Yesterday I posted a comment by a reader who said that his teachers had saved his life and changed him for the better.
He thanked four of his teachers in the Chicago public schools and he named them.
One of the teachers he thanked just responded and thanked him!
How cool is that?
That is true psychic income!
That’s better than the shekels that the teacher might have been paid for raising test scores.
She changed his life.
Hey, Roland Fryer, what about that as an incentive to teach?
She made a difference.
When I ask myself why I spend so much time on this blog, I’ll remember this.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
How great is that?
I have every single note that a parent has sent me over the years and every card that my students, once old enough to actually write (i teach pre-) has sent me years later. I have my entire fridge covered in notes and some of my kitchen cabinets as well, along with class pictures from every year I have been in my current school.
I have one family who send me pictures of the four of their children who have passed through my class. I have one more coming next year.
No amount of money can give me the feeling that those cards and pictures and notes give me.
When my students come back to my room and tell me current pre-k children what they did when they were in my class and how important it is to listen and pay attention, I want to cry.
The people who think that carrots and sticks are the answer don’t understand that some people have callings and others just get a job.
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You deserve to