Lean On Me

I remember watching Stand & Deliver and Lean On Me as a kid and being completely inspired. Something about the "inspirational teacher role" in Hollywood truly makes them bigger than life. Edward James Olmos injecting "ganas" (desire) into his students, Morgan Freeman confronting the drug addictions of his students and pushing them to change their lives; both examples challenge us to take a bigger bite out of life.  We learn about great war heroes in history books, watch dazzling sports heroes on tv and listen to captivating music on our iPods, but to find a teacher with the right combination of passion, knowledge and skill may easily become a greater personal hero to a student than an over-paid basketball player taking off from the free-throw line or an over-celebrated baseball player hitting one outside the park.

 

Yesterday I started my third quarter at CSUEB in Hayward, and I must say that I'm really looking forward to the research and readings I'll be studying. The past two quarters were easy enough for me to transition from a two-year junior college to a four-year state university, but this quarter deems to be a little more challenging; I'll be taking social control, sociology of the family, and re-taking my statistics class, each requiring their own amount of attention and focus while working part-time and assuming a position on student government.

"You can approach this course one of two ways," began one of my instructors. "You can approach it in a way that is purely academic, in which you do the required readings and I give your earned grade, or you can approach this course as a transformational experience, in which you learn more about yourself and gain some skills necessary to apply to your 'happy' job once you graduate and leave this school. I opt for the latter."

I smiled. Teachers like this inspire me to work a little harder, dig a little deeper and reach a little farther. I'm starting the quarter with optimism, and taking my professor up on his offer. There truly is a difference between being informed and transformed. I'm opting for the latter.