Sanée Bell

I was reading a devotional a few weeks ago, and I came across a reading that really resonated with me. It made me think about what is often done to students in schools. In our profession, students are often sorted and labeled based on their achievements, appearance, activities, or abilities. The phrases “those kids” or “these families” instead of “our kids” and “our families” are often used when describing students who are underprivileged.

Unfortunately, students who are underprivileged are often viewed as a problem that needs to be fixed or addressed by somebody else; however, the somebody has not been identified by the people closest to the need. Oftentimes, the somebody is the person who is looking outward for someone else to identify and address the student’s needs. When we signup to be educators in public school, we do not get to pick and choose what comes through our doors. A child’s zip code should not determine the quality of education they receive.

As educators, the only thing we can pick and choose is our attitude, our dedication, and the amount of determination we will pour into “our students” and “our families.” We are the somebody’s who will help our students see the possibles. We must remove the boundaries and labels that others have put on our students. Labels become impossibles. No label teachers see every child as if they were their own personal children. No label teachers are committed to student growth, regardless of where the starting point may be. No label teachers seek to find the possible in every child and are committed to helping them become their best possible self.

Labels are useful when sorting items, organizing groceries or sorting laundry. Labels are necessary for organizing our time, our things and our activities; however, labels for people quickly turn into impossibles (Martin, 2013). No label teachers don’t see impossibles. No label teachers are committed to finding a way to reach every child because every child is someone else’s whole world. Every student who walks through our doors are “OUR KIDS” and they should mean the whole world to us!