We will all have witnessed how young children behave and react when they receive a present; it is usually with massive excitement, unrestrained enthusiasm and an explosion of noise and ripping of paper! The thought of birthdays and Christmas for youngsters will no doubt be full of anticipation and hope at what they will get. Now, it may be a sign of growing old or increased maturity (note the two are not necessarily the same) that we begin to enjoy giving presents (and seeing the look on the recipient’s faces) more than actually getting them (or else we are tired of getting gifts that we do not really want or need). Maybe we have not reached that point! It is not a ‘given’, certainly, that we reach such a stage!
It is however a ‘given’, though often not fully acknowledged or appreciated, that teachers have a hugely important role in society. Furthermore it is probably safe to say that it is a ‘given’ that teaching is an incredibly demanding, exhausting and challenging profession. Teaching is, quite simply, about giving and is perhaps best summed up in the motto of a school in England: “Deo Dante Dedi” meaning (loosely), “God having given, I gave”. We as teachers all teach because we had teachers who gave us so much; so we in turn have the chance and the responsibility to keep on giving to others. Having been given much, we want and are constrained to give much.
It is naturally worth remembering and reflecting at the outset that teachers have indeed been given much. We have, first of all, been given an education ourselves, which is not granted to everyone. We should not take such a gift lightly. More than that, we have had the benefit of receiving specific training on how to teach others – again, not everyone has been given that. That obviously then leads on to the next thing that we have been given; those of us in teaching have been given an incredible opportunity to impact young people’s lives. Once we realise that, we will begin to grasp the reality that such an opportunity is in fact an amazing and extraordinary privilege that has been given to us, to raise up young children and to influence them positively for their future lives. The more we realise that, the more we will understand that we have been given a massive responsibility to ensure that we do indeed achieve such an objective. That responsibility then gives us a real purpose and direction that many do not ever receive. We as teachers have been given so much! Above all, however, or perhaps in summary of all the above, what we have been given is, in fact, children, many children, many very needy and hungry children.
We may well be aware of the old principle that “to whom much has been given, much is required” or indeed and equally, much is expected. Because we have been given so much, it is expected and required of us that we have much to give. We are not in teaching to give answers; that would appear to be the obvious (and child-like) thought. We are not in teaching to give good grades; that would be too easy and little. In the light of what we have been given, we are called to give our expertise, our understanding and our direction, for sure – that is a ‘given’. More than that, though, we are required to give of our time, freely and fully. We are called to give significance and relevance to our youngsters, to give hope and joy to them, to give energy and belief. If we do not give these, what use or value is anything else that we give? We must also give them responsibility, so that they take ownership not just for their own lives but also for the lives of all others and this world. They will not receive or take such responsibility if we do not give it to them. Above all, however, teachers give themselves. Such is a dedicated teacher, one who gives himself or herself.
Teaching is a gift, and one which not everyone has or indeed wants. However, teaching, perhaps more than any other profession, reinforces two age-old principles. Firstly, dedicated teachers discover that it is indeed more blessed to give than to receive; they teach not for what they can get out of it but for what they can put into it. Secondly, dedicated teachers discover that in truth it is in giving that we receive, as St Francis of Assissi wrote. Teaching is indeed the gift that keeps on giving. Teachers just keep on teaching and thus they keep on giving. That is quite a present!
