, all the businesses classes under our huge curricular umbrella. Second year, I was asked to – okay, directed to – observe Social Studies teachers as I also taught Law and Psychology. I didn’t see any similarities with those subjects and Geography and History or junior Socials but UBC did. I ended up being in Nikki’s class and faked my knowledge for the first few beginning classes but then soon realized that the subject matter was secondary to Nikki’s actual teaching. I didn’t realize that in my first year but in that second year watching Nikki, I definitely knew that what you are teaching takes backseat to how you are teaching. Nikki rocked it. I couldn’t believe how inventive she was – yes, I have “stolen” a few of her methodologies and have been employing them in my classes today. Her enthusiasm for teaching and her wanting to learn from me for teaching ideas was refreshing. We had some great conversations after her classes and I had to choose her as one of the top Student Teachers when it came to awards time because plain and simple, she just blew it out of the park. I can say that there were a few who were in the program just going through the motions to get their degree and weren’t really into teaching for the sake of teaching but here was Nikki who reaffirmed in me that this is what teaching was – dare I say that I saw myself during my practicum year in Nikki. Thank you Nikki for being one of those student teachers who reinvigorated an old-timer in his career and for allowing me to see that there are young, passionate teachers out there and when I have to pass over the baton, knowing that there are the likes of you coming into the profession! Haven’t talked to you recently but so hope some district has scooped you up – here’s to you!!
June 20 – 12s
331/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. So here we are at the end of another school year. Sadly, they are going way too fast and becoming like blurs which means I’m aging real fast (only 6 years away from retiring full pension – yikes!!). The thing that keeps me going though is the grade 12s that I teach. I love having intelligent, insightful conversations for the most part and I also love the fact that they get my sense of humour and I absolutely love pushing the educational envelope and they love ripping it open to get at the content. I give props to my elementary comrades – I could never do that job. First of all, I don’t like being touched without my consent – thus, having all these young hands pulling and prodding me would drive me crazy and second and more importantly, my sarcasm would be wasted on them and of course they would go home crying and I’d be fired 😉 Now these grade 12s – they amaze me with their talent and knowledge and insight. I mean this year I taught a guy who was a wicked videographer, a guy who just said it like it was, the girl who became the second person ever to score 100% on the psych final paper, the girl who was the psyvivor winner who played it amazingly well, the braniac accounting student…the list goes on and they were all in grade 12. Each and every year, I am inspired and my love for teaching increases that much so. I am already looking forward to next year’s crop of grade 12s and what they will bring to my classes as I have taught several of them in junior grades. Yes, I have won a lottery in life to be able to wake up every day and go to work in a job that I absolutely love and a big part of that is the Grade 12s that I get to work with! Happy grad to this year’s crop, and happy lives to my former Grade 12s and I can’t wait to work with my future Grade 12s! I throw my proverbial grad cap in the air in your honour!
June 5 – Mr Singh
316/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. Indian role model growing up? Not until late elementary school. There he was – Mr George Singh. Indian. Male. Teaching grade 7. Thompson elementary – my school. I was intimidated and in awe at the same time. I had never seen “myself” anywhere but in blue collar labour jobs. Here was an Indian man. Well groomed. Articulate. I never spoke to him once. He transferred to the job while I was either in grade 5 or 6. Once he made a comment about asking about my dad – and I wasn’t too sure what that was about and thus I kept my distance. I wanted to and also not to be in his grade 7 class. I did not end up being in his class. Towards the middle of grade 7, my mom asked me if I knew of a Mr. Singh at the school? She then informed me that he was my dad’s cousin!! What?! Extended family and we only saw that family at weddings or events on my dad’s side (which was rare). I wanted to know how she knew that he was at my school and she told me that she had seen him and he mentioned me?! Although he went by Mr Singh (the traditional Indian Sikh middle name), he was actually George Singh Sangha and upon realizing my (and my sister’s) last name and quick office sleuthing realized who we were. He wasn’t aware of my dad’s mental condition and thus when he asked about him, he wanted to spark a conversation which I shied away from. As the years passed on, I would see him occasionally at family functions and we chatted several times. It was easier being an adult. He had known that I had also become a teacher and he told me that he was proud of me (and secretly that made me happy). So here we are several years later and my daughter is in grade 5 at Westwind Elementary. She comes home to mention that there’s also a “new” older Indian grade 7 teacher! Mr Singh!! Uhm wow! I happen to be at her school to pick her up and who finds me and engages me in a conversation and also mentions his sleuthing in regards to another Sangha – imagine his surprise when the parent on the file was me! : ) I’m so very glad that Mr. Singh served as a role model that I believe influenced me on some subconscious level – I mean look at my career choice. I am also glad that I was able to express my gratitude to him in person at a wedding reception telling him of how great it was to have him as a non-traditional role model in the late 70s – and perhaps again on some subconscious level, that is exactly who I am to the young Indo-Canadian youth that I work with!
