Teaching and Blessings

10.25.10 By Rachel Singh

Last weekend, I returned to my not-so-distant alma mater for reunion events hosted by the student-run non-profit, the Phillips Brooks House Association (PBHA).  Working at PBHA was truly formative for me while I was in school, so I was excited to attend.  The theme of the weekend was people who are a big deal in education.  It was an interesting experience for me, a graduate not even six months out of school, who had chosen a career in education as a teacher.  I know my school is famous for producing people who are a big deal in almost every field; most of my peers at Harvard were aspiring to be big deals themselves.  I had thought that in choosing teaching, I was putting myself on a decidedly less glamorous path than most of my peers.  Nevertheless, I found my profession (and me, to some degree) under the spotlight that weekend. 

PBHA had invited alumnus Secretary of Education Arne Duncan to give its annual “Call of Service” lecture and award.  Governor Deval Patrick, another Harvard grad, was there to introduce Duncan.  PBHA also honored John King, Senior Deputy Commissioner for P-12 Education in New Yok public schools, as an outstanding alumnus at a dinner the following night.  King co-founded Roxbury Preparatory Charter School a few years after he graduated Harvard and was also involved in Uncommon Schools, a high-preforming network of charter schools in New York City.  In his acceptance speech, King said something that really touched me.  In recognizing him, PBHA was thanking King for his commitment to education reform and to under-served children of color in our cities.  King accepted the honor and praise by humbly claiming, “The blessing is mine.”  He went on to say that not only is there an moral imperative to do social justice work, but there are also rich and profound lessons that can be learned only when we commit ourselves to a goal so much bigger than ourselves. 

No one has had any reason to thank me for blessing them with my work, but I still want to repeat King’s words as my own: The blessing is mine.  I have been granted a truly inordinate amount of privilege in my very short life.  Harvard was only the capstone.  I can’t even begin to estimate how much money, let alone other resources, were spent on my education there.  Now it’s time for me to put all the money and time and guidance that has been invested in me to use for the benefit of other people.  I’m doubly blessed if I can repay my debt in a way that uplifts me the way teaching does.  To have found what I believe could be my life’s work at such a young age is truly a blessing in itself for me, and I am even more grateful that I have a career that not only challenges and rewards me, but is also meaningful to others.  I don’t just do this work because I deeply believe it needs to be done; I do it because it gives me the deepest joy and rewards I have ever experienced. 

People always seem a little surprised and awed when I tell them I am a teacher.  I have never heard anyone at Harvard tell me they wanted to be a teacher.  They may want to Teach For Awhile, but when asked what they want to do, they’re more likely to say educational policy or law than they are to say they want to devote themselves to the craft of teaching.  I came into this career knowing that it is an affront to the profession to think you can learn how to be an excellent teacher in a few months, but BTR taught me that teaching is a craft that I could spend my entire life trying to improve.  To do so would be noble and demanding work. 

At the risk of sounding self-congratulatory, I am starting to see teaching as truly some of the most difficult work in the world.  BTR and Young Achievers have opened my eyes to all that a teacher actually is.  I chose this career because I define teachers as having a deep faith in justice and a profound hope for our future.  They commit their lives to teaching our society’s young people because they believe that our children hold the promise of the future.  But my BTR instructors showed me that teachers are also life-long learners.  They understand that if they are going to teach their students, they must be open to learning in their own lives.  Teachers love knowledge and learning and recognize that teaching and learning fundamentally go hand in hand.  Most of all, teachers are people who commit to being their very best selves every day, because they know that their students deserve to learn from the best, both in content and in role models.  So much is at stake when you get up in front of your students; their educations are entrusted upon you and you cannot afford to waste a single day being unprepared, cynical, or even just grumpy.  This enormous responsibility is a blessing in its own way.  I am proud to be going into a career that demands that I not only do my best every day as a professional, but also that I be my very best as a moral human being.  I am excited to discover through teaching what my very best self actually is and to learn how to become the person I hope to be.