WATCH: “My Kid Ain’t Takin’ That”
July 13, 2011
I flew overnight from Vancouver to be with you today. I landed in New York a few hours ago and caught a flight down here because I needed to tell you all in person that I think youโre awesome.
I was raised by a teacher. My mother is a professor of early childhood education. And from the time I went to kindergarten through my senior year in high school, I went to public schools. I wouldnโt trade that education and experience for anything.
I had incredible teachers. As I look at my life today, the things I value most about myselfโmy imagination, my love of acting, my passion for writing, my love of learning, my curiosityโall come from how I was parented and taught.
And none of these qualities that Iโve just mentionedโnone of these qualities that I prize so deeply, that have brought me so much joy, that have brought me so much professional successโnone of these qualities that make me who I am … can be tested.
I said before that I had incredible teachers. And thatโs true. But itโs more than that. My teachers were EMPOWERED to teach me. Their time wasnโt taken up with a bunch of test prepโthis silly drill and kill nonsense that any serious person knows doesnโt promote real learning. No, my teachers were free to approach me and every other kid in that classroom like an individual puzzle. They took so much care in figuring out who we were and how to best make the lessons resonate with each of us. They were empowered to unlock our potential. They were allowed to be teachers.
Now donโt get me wrong. I did have a brush with standardized tests at one point. I remember because my mom went to the principalโs office and said, โMy kid ainโt taking that. Itโs stupid, it wonโt tell you anything and itโll just make him nervous.โ That was in the โ70s when you could talk like that.
I shudder to think that these tests are being used today to control where funding goes.
I donโt know where I would be today if my teachersโ job security was based on how I performed on some standardized test. If their very survival as teachers was based on whether I actually fell in love with the process of learning but rather if I could fill in the right bubble on a test. If they had to spend most of their time desperately drilling us and less time encouraging creativity and original ideas; less time knowing who we were, seeing our strengths and helping us realize our talents.
I honestly donโt know where Iโd be today if that was the type of education I had. I sure as hell wouldnโt be here. I do know that.
This has been a horrible decade for teachers. I canโt imagine how demoralized you must feel. But I came here today to deliver an important message to you: As I get older, I appreciate more and more the teachers that I had growing up. And Iโm not alone. There are millions of people just like me.
So the next time youโre feeling down, or exhausted, or unappreciated, or at the end of your rope; the next time you turn on the TV and see yourself called โoverpaid;โ the next time you encounter some simple-minded, punitive policy thatโs been driven into your life by some corporate reformer who has literally never taught anyone anything. … Please know that there are millions of us behind you. You have an army of regular people standing right behind you, and our appreciation for what you do is so deeply felt. We love you, we thank you and we will always have your back.