According to the Education Trust, highly effective teachers can get one-and-a-half years of student growth out of one year in the classroom. Moreover, for students from low-income families, having three highly effective teachers in a row can close the achievement gap between them and their more advantaged peers.
The impact of great teachers also lasts a lifetime.
Economists at Harvard and Columbia found students fortunate enough to learn with “high-value-added” teachers were less likely to have children as teenagers, and more likely to attend college, earn higher salaries as adults, and save more for retirement.
Today, my own children are in school (or in the case of my youngest, eagerly anticipating it). Together, my wife and I make it a point to regularly thank the teachers who are making a decades-long difference in their lives.
This is Teacher Appreciation Week. I want to thank the many great teachers in the United States and across the world (including Mrs. Dubbeldam) whose skills, commitment, and passion for education have made so much difference in so many lives, including my own.
With appreciation, Marten Roorda.
Although we can't ever thank them enough, May 7-11 will be dedicated to showing our appreciation for teachers. Throughout the week, we encourage you to join this important nationwide campaign to not only #ThankATeacher, but to also let teachers know their hard work, dedication to and passion for improving the lives of our nation's youth through education does not go unnoticed.
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