As most of my readers probably know, I was a faculty member (teacher) at Western Carolina University for forty-three years, including the year I was “on leave,” doing my doctoral course work. I WAS still a member of the Western faculty that year, having been TENURED prior to heading off to University of Georgia, but I didn’t teach any classes, as I was taking them and serving an Assistantship managing the Fine Arts Auditorium on the UGA campus.
In addition to those years, my first, actual, full-time, real employment, after getting my M.A. in Theatre and Drama from Indiana University, was as the Technical Director (sometime Scenic and/or Lighting Designer, and all-time set constructor) for Theatre 65, The Children’s Theatre of Evanston, IL. At that time, it was the longest continuously operating children’s theatre in the country (and one of the better known). By this point in it’s history, it had moved from sponsorship by Northwestern University (which had started it in 1925), to being under the auspices of the Evanston Public Schools (District #65). That meant that I was working under a temporary Teaching Certificate (in order to work for the school system), and I actually took a couple of classes (first at I.U., then at Northwestern) towards getting a “real” certificate as a “Drama Teacher.” I would suggest that those two years should also be included as part of my “teaching experience,” making the actual total 45 years. That’s quite a while.
While working in Evanston, I quickly discovered that theatre folks aren’t the only ones (at least at the time) who tended to consume coffee in somewhat prodigious amounts: it seemed that teachers, generally, did. So, while poking around in my “possible Blog stuff” files, I ran across some pictures of some coffee cups which seemed to relate to teachers and teaching. That being the case, I thought I’d see if I could come up with a post about them.
First off, I have to admit that MY teaching experiences have been confined to work with “Public” schools, as I have only worked at (or attended) schools which were publicly supported, in that they were chartered by state and/or local governments. Hence, I can’t be sure that my impressions would actually apply to private and/or religious-based institutions, although I strongly suspect that they would.
In any case, my experience would lead me to believe that MOST (perhaps not ALL, but MOST) teachers have, or develop, a fondness for coffee (and the “coffee break which allows contact with ones peers, who are NOT students, but collegial adults, even if not close friends). That means that teachers tend to have, are sometimes given, and are likely to enjoy, coffee cups, mugs, etc. So I wanted to share/discuss some of the pictures of such which I have collected.
In PUBLIC schools, one quickly becomes aware of the belief (which I suspect is true) that the US system of public education is probably one of our nation’s chief defining factors and may well be responsible for much of our national success. Therefore, it’s not too surprising to find teachers reinforcing this through in their choice of coffee mugs. Hence, the one below, bearing a quote from Mark Twain, which might pickup a teacher’s spirits after a “difficult” class.
In addition to those years, my first, actual, full-time, real employment, after getting my M.A. in Theatre and Drama from Indiana University, was as the Technical Director (sometime Scenic and/or Lighting Designer, and all-time set constructor) for Theatre 65, The Children’s Theatre of Evanston, IL. At that time, it was the longest continuously operating children’s theatre in the country (and one of the better known). By this point in it’s history, it had moved from sponsorship by Northwestern University (which had started it in 1925), to being under the auspices of the Evanston Public Schools (District #65). That meant that I was working under a temporary Teaching Certificate (in order to work for the school system), and I actually took a couple of classes (first at I.U., then at Northwestern) towards getting a “real” certificate as a “Drama Teacher.” I would suggest that those two years should also be included as part of my “teaching experience,” making the actual total 45 years. That’s quite a while.
While working in Evanston, I quickly discovered that theatre folks aren’t the only ones (at least at the time) who tended to consume coffee in somewhat prodigious amounts: it seemed that teachers, generally, did. So, while poking around in my “possible Blog stuff” files, I ran across some pictures of some coffee cups which seemed to relate to teachers and teaching. That being the case, I thought I’d see if I could come up with a post about them.
First off, I have to admit that MY teaching experiences have been confined to work with “Public” schools, as I have only worked at (or attended) schools which were publicly supported, in that they were chartered by state and/or local governments. Hence, I can’t be sure that my impressions would actually apply to private and/or religious-based institutions, although I strongly suspect that they would.
In any case, my experience would lead me to believe that MOST (perhaps not ALL, but MOST) teachers have, or develop, a fondness for coffee (and the “coffee break which allows contact with ones peers, who are NOT students, but collegial adults, even if not close friends). That means that teachers tend to have, are sometimes given, and are likely to enjoy, coffee cups, mugs, etc. So I wanted to share/discuss some of the pictures of such which I have collected.
In PUBLIC schools, one quickly becomes aware of the belief (which I suspect is true) that the US system of public education is probably one of our nation’s chief defining factors and may well be responsible for much of our national success. Therefore, it’s not too surprising to find teachers reinforcing this through in their choice of coffee mugs. Hence, the one below, bearing a quote from Mark Twain, which might pickup a teacher’s spirits after a “difficult” class.
Actually, if one looks around, one can discover that a teachers’ choice of coffee conveyance might be able to tell us a good deal about the teacher who owns/uses it. Case in point, many of us, when we are just starting out, have high hopes of working in “elite” institutions filled with well-behaved, curious, dedicated students, who always come to class prepared and excited about whatever material we have prepared for them that day. The reality is quickly discovered that that is not always the case, and even might be viewed as an anomaly a good deal of the time. AS this Peanuts mug suggests.
That can lead to a bit of “teacher dysphoria,” and even attempts (on occasion) to find reasons for ones’ lack of perfect satisfaction. See a mug relating to that phenomena below, which might explain the situation for some faculty quite well, I think:
Of course, many teachers, especially in the higher numbered grades, or in what is called “higher” education, generally, acquire (in a variety of ways) mugs which relate to the specific subject material which is their main focus. For example, a Math or Physics instructor might well have this example:
An instructor in a Music program might achieve a certain degree of comfort from the example below, especially if it was a gift from a colleague, parent, or an unusually talented student. The reality, of course, is that it would most likely have to be “self-purchased.” Still, the sentiment is comforting (rather like the coffee one might find in it).
On the other hand, many teachers of Literature might well understand the ironic truth expressed on THIS mug, even if they don’t always “teach” novels.
But that’s likely to set me off on another discussion of how so many “English Teachers” (at ALL levels) are all too likely to become what I call “Critics,” which means that they feel obliged to insist that their students simply MUST understand the “greatness” and “importance” of the chosen works because the “Most Knowledgeable Experts” have declared their excellence, without understanding that something CAN be well-written, etc. and still become so dated, old-fashioned, etc., as to be quite unexciting to actually read.
Speaking of DRAMATIC LITERATURE (where I feel I have somewhat greater knowledge), I would suggest that even the “greatest” play should be able to actually attract an audience in a well conceived/executed PERFORMANCE! It should NOT be “GREAT” just because some “Critics” decided that it was “well-written.” But, I don’t want to stray too far from my point….
The fact is that the “public,” most of whom have NO real idea how challenging the teaching profession can be (especially in the face of parental, let alone student, indifference), have the belief that “Education is really just job training, isn’t it?” (It ISN”T!) And, they think it’s highly paid and really simple, easy sort of work. Ask most teachers and they’ll tell you it’s really more like:
Speaking of DRAMATIC LITERATURE (where I feel I have somewhat greater knowledge), I would suggest that even the “greatest” play should be able to actually attract an audience in a well conceived/executed PERFORMANCE! It should NOT be “GREAT” just because some “Critics” decided that it was “well-written.” But, I don’t want to stray too far from my point….
The fact is that the “public,” most of whom have NO real idea how challenging the teaching profession can be (especially in the face of parental, let alone student, indifference), have the belief that “Education is really just job training, isn’t it?” (It ISN”T!) And, they think it’s highly paid and really simple, easy sort of work. Ask most teachers and they’ll tell you it’s really more like:
It’s really not surprising that one, occasionally, sees “teacher appropriate” coffee mugs in shops with things like this on them.
While not just limited in its appeal to teachers, I suspect that the mug below, with this quote from Shakespeare’s Coriolanus, might have a special appeal to teachers of dramatic literature.
No, I am NOT suggesting that those of us who deal (dealt) with that subject, which I number among the areas which I was concerned with in my career (along with the related topics of theatre history, scenic and lighting design, and general theatrical production), are more likely than any other group to indulge in “adult beverages.” Some do, even to excess, unhappily, but most, in my experience, just enjoy the occasional glass when there’s time to put one’s feet up and relax for a few moments. (And those moments can be pretty few and far between.)
When that sort of occasion arises, which COFFEE CAN assist with (surprise, surprise), any teacher might choose to use THIS mug to celebrate the (rather rare) occasion. They also might wish that more of their students (and their parents, etc.) understood the truth of what it says! Yes, there really IS truth here.
When that sort of occasion arises, which COFFEE CAN assist with (surprise, surprise), any teacher might choose to use THIS mug to celebrate the (rather rare) occasion. They also might wish that more of their students (and their parents, etc.) understood the truth of what it says! Yes, there really IS truth here.
The REAL reason why teachers teach, at least in the vast majority of cases, I believe, is because, perhaps a bit like being a clergy-member, there can be considerable satisfaction when one sees the
go off on a student’s face and thinks to one’s self, “Maybe I’m doing something right, I think she/he just GOT it.” You see, I think the real reason we do this frequently difficult, demanding and often under-appreciated thing called teaching is because, every so often, the rewards are great! Or, as Dr. Seuss might have put it:
Those readers who may actually BE teachers will understand, and YOU’RE the ones I really wrote this post for. Don’t give up, get a cup of coffee and press on. I confess that I’m not sorry to be retired, but I miss my students (and my colleagues), even though they drove me crazy at times.
I plan to be back in a couple of weeks jabbering away about something else. That post might have greater appeal for those who aren’t about to deal with Exams, grading, end-of-the-year meetings, etc. I promise that I’ll try.
🖖🏼 LLAP,
Dr. B
I plan to be back in a couple of weeks jabbering away about something else. That post might have greater appeal for those who aren’t about to deal with Exams, grading, end-of-the-year meetings, etc. I promise that I’ll try.
🖖🏼 LLAP,
Dr. B
P. S. I anticipate that my next post (#307) will probably go up sometime on May 12th, as I am scheduled for a “Minor Surgical Procedure” on the 13th and I, obviously, do NOT know how I am likely to be feeling on the 14th, which would be the normal “posting” day in my usual schedule. Assuming that “things” go as expected, I plan to “put up" post #308 on May 28 (which would restore the usual schedule). We’ll see. I admit that I do NOT eagerly anticipate ANY sort of “surgical procedure,” no matter how minor and/or routine, but I assume the the doctors know what they are talking about, so I’m not overly concerned. Anyway, I wanted to keep any readers informed. I DO anticipate returning, but the schedule MIGHT be a bit odd for a short while. RSB
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