What a wonderful weekend! I got to see my cousin get married and had a nice relaxing day with my kids for Mother’s Day. Funny, but on both days I got reminders of my work as a teacher and admin.

At the wedding I ran into a former student whose work I still use today in my Digital Storytelling workshops. She gave me a big hug and we got to talk. She is in college now and is a beautiful, intelligent young woman. I had her in my class in 8th grade, so it has been about 6 years. It was so nice to see her and talk with her.

Today, I got a message from a former parent telling me that “you and your efforts are not forgotten.” He went on to say how certain things I had put in place came to fruition. Gulp!

I was so grateful to hear from both, I just wanted to share. Our profession, teaching and education, is all about delayed gratification. We may not see the fruits of our labor for years after we have had a student in class. This is why assuming teacher effectiveness can be measured in standardized tests is flawed. They can test our kids by any metric they want, but the real assessment of our work is what they become and how they live their lives. Our job as educators (and parents) is to show them the world and help them find their place in it. If we can make a difference along then we have had a great career.