All-Too-Short ‘Teacher Appreciation’

May 14 marked the end of “Teacher Appreciation Week,” and once again its tokens have been conspicuous by their absence. At my school each teacher received a plastic paper clip (a heavy-duty one at that!), a note pad, and some free munchies during lunch on Wednesday. Personally, I felt the most “stroked” from a student who gave me a card on which she’d written her own note of thanks.

In the world at large, teachers received various forms of lip service. Our state and local teacher organizations issued a declaration of the week as one of teacher appreciation, and the Long Beach Board of Education passed a resolution designating May 10-14 as “Teacher Appreciation Week.”

Now as we teachers sit back and review our years of quiet dedication, we contemplate two grim prospects in our near future: a drastic reduction in our health benefits and an increase in class size.

So much for “Teacher Appreciation Week.”

JUDY MEDNICK

Long Beach