To The Teacher That Lost Her Way
Start writing a post
Education

To The Teacher That Lost Her Way

I was young, not stupid.

310
To The Teacher That Lost Her Way
Lauren Sexton

It was the beginning of my senior year when I realized that I wasted the past few years in several classes that were taking me nowhere. Starting out as a freshman I had so much hope but didn't know what to expect. However, I never imagined it would end the way it did. As an impressionable, bright-eyed, optimistic 14-year-old, I trusted this teacher, who I had known for 10 years. She filled my head with ideas and promises of what the journalism program at my high school would be for me.

I was young, not stupid. I soon realized that she was a lot of talk and things weren't going to be easy.

Reliving the years in high school leading up to my senior year, a lot went on in that journalism program that was not right. Even though I won state and national awards and was promoted to a course for students older than me, I was targeted by insecure disgruntled upperclassmen, mistreated by more than one editor, and never really taken seriously. I was promised a position that I later lost to someone who stole my notebook full of ideas and presented them as his own. I was yelled at by an upperclassman for leading a lesson that I was instructed to lead and embarrassed in front of the class. I was stabbed in the back by a teacher who claimed to have my back, but like I said I was young, not stupid.

I soon realized the promises and apologizes from the teacher were meaningless. She was quickly losing control of the class and going down a slippery slope that would prove to be her downfall.

Senior year was upon me, I dropped journalism, a class that I had devoted three years to, and headed into my third year of Yearbook taught by the same teacher. I accepted and got comfortable being a photo editor for the yearbook. I knew I had more potential than that, but things were crumbling around us. A program that was once top-notch and cohesive was imploding. Slowly over the years, this once devoted teacher changed. She had always been student-focused, but now she had spread herself too thinly. She was too busy with her involvement in state level and national level organizations. It got to the point where she couldn't control her class. What was worse was she gossiped just as much as the students. It was sad. She told me, "I do things to win awards. Awards are the only things that matter."

This teacher who was once a student advocate had lost her focus, and she continued to spiral out of controlled continued.

Mayhem occurred daily in her classroom. She was out of the room most of the time, and students came and went as they pleased. Parent and student complaints were piling up, and she needed a scapegoat. She tried targeting my friend and me, and when that failed, she apologized and offered to buy us lunch. My friend and I both dropped the class. We had enough. In the two short months after school started, so many students dropped her classes that the principal stopped letting people drop which did not go over well with parents.

If you ask any of my teachers, they will tell you that I was a great student, a quiet young lady who would participate but not disrupt the class. I am the daughter of a teacher. One who taught at the same high school I attended, who was my English teacher my freshman year, who was close friends with the journalism and yearbook teacher. We were all shocked at this teacher's rapid decline.

The following year, after I graduated, she was gone.

There is a great deal of speculation as to why she left. Was she asked to leave by the administration? Did she choose to leave because things had gotten so bad? Did she receive a better offer? We won't know for sure, because they don't share that information with the public. My guess is it was a combination of the three. This teacher who was once a champion of students and an impeccable role model had lost her way. She became the antithesis of what she had set out to become. Along the way, she damaged a lot of students, including me. She made me less trusting and far more careful than someone as young as me should be.

I often wonder if she regrets the mistakes she's made, or if she blames everyone else for what happened. I am guessing it is the latter, and that is just a crying shame, but I won't be shedding any tears.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
a man and a woman sitting on the beach in front of the sunset

Whether you met your new love interest online, through mutual friends, or another way entirely, you'll definitely want to know what you're getting into. I mean, really, what's the point in entering a relationship with someone if you don't know whether or not you're compatible on a very basic level?

Consider these 21 questions to ask in the talking stage when getting to know that new guy or girl you just started talking to:

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

Challah vs. Easter Bread: A Delicious Dilemma

Is there really such a difference in Challah bread or Easter Bread?

14724
loaves of challah and easter bread stacked up aside each other, an abundance of food in baskets
StableDiffusion

Ever since I could remember, it was a treat to receive Easter Bread made by my grandmother. We would only have it once a year and the wait was excruciating. Now that my grandmother has gotten older, she has stopped baking a lot of her recipes that require a lot of hand usage--her traditional Italian baking means no machines. So for the past few years, I have missed enjoying my Easter Bread.

Keep Reading...Show less
Adulting

Unlocking Lake People's Secrets: 15 Must-Knows!

There's no other place you'd rather be in the summer.

944827
Group of joyful friends sitting in a boat
Haley Harvey

The people that spend their summers at the lake are a unique group of people.

Whether you grew up going to the lake, have only recently started going, or have only been once or twice, you know it takes a certain kind of person to be a lake person. To the long-time lake people, the lake holds a special place in your heart, no matter how dirty the water may look.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

Top 10 Reasons My School Rocks!

Why I Chose a Small School Over a Big University.

121923
man in black long sleeve shirt and black pants walking on white concrete pathway

I was asked so many times why I wanted to go to a small school when a big university is so much better. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure a big university is great but I absolutely love going to a small school. I know that I miss out on big sporting events and having people actually know where it is. I can't even count how many times I've been asked where it is and I know they won't know so I just say "somewhere in the middle of Wisconsin." But, I get to know most people at my school and I know my professors very well. Not to mention, being able to walk to the other side of campus in 5 minutes at a casual walking pace. I am so happy I made the decision to go to school where I did. I love my school and these are just a few reasons why.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lots of people sat on the cinema wearing 3D glasses
Pinterest

Ever wonder what your friend meant when they started babbling about you taking their stapler? Or how whenever you ask your friend for a favor they respond with "As You Wish?" Are you looking for new and creative ways to insult your friends?

Well, look no further. Here is a list of 70 of the most quotable movies of all time. Here you will find answers to your questions along with a multitude of other things such as; new insults for your friends, interesting characters, fantastic story lines, and of course quotes to log into your mind for future use.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments