Teacher appreciation has been implemented since elementary school, encouraging students to give their teachers a sign of gratitude. However, it seems like students have become uninterested in thanking their educators as they transition into high school.
Following the end of Teacher Appreciation Week, there is a lot to reflect on, including how students showed gratitude for their educators’ hard work, or if students showed their admiration at all.
“It’s different now, we get some gifts, but we don’t get them like how I just bought my daughter’s teacher, who’s in kindergarten,” math teacher Daphne Robertson said.
“When kids are in elementary school, a lot of the time, the parents do it. But when they get into high school, I think that even if the parents want to do it, the kids are often embarrassed,” CTE teacher Amy Newsome said.
Others think that having multiple classes and many different teachers is what makes students less likely to give their instructors a token of their appreciation.
“It’s a bigger deal in elementary school because students there typically only have one or two teachers that they spend the whole year with, whereas in high school, students may have six to eight teachers, which they may only have for a semester. So it’s easier in elementary school to feel a closer relationship to a teacher as opposed to several,” social studies teacher Sara Cranford said.
The lack of acknowledgment toward teachers could also be due to age-based personality traits.
“At this age, teenagers are more egocentric by design, they’re supposed to be from a maturation standpoint. So I think it may be more prominent in elementary kids because they’re younger,” art teacher Nathan Newsome said.
Some believe that the acknowledgment of Teacher Appreciation Week depends on whether or not clubs and administration advertise it.
“Clubs have a really big part in spreading the message because I feel like Teacher Appreciation Week flies under the radar. We might see it on the news or social media, but most people don’t think about it. Clubs, the school, everything, they do a really good job of getting that message out that it’s going on,” social studies teacher Kyle Pallen said.
Just because Teacher Appreciation Week is over doesn’t mean educators won’t appreciate your gratitude. So make sure to thank a teacher for the work they do and the help they offer to their students.
