Freedom Writers

I just finished watching "Freedom Writers", a film about a teacher who united students who were expected to fail, and made it possible for them to succeed. Of course, I was inspired by this true story. It made me think about all the wonderful teachers that I have had, especially Ms. Smith. I am a student assistant for her this year, and I have found out some amazing things. I already knew the lasting effects of Smith's compassion and devotion to her students through personal experience, but I learned the depth of her compassion when reading through the comments of some of her non-honors freshman students. Though the grammar was hardly perfect, the voices of these sometimes forgotten students was clear. They wanted her to know that she meant something to them. There was one student in particular, who admitted that he was not trying as hard as he could be in school. He talked of how much Ms. Smith had inspired him to do more with his mind. He talked about his desire to succeed in her class, because he believed in what she was teaching him, and he finally believed in himself. I remember going through the rest of the day wishing that every teacher could have that kind of an effect on their students. My school has many amazing teachers, most of whom care deeply about each and every one of their students. But I still worry about those kids who do not get the opportunities that I have in my amazing classes. I worry that they have been told all their lives that they cannot rise above, and that they must fail, because that is what they have always done. They settle for D's just because they are not F's (Ms. Smith has found a way around that of course!) and they hate every day that they have to walk through the doors of this amazing school. People blame it on video games, TV, and many other elements of modern culture., but very rarely do we blame it on the ideology that they have carried with them since that first F, the ideology that tells them of their incompetence, because they must be stupid if they cannot pass that one class, or even that one test. It starts with one grade, or one comment, or one lack of a comment, and it turns into a hopeless life. How do we change this? I don't have the answer to that question, but I do know this: teachers like Ms. Smith can, and will change the lives of their students by showing them that they are not failures, and that at least one person cares about them. It is inspiring to know that these people still exist, and that I get to walk the same halls as them every day of the week.