Everyone has had at least one teacher that had an impact on their life and learning, whether that teacher knows it or not (and if you haven't I'm so sorry because it isn't short of life changing).
I was reminded of this experience just this week when I walked into a class, with a subject I thought I hated and walked out looking forward to learning about it for the coming semester.
Teachers in the U.S. are so underrated. I was always appalled in elementary through high school about the way some students treated teachers. It never made sense to me. These people have dedicated their careers to helping the new generations learn what they need in order to succeed and ever surpass past generations. Teachers should be given the most credit and respect of any profession because how did anyone get to where they were without a teacher teaching them at least something? Maybe you're really good at math, but a teacher had to teach you how to add 1 + 1 = 2 before you could calculate a formula that could help the world. Great at English? Yes, some of it is your own but a teacher had to teach you how to read or write before you could write eloquent and exciting books. Teachers are that stepping stone from not knowing how, to learning the tools, and then moving on on your own.
I could probably tell you the names of 90% of the teachers I've ever had and if I liked them or not. I have done terribly in some of the easiest classes because the teacher wasn't very good, yes, the teacher does not 100% dictate if you will do well in a class or not but if a teacher makes you hate a subject and not care or want to learn about it, you can only pull together so much motivation to get through it on your own. I have also had classes that seemed incredibly difficult, but the teacher taught it with such excitement and love for the subject that I began to love it too and wanted to put in all the effort I could, even if it wasn't one of my favorite subjects, like history or English. Then there are other teachers that allow you to fall more in love with your favorite subjects, like for me the sciences.
I don't know the key to being an amazing teacher, though from what I have seen it is sharing their love for their subject with the class and real life exciting stories. The quirky ones you may not read in the text that they have done or dug up because that's how much they love it. Like creating a molecule that can combat overdoses of cocaine, or those random facts that are throughout history. Or even if there aren't many crazy facts about geography, just sharing their passion and love for it can rub off on students and make them appreciate the subject even more.
So I guess I would like to thank all of the teachers in my life. They have all taught me wonderful things, whether I thought so at the time or not. But I would especially like to thank those teachers that made me fall in love with learning over and over again. It is thanks to you that I remain in school pursuing something I am very interested in and looking forward to what's to come. My success is thanks to you.
