What Students Might Not Realize About Their Teachers

with other school related activities.

Students see their teachers working from the time school starts until they leave school at the end of the day. However, teachers do more for their students than what students may think.

“I feel like students don’t realize what a large capacity the teacher has to handle. When the students get to see the teacher, [it] is roughly a 25-28 to one ratio, but that teacher has four or five other classes. Whatever she, he, or they [are] doing for one class, they’re doing it times five,” said Hannah Lewis, science teacher.

Most FHS teachers have around 100-150 students across five classes. This means they have hundreds of tests and projects to grade, and more than 100 students they are responsible for teaching each school year. Most teachers also teach different classes which requires more lesson planning for each unique class.

The teachers interviewed spent an average of one to three hours per weeknight and roughly eight hours on the weekends grading assignments or coming up with lesson plans along

“My kids are working on a project right now and people will write anywhere from five to twenty pages, and that’s per kid,” said Amelia Speirs, English teacher. “I spend roughly five to seven minutes [grading each project], so doing an entire class can take six or seven hours.”

The lesson plan for each time a class meets also takes time to put together. Teachers put thought into their planning with the purpose of helping their students and to meet specific standards of learning. Teachers said that everything they teach in class has a greater purpose than what students may see.

“[I] put meticulous thought into everything we do in class,” said Lauren Krause, German teacher.

Some teachers also attempt to plan their lessons based on where their students are at and what they need to work on to succeed.

“When I’m planning my lessons, I don’t get too far ahead because [I] look at where [my students are] being successful and where [they are] stumbling so the next lesson will build from that,” said Kimberly Haugh, math teacher.

Teachers spend more time in the school building than what students see. They are supposed to be in school by 9:15 a.m. and stay until 4:30 p.m. However, many teachers arrive earlier to get work done, attend staff meetings, or to meet with students for test corrections or makeups. They may also stay after school for an additional one to two hours for the same reasons.

“I get here around 8:30 a.m. at the latest in the morning, and then I usually don’t leave until 5:30 p.m.,” Lewis said. “Then I go home and probably work [on] school for about two to two and a half [more] hours.”

Teachers have found different ways to achieve a work-life balance, implement boundaries and manage their after school workload.

“I have a spot where I do a lot of the work where my dog keeps me company. It makes it a little bit nicer,” Haugh said. “Then by having a spot I can walk away so that the schoolwork stays in one room.”

Lewis noted that she gives herself certain work hours after school to give her a good balance and time to relax after long days.

“If I have a lot of stuff to do, I will say okay, I will do schoolwork until 7:00 pm. Whatever doesn’t get done by then will get pushed over to tomorrow,” Lewis said, “It gives me time for dinner and a little relaxation with zero thought about school.”

Some teachers also decide to do more within FHS and help by sponsoring clubs which requires more time spent planning meetings, time after school for meetings, and sometimes going on trips for competitions or other activities within the club. Most FHS sports are also coached by FHS teachers, which is an additional time commitment for teachers as they have to attend practices throughout the week as well as games or meets over the weekends. Teachers are not often paid for being a club sponsor and only receive a small stipend for being a coach.

“It’s just teachers doing it out of their hearts to support their kids,” Speirs said.

In addition to spending extra hours on school work, teachers may choose to spend money out of their own pocket for treats, snacks or extra school supplies to benefit their students.

“[Students] don’t always like to read in the way that we’re used to thinking. For some people, it’s manga, a running magazine, ESPN or something that’s still words on a page. I buy a lot of different material for my students to keep them interested in reading,” Speirs said. “I [also] buy a lot of snacks, and that’s like 100 bucks a week just to cover snacks for kids. So that’s all coming out of my own pocket.”

Despite some of these challenges, teachers still find that they love teaching.

“I think it’s awesome seeing how you guys can work through a problem or communicate your feelings or own up when you’ve made a mistake. Seeing all of those little minor realizations within the student body is so heartwarming, and it gives me great joy for the next generation of adults that are soon to come,” Lewis said.

Teachers also enjoy the variety of their days and getting to learn things from their students.

“I think my favorite thing is that I learn almost as much from my kids as they do, so they make me laugh and cry and feel like 50 different emotions throughout the day. No day is the same and I’m always able to at some point have something meaningful to connect with,” Speirs said.

Teachers enjoy being able to support their students any way they can.

“Honestly all 134 of [my students] put the biggest smile on my face,” Lewis said, “If I can do one thing to help [them] throughout this entire school year, I will feel good about myself.

Most of all, teachers find the work they do to be rewarding.

“[I get to work] with other people and [teach] them something skillful, fun and rewarding,” Krause said. “You get to do a lot of fun, goofy things.”

Overall, teachers put in a lot of effort into their classes and students in order to help their students succeed.