May 30 – international life
310/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. Okay, I’m going to admit a flaw in myself. A teaching flaw. I was one of those teachers who prefer his students in class all understand and dialogue in English. No, not because it makes my job easier (although that is a great benefit that some of my teacher brethren and sistren may take for granted based on where they teach) but rather, I feel that the students who can’t understand me are at a loss and might be hating the class. This phenomenon of more and more non-English speaking students is becoming quite common place in grade 11 and 12 (especially in Richmond where a lot of funding comes from International Student enrolment). I know that I, as teacher, need to respond to the new face of the classroom but then I decided that perhaps not. Yes, I use a lot of group work as I feel it’s beneficial for students to be working with different students and if I were to all of a sudden eliminate that aspect, I really wouldn’t be doing English speaking students as well as International students any favours as the educational experience would be watered down by catering to a smaller minority in class. The other thing I learned from having International students is that most, if not all, want the true Western educational experience. I have students from Venezuela, China, and Brazil in my classes and I am finding that almost all of them have competent enough English to have a conversation and try hard to do the work. I, as well as the regular students, have benefitted from the International students’ experiences when we hear about what their home schooling is like. I am not saying that all the International students are forthcoming but those that do share enlighten me and keep me teaching the way I teach as I have been told that although it is quite different from what they are used to, they enjoy it and are learning. Thus, I am glad that I got over my initial aversion to having non-native English speakers in my class as I have greatly benefitted from what they have brought to my classrooms. Do I want a whole class of non-native speakers – oh hellz no, I taught ESL/ELL learners for one year and that was enough 😉 but a good balanced mix is what I prefer and look forward to as everyone benefits.
May 25 – real world learning
305/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. I went through the motions. At UBC. During my Commerce degree. I did as I was asked. Didn’t question anything. All textbook work. No course really inspired me. I knew I needed a future and got my education. And they fed me my education in the traditional way – lecture and assignments. Until my 4th year (of a 5 year program). This was the year I declared my major (Marketing) and actually enjoyed some of the things I was learning. However, still most of the courses were instructor led. It wasn’t until I was in a course led by this funky diva (well before En Vogue coined the term) named June. A statuesque older black woman who I’m imagining was a visiting lecturer as I don’t recall her being faculty. She taught one of the elective Marketing classes and we had to apply what we learned – no, not in a case study or simulation but working with a real car manufacturer. I can’t recall which one but it was a major player and they were in the test phase of introducing a new model on the market and our class created marketing campaigns for their launch to be evaluated by executives. This was a first for me and something that I haven’t forgotten as it has permeated my teaching to this very day. I try to organize real world learning whenever I can. I am not saying that I don’t lecture or give notes and assignments but I also get the students fully immersed when it comes to learning. From my Psychology students working with Kindergartners and Grade 2s applying Piaget and Kohlberg’s theories to my Marketing students creating campaigns for local Steveston restaurants to my Business students opening an hour long business venture competing with other groups and being judged on sales made. Yes, this is a nightmare for me to organize and perhaps not appreciated by all students in the moment but I know that once they reflect, the experience was invaluable – that’s the way I felt in June’s class. I will continue to teach in this manner until I retire and I have June to thank for instilling this sentiment in me!
randysangha 