Most of the people on this board are probably older than me, so maybe you cant relate. I happen to have a teacher that i like very much and he likes the work i do in his class. now do to the fact that we conversate and he encourages me to do good work ive been dubbed a "teachers pet" Now seeing as im a junior in high school i think it would really be past that stage, and just be that i'd like to further my education and form a "friendship" with a person who has a lot of knowledge to offer me? does anyone disagree or have had the same experience? I dont have this problem in any other classes. this guy just struck a nerve with me because he was willing to show a southern point of view when teaching the civil war because i requested him to do so. because i think kids are bombarded with the stereotype that the war was all about slavery and had nothing to do with politics or anything else. I dont feel it is helping our country and by instilling this stereotype any longer and i'm quite offended by it myself.

 

Looking back on high school years from now you'll find that the opinions expressed by people calling you teacher's pet will be meaningless. The majority of jocks will be doing menial labor, the stoners will be in jail or working at a dead end job, the "popular" people will find that their high school popularity amounts for nothing in the corporate world, people who didn't put a priority on their education will wonder why they don't do as well as those who did and blame the system for it, etc. Teachers pets, however, usually go on to be the stellar performers.... congratulate yourself for a head start on your peers and know that the opinions that really count in this world are on your side...

And about the Civil War.... slavery didn't enter the picture until the war effort started going badly for Lincoln. There were huge numbers of draft protests, and Lincoln jailed dissenters that didn't agree with his policies. The war was extremely unpopular in the north and if you look at old newspaper articles the north generally didn't give a damn about the slaves. Towards the end of the war, the northern propaganda machine was failing and slavery was then introduced as the "moral cause" for the war in order to ralley the citizenship. Reporters who made a habit of speaking out against this were jailed or otherwise shut up by the Lincoln administration. Try mentioning any of this in a leftist classroom these days and they'll say you're racist. Heck, its HISTORY, history is neither racist or non-racist, its simply the accounting of the facts. This country has undergone an enormous amount of historical revision in the last 30 years. Heck, one of the major high school "history" books devoted more space to Kennedy and his mistress Monroe than to George Washington and the revolutionary war. This same book said the statue of liberty is made of something other than copper. Too bad when all of us who read the books written prior to the revisions are dead it won't matter anymore....

 

I wouldn't worry about it. You will find that as you get older, this particular issue will not be one of the things you most remember. For some strange reason a lot of students your age seem to feel like getting good grades, being courteous and helpful and "kissing up" to the teacher is a bad thing. It is not. You will get a lot farther with the above attributes than you will with a "cool" attitude or lack of enthusiasm or unwillingness to help out. Most of the people who put you down now will wind up to be "Whopper Floppers" or doing similar type work. Don't anyone take that as an insult to "Whopper Floppers", geez we have to be so PC now don't we.

I was probably similar to yourself, I studied hard, got good grades and yes I even talked with teachers when it wasn't required, ie I was friendly to a few of my favorite instructors. I probably got cut a little slack on some things because I was a "good" kid but I also earned my grades, worked two jobs yadda yadda. And now I feel good about myself. The things that haunt me to this day really had nothing to do with how "good" I was in school, more likely things I wish I would have done or wish I hadn't.

Having a friendship with someone who knows a lot is almost always a good thing. Later in life, learning stuff you can get for free now, will cost you bucks. Make the most of it and while you are at it have fun.

Keep on, have a good attitude and it will pay off in the long run.

Jim Henderson

 

When it comes to public education in general and history specifically, we need to keep a few things in mind:

First, as long as we have a state run, federally subsidized public education system we will have "politically correct" texts. This will include revisions to the text whenever and wherever the prevailing political winds blow.

Second, history is written by the winners. I watched "Band of Brothers", the HBO miniseries about WWII which was purported to be a compilation of accounts from the men who were portrayed in the series. I found it very interesting that an American soldier was shown machine gunning unarmed German POWs, including a German/American immigrant from Springfield OR who went to fight in the Vermacht, and looting private residences in German cities and shipping the goods home. Dramatic license or revisionism at work? Who knows? I know Tom Hanks was the exec. producer of the series and he swings pretty far left on the political scale. You certainly wouldn't find that kind of material in any of the history books I read in school. Why? Because it didn't happen or because we won the war?

Finally, and this will sound trite, but it doesn't matter if someone makes fun of you for being a "teachers pet". If you're passionate enough about a subject to want to go beyond the minimum requirements then it's a great thing. The more you enjoy a subject, the easier it will be to learn about it. There's far too much mediocrity in the world, learning is the best way to rise above it.

All of this, of course is my opinion and all of the usual disclaimers apply.

 

well i'm glad to see i have supporters about both topics.........especially the civil war one, my teacher informed me he felt a little like walking on egg shells with me in the class........(i'm from florida but i moved to connecticut last year) and i'm the only southern kid in the class..........i take pride in where i'm from and am offended at the stereotypes spread against southerners, even in my florida history class.....not to be a hipocrit and stereotype northerners but i found many more friendly people down there then i do here. and the teachrs pet thing is really just a thing that i get along better with adults than peers. whe i was younger my dad was my best friend........i didn't start hanging out with kids until about 14.......even still i like hanging with my dad better usually, except for some of my real close friends who enjoy things i do, like working on truks and fishing and listening to classic rock and country.......and people i dont have to be so politically correct around........doesn't our first amendment cover being politically incorrect? lol sorry but i get flack when i speak my mind.........especially about wellfare.......i've noticed that i a hot topic of discussion on here..........but no one ever uses the name......they just say "i'm tired of all my money going to everyone else" anyone wanna start being politically 'incorrect' with me and just say i'm tired of all of my money going to hand outs such as free lunch at schools to people who don't really qualify, and wellfare? I know not near as much of mine goes as does most of you guys, but when i'm already making puny wages it hurts........especially when they want 3 grand a year minimum coverage so i can drive around a 5 grand truck.......that gets 11mpg.....so $20 bucks a week in gas at least....... sorry for the long post..........i don't get called teachers pet all that often, but someone peaved me off in class today so i posted when i finished my project on the computer at school lol........see your site is even being looked at by kids in school ken...

 

Teachers are only as good as the "tools" (students) they have to work with. Perhaps this teacher is delighted to find this great "tool" (your point of view) and is trying to teach others through your experiences and viewpoints. The teacher's pet stigma may be due in part to this technique. Then too, maybe he recognizes you have considerable potential and is trying to encourage you.

 

Hey Truckfreak,
ANYTHING that helps you learn stuff in school is a benefit, not a liability. The only dopes who will call you "teacher's pet" at the one's who are jealous that they are not. Work hard, get good grades and if you make a friend or two on the faculty, it can only help you, not hurt you. I think you'll find that this teacher can not only help you with history, but might be helpful at other times as well. Having students like you in class make a teacher's day as much as they make yours.

Nope, I'm not a teacher. My wife is. Junior high. I know.

 

True true. Think of it this way. Your classmates aren't going to help you get into a good college should you decide to go. your teachers are. They are the ones grading you, seeing how you work, etc. Your teachers are the ones who will be writing your reccomendations for college, and to have teachers you get along with well and can have good discussions with will only help you. Good luck with your project, and don't let the kids who THINK they're cool get you down.

Ryan

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 21-Nov-01 AT 03:15 PM (EST)]
Do this:

In ten years, go back and look for the people you remember.

See how well they did.
(or didn't)

I disagree that a student is a tool for a teacher, it's the other way around if the student really wants to learn, or find stuff out.

I still have a gripe/resentment against a geometry teacher who used the phrase "You'll either see it yourself, or you won't" too many times, when discussing hyperbolic arc's!

If I could figure it out myself, I wouldn't have needed the guy...

Your INTERESTS will determine much of the path of your learning. When someone facilitates that path WELL; shoot man - buy the dude a beer, if it keeps him talking!!!

 

thanks very much for all the encouraging replies, i guess no one wanted to be politically incorrect with me but oh well, all the other stuff worked well lol