Blog Post #7

Leadership Connector, Trust (C. 6)

I found practical, the advice given by the author in this book. Some of the advice should be obvious and basic, but unfortunately there are leaders that do not practice some of these norms.  In my twenty-one years of teaching, I have worked under several leaders.  Some were good and some were marginal. I relate to the story of Mary who had invited the Marching Turnaround Cadets as I too had made mistakes as a teacher.  Many years ago, I was working at my first teaching job in Porterville, but living in Visalia. I read in the Visalia Times Delta that there was going to be a play in Spanish in the local theater and thought this would be a great idea for my students to attend for extra credit. I called the playhouse and asked them if the play would be appropriate for high school students and they assured me it would be.  I went to work the next day and invited my students to attend. That weekend for the grand opening of this play, my husband and I went to see it and OMG I was terrified. They used so much vulgar language I was embarrassed.  Since the play was not in the city my students were living, I only saw one of my students there.  That weekend I wrote a letter apologizing to that student and the parents. I told them that they had trusted me and I had made a terrible mistake and that I was very sorry and that that was never to happen again. That morning I called the girl and told her I have something for you and she said, “I also have something for you too” She also had a letter from her mom addressed to me. I said thank you and put it away.  When she left I read it and she said that she had thought to call the principal, but that her daughter liked me very much and begged her not to call. I was so embarrassed. I was a brand new teacher, but this lesson stayed with me always. I learned that parents trust us with their children and that we should take every precaution we would want any teacher to take with our own children.  From then on I always preview any film, movie, play, song or anything I will show to my students before I even consider showing it to them.  I used this experience as a learning lesson. Trust is definitely very fragile.