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I felt a huge lump in my throat and tears welled up quickly as I heard the news that one of my favourite teachers, Joan Trettler, had passed away. I worked with Joan when she was my vice-principal at Ronald Harvey School in St. Albert and again a few years later as she added “school trustee” to her post-teaching career. Before I worked with her, though, Joan was “Miss Houston” and my Grade 10 social studies teacher.
I wasn’t particularly engaged in high school. I was just an OK student who didn’t work terribly hard. Joan, however, expected a great deal from us, and she meant business. I remember she gave us an assignment that had to do with current issues in Canada, and asked us to do some research and write an essay. I can’t remember the specific topic, but I remember doing a survey with family and friends, compiling the data and writing a paper. I worked hard and was proud of what I had created. Miss Houston wrote a short note on my paper that said, “This is university-quality work.” Those few words had an incredible impact on my life.
No one in my immediate or extended family had been to university, though my parents both encouraged me to do well in school and were both incredibly smart. Joan’s words planted a seed in me, and I thought, “Maybe I am smart enough to go…” There were, of course, many other factors that led to me completing university degrees, but I remember those words to this day. And that’s why I love teaching. We have the opportunity to forever change a child’s life, and often with the smallest gestures and words. I’m really excited about this issue because it focuses on the many aspects of why we love to do what we do.
As the school year draws to a close and you are running on fumes, remember the power that you have. A word. A smile. A comment on a paper. The love and care that you show your students means more than you will ever know. Because I had the opportunity to work with Joan, I told her that story more than once. I wish I had told her more often how much she meant to me.
I hope the stories about our love of teaching bring you the energy you need to get through the last part of the year or something to reflect on while you are taking a well-deserved break this summer.
