Milken Family Foundation National Education Conference: How Stakeholders Can Support Teacher Quality

By William Richey, 1999 Ohio Milken Educator

William Richey is participating in a panel discussion at the Conference on the role of teachers in enhancing teacher quality and improving student achievement.

The issue of teacher quality from the perspective of a classroom teacher is interesting. Most days as a chemistry teacher in Xenia, Ohio, I don't have the time or energy to think about teacher quality—I just do what I love doing. I think the most important aspect contributing to teacher quality is the passion that a teacher has for his/her subject matter. If only we could get all teachers placed in the subject matter in which he or she majored or minored, that would be a starting point. If the teacher doesn't have a passion for that subject or topic, how can the love for that topic be passed on to the students? And how do we as an establishment define a highly effective (notice I didn't say a highly qualified teacher) teacher? You can be assured that your students (my students) and each and every student in any school can tell you who is highly effective. Was the lesson engaging? Was the presentation dynamic? Was the material presented in a way that made the subject matter come alive? Think about when you sit down to watch a TV show. Do you watch a program that isn't entertaining or engaging? I'd say no. That show wouldn't last two weeks on TV. I know we are not in the classroom to entertain but we ARE in the classroom to engage and stimulate.

I received my B.S. in biology/chemistry and went on to graduate school to work on a masters in aquatic biology. I had a teaching assistantship in grad school and I couldn't wait to go and teach those freshman classes. It wasn't until I was in front of a classroom teaching that I discovered the true joys that the career can bring. As a classroom teacher in a district where most of our students come from low- to middle-income families, I started the Chemistry Club (I knew no one would come if I called it the Future Teachers Club). The main goal of my chemistry club (besides to get elementary students fired up about science!) is to get my honors chemistry students—the best and the brightest in the school—excited about teaching. My club of 80 students visits eachof the elementary schools in our district and teaches a hands-on science lesson that has been integrated with a literature book. Through this experience, many of my honors students discover the true joy of teaching. At Xenia High School this year, we have five valedictorians. All five have participated in Chemistry Club and were very active. Two of the five have chosen teaching as a career. That excites me and makes me think maybe I had a little something to do with their career choice. If as effective classroom teachers we can influence our best and brightest students to go into what I feel is the most noble and important profession in the world, then we will have changed the future, if only one student at a time.

For more information on the Conference—including the agenda, bios of Conference presenters, photos and videos—please visit the Milken Family Foundation Web site at www.mff.org.

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