Appreciating the past while building the future

I have spent the last two years pursuing my Grad School degree in Educational Technology and Leadership and as I worked my way through the curriculum, class after class, I became frustrated as I was paying a lot of money and learning very little.  As an economics teacher who stresses the value of looking at opportunity cost and not over-valuing sunken costs, I began to wonder if I made the right decision, not regarding what I wanted a masters in, but whether or not I was benefitting from complacent professors who cared more about APA format than they did content and learning experiences. When back to school season came around, a teacher appreciation post started floating through my Facebook feed where people highlighted the elementary school teacher who changed their lives or had the biggest impact on them and I realized that I never had that. Then, while perusing Bill Gates’ blog, I saw his post on his most inspirational teacher.  I had great teachers in grade school and honestly loved the school itself, but I did not have a teacher that connected with me in a way that pushed me to pursue a life in education.  Many teachers got into education because someone inspired them to teach that discipline while in school and even though I had the notorious Mr. “Raul” Peters in high school, I do not know why I got into social science secondary education, it just seemed right.  At a time in the school year where I am surrounded by pessimistic students only worried about grades and dreading finals, teachers sprinting out of school with so many things to do, and anxiously awaiting the first email from a student about their semester average seconds after posting them….I thought it was a time to reflect on the educators who could never hear enough thank you’s to be repaid for the positive change they have brought education.  My story begins at Dwight D. Eisenhower High School.  

After graduating high school, the closest I ever got to returning was when I would go and watch baseball games to see my former coach and talk to some of the guys I mentored through the program.  I didn’t go in, I didn’t see teachers, and I didn’t give back.  After missing my ten year reunion, I was sitting at the local pub and reminiscing with my fellow classmate and good friend Dave about our years in highschool and the stories that made up our four years.  Story after story, we noticed a theme about our reminiscing...almost every story involved Mr. Dominiak or a class that Mr. Dominiak taught as Dave and I both had him for Honors English I and Newspaper class.  At that moment I realized that I owed Mr. Dominiak more thank yous than I could ever give him as I realized that no, he was not the teacher that inspired me to go into history education, but he was the man who set the standard for the educator I longed to become.  I never noticed the innovative, progressive, exciting, and student-centered person he was because kids don’t appreciate pedagogy, but I did appreciate the role he played in my educational career.

I could say that Mr. Dominiak was ahead of his time, but I think he was actually right on time.  When I was in high school, the education world was changing as standardized testing was becoming more and more important and I was falling through the cracks while punching my ticket and working the system to win the “points-game” in education.  I was good at that as I saw my GPA and semester grades as a systematic challenge I always won. Then when I was trying to punch my ticket and get my grade in Mr. Dominiak’s class, he called me out on it after class.  I will never forget it.  I was sitting in the back row, working on homework for another class so that I didn’t have to bring a backpack home, but I couldn’t focus.  I saw this man in front of the room, walking away from his podium, and giving a talk that I deliver to my own students every semester now.

“And there I was...5-6 years old, getting out of my father’s car only to look up at the most beautiful place I had ever seen, Tiger Stadium.  My father patted my head and threw on my Tiger’s hat, then took my hand and walked me in.  As I walked into the stadium the smell of cigars and hot dogs married to create a smell I learned to love, and upon seeing the field I was blinded by the greenest grass I had ever seen, making me look up at my father and smile as I prepared to watch a game of men who appeared as gods to me.  My father introduced me to the beauty of the game that day, a game I came to love”

As I heard his story, my homework went back in my backpack.  I absorbed every word he said, connecting as my own father introduced me to the game of baseball in a way I would never forget, and when I talked about it I connected with the story just like Mr. D did.  I went up to him after class and told him how much I loved it, and he looked at me and said, “I was just glad I had you in class today….I am not used it.”  As I walked away ashamed, Mr. Dominiak yelled, “the White Sox are terrible, and when you are ready to discuss it, my door is open.”  

The following weeks Mr. Dominiak spent talking baseball with me, but he also found ways to bring it into class. It wasn’t a conversation between just him and I, he was connecting to the entire class.  I had never looked forward to a class nor invested myself in a class in those ways as much as I did English I.  He asked me what my favorite baseball book was and I informed him that I didn’t have the attention span to read, to which he responded, “A man who does not read is a man who will never go places.  Give it a chance.”

Soon after, Mr. Dominiak chose the book we would read next and informed me that it was time to give reading a chance.  It was “Shoeless Joe”, by W.P. Kinsella.  I floated through the pages, excited to discuss passages in class and continue to show that I understood more than the basics, not for a grade, but to show appreciation for what Mr. Dominiak had done.  He did not choose curriculum based on what always worked, he let the learners steer it.  He had his hand on the pulse of the class at all times, and because he gave us a book that he knew we would love, we invested into his curriculum for the rest of the year.  He sat with me while reading “Night” by Elie Wiesel and taught me why it was important to empathize with people in a story and he meticulously picked apart my writing until it demonstrated passion and creativity balanced with academic expectations.  He made me fall in love with writing and invest into the stories of people.

As I ventured into my sophomore year, I longed for a class that I could connect with in the same way but it was not until registering for Newspaper class my junior year that I rekindled my love for education.  Mr. Dominiak ran the class and Dave had convinced me to join as he was taking on administrative roles and said that I would love the relaxed nature of the class.  Upon enrollment, I immersed myself into the experience immediately.  The class was autonomous, every student having a role and knowing who they answered to on a daily basis.  Mr. Dominiak did not run the class, the chain of command did.  The Editor and Chief controlled the editors, the editors took on staff writers and recruited photo editors, and if you had the creative capacity and ability to work with Mr. D’s regulations, you earned the ability to become a page designer.  Everything was organic.  Every story, picture, poll, headline, and column was student created and no-one missed deadlines.  You didn’t do a bad job because everyone worked for each other and the product was something we all appreciated.  With hard work, you could climb your way into leadership positions, mine were Features Editor, Page Design, Photo Editor, and writer for the weekly column known as “Gonzo Knowz”....I peaked in high school of course.  The craziest thing was how much time we sacrificed for the end result.  Yes, we had our class time, but that was not enough.  We sacrificed lunch, study hall, after school, and stayed until at least 6pm on deadline days with no reward but our great product.

We were indoctrinated in Newspaper law like: gutters kill page design, the first letter of text should always be size 24 font, pictures should always look inward, and grayscale creates balance on a page.  Although Mr. D may be disappointed in my lack of care for perfect grammar in this blog post, he would appreciate the content and message it would have provided and he would work me through a better product.

As I hit this midway point in the school year, I just wanted to show some appreciation for a man who inspired me to care about more than content.  A man who cared about the process, connecting with kids, and getting students invested into lifelong learning. Sometimes I need to sit back and appreciate the craft even when things may lean to the pessimistic side.  Instead, I look at Mr. D as my continued inspiration to build a better classroom and raise my expectations of self.  Thank you, Mr. Dominiak, and I hope that you realize you taught me far more than English in life.

White Sox > Tigers,

Anthony