Most teachers spend several weeks during the summer taking classes designed to keep them up to par with the latest educational methodologies. I have partaken of so many courses and conferences that helped to inform me in becoming a better and better purveyor of knowledge to my students. I almost always found a nugget of educational gold in those sessions and sometimes even learned a bit more about myself. 

There was one occasion in which those of us participating began the two week marathon by answering straight forward questions about our viewpoints of the world and most especially our students. We had no idea what the purpose of such an exercise might be and it was fun to provide our thoughts and beliefs. A few days later we received the not so surprising results of the survey noting that more than ninety percent of us had scored in the high ninetieth percentiles of altruism which was defined as “a belief or practice of selfless concern for the well-being of others.”

Given that teachers earn disproportionately less than other college graduates for work that is  extremely important to society it was not surprising to us that our altruism was the driver that kept us returning to the classroom year after year. We already knew in our hearts that we had decided that the reward of doing something bigger than becoming wealthy was our motivation. It was nonetheless interesting that our devotion to our vocation was so universally grounded in our desires to make a difference in providing opportunities for our students to grow and prosper. 

Almost every physiological measure that I have taken has resulted in the same assessment of what makes me tick. I also understand all too well how my fellow teachers are cut from the same cloth. We find joy in the very idea of being the helpers in this world. We see the needs of people and we do everything we can to lift them up. The same might be said for nurses and fire fighters and other people who provide services to the community. There is a vast array of selflessness across the globe that provides love and care to people. 

Ironically those of us devoted to being the helpers understand the need for leaders who know how to produce funding for our projects. We look to them for the resources that we need knowing that they have skills that may be lacking in us. That is the nature of altruistic people. We see the possibilities of every kind of talent that humans exhibit. We realize that it would be a  tragedy to only develop business acumen or engineering skills in everyone. That person with a great sense of humor who makes us laugh is as important to our survival as humans as anyone. The goal of education should never be exclusive. We need those who design bridges and those who have the skills to actually build them. The value of each human is unique.

There seems to be a great deal of pressure these days to retool our schools and universities to focus only on what some deem as being practical goals. As a mathematics teacher I have always enjoyed almost universal approval but I know full well that some of the most important lessons a student might ever encounter occur not in the STEM classrooms but in the history classes or when reading great novel. It is important that we think about our own thinking and it is in the humanities that some of the most impactful moments occur. 

None of us are robots nor should we be. The ability to understand our fellow humans is as important as unlocking the mysteries of numbers and physics. It really is possible to be brilliant in one area and somewhat lacking in another. That is why we have so many different types of work for people to do. Once a person finds his or her niche magic often happens. Sadly our society tends to provide kudos for many professions over others in a very lopsided way giving the impression that some work is not as important as others. We sometimes retool our schools to rank majors more according to the income that they will produce rather than to the impact that they will have on how we humans treat each other. 

I never took a philosophy class in college. I was too busy to add what seemed to be a somewhat frivolous class to my schedule. it would not be until I had retired from work that I would sign up for an overview of philosophy in a continuing education program. It did not take long for me to be totally addicted to reading more and more from the noted philosophers of history and the present time. I soon realized that the process of considering how and why we humans thing\k and behave was one of the most important things I had ever done. I now look forward to applying the ideas of philosophy to all facets of life. My studies have expanded my mind and my outlook in exciting ways. 

There should be no restrictions to learning. Of course young students need grounding in the basics but it would be wrong to deny opportunities to explore any facet of human knowledge. The more we open our minds to new ideas the better we are in helping communities of people to thrive. Our minds are not dough which should be cut into repetitious shapes. We are individuals who each have a personality and longing to contribute our talents to the world. Never, never should we be stifled in our lifelong journey of becoming.