Asking a couple different people Have you had a teacher that positively impacted you? produced a variety of results. Some were reminiscient of their favorite teachers, others were spiteful of their high school experience. While answers were strikingly different, they all surmounted to one truth to answer my essential question: what does it mean to be a Teacher Ally?
In so many words, no person answered the question directly. However, there were characteristics congruent to each other, that I have compiled in to a list that directly describes what it means to be a Teacher Ally:
Invested time in each student
Thoughtful
Instills confidence in students
Mentor for future plans
Engaging lessons
Inspires students to be a good person
Created lasting connections with students
Positive and encouraging
Worked with students through the difficult times
Took time to get to know the students
All students that cited a teacher that was impactful in their lives had similar themes in that their teacher cared for them and they showed it. Maybe not in the same way, but in a way that was valid to the student, and made them remember their teacher far beyond that year in the classroom.
Even that one person that reported no teacher to have made a difference can speak volumes about what it means to be a Teacher Ally. They claimed the reason was that they skipped a bunch of classes. However, if as a teacher, you realize a student not being present in classs (literally or mentally), wouldn't that give you more reason to try to be their Ally? I would think so, but in this student's case, I guess not.
I gathered so much insight on what it means to be an ally to students from the people around me, whether it be great examples to follow, or other negative illustrations of what not to do. One day, I hope that through this badge and with a lot of practice, when someone is asked if they've have a teacher that postitively impacted them, someone will answer Miss Hall.