Eric Burrows
U.S. and European History
San Marcos High School
Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara County
The classroom of the future is the classroom that is held accountable and is the one where the student not only learns, but loves to learn. —Eric Burrows
Eric A. Burrows loved his job at the Alameda County District Attorney's Office, but a call to invest in youths tugged at him. So, taking night classes, he earned a teaching credential and eventually switched to teaching in Oakland public schools. He knew immediately that this new path felt right. To this day Burrows calls teaching "intensely personal, demanding, exciting, and rewarding. "He says teaching allows him to study history and new teaching skills every day and gives teachers a chance to "learn about ourselves in incredible ways."
Kim Labinger
Fourth Grade Teacher
Thomas A. Edison Elementary School
Glendale, Los Angeles County
Like fingerprints and taste buds, knowledge is a personal thing. . .Each child is a part of the great fabric that we who are their teachers weave, and we must teach as we would weave, each strand treated with care and placed just so. —Kim Labinger
"I grew up in the shadow of greatness," says Kim Labinger, "Mahatma Gandhi and his philosophy of nonviolence; Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore and his poetry that transcends all faiths; and Mother Teresa, whose Home for the Dying and Destitute stood on the street where I lived in Calcutta. Most importantly, I looked to my parents, a healer and a teacher, who taught me by example to embrace the beauty and wisdom inherent in people of all walks of life." Labinger's earliest memory of school is that of holding her dusty slate up to the rain as the water gushed off the corrugated tin roof of a two-room schoolhouse. "My sister and I . . . made up plays for the leprosy patients. We turned our bookshelves into a library for the neighborhood children. We celebrated festivals with people of all faiths and delivered simple gifts to patients at Christmas."
Stanley Murphy
Social Studies Teacher
San Diego High School
San Diego, San Diego County
Student achievement is the goal. It cannot be accomplished without a school culture that values collegiality. —Stanley Murphy
Stan Murphy recalls his sixth-grade teacher, Mr. Tull: "Recognizing that I was an athlete, he made my learning experiences revolve around competitive activities that were fun and interesting and appealed to the athlete in me. He utilized my desire to be the best in sports to develop a drive to compete for academic excellence. There was energy and urgency in his teaching. He was willing to do whatever was necessary to ensure the most rigorous instruction."
Alan Siegel
History, Civics, and Economics Teacher
W.C. Carlé Continuation High School
Lower Lake, Lake County
All Americans need to return service to their communities and their country. I have seen the effect of service on self-esteem. —Alan Siegel
Alan Siegel says, "A talented teacher who exposed me to hands-on engaging curriculum said you can never have too many arrows in your quiver. One arrow, no matter how good, will get boring and lose your students." Siegel believes that a teacher who has mastered the art of lesson planning can teach anything. "Experienced teachers need to take time to help newer teachers plan and execute successful curriculum and discipline policies." In six years Siegel himself has mentored six new teachers.
Ray Williams
Sixth Grade Teacher
Steve Luther Elementary School
La Palma, Orange County
One of the things I stress to my students is that they must accept personal responsibility, and those (who) are willing to do that will certainly be the best - and most influential - adults of tomorrow.
—Ray Williams
One visit to Ray Williams's class will make you want to return. There you will find an array of activities to complete and objects to examine, from handling his pet snakes and tarantula to conducting science experiments. "My class was located by the playground," writes a parent helper, "and every day the
kids would ask, 'What's that . . . a monster?' My reply was , 'No, it's called a skeleton.' Then, of course, they all wanted to know why [it] was wearing a wig. That is how we met Mr. Williams."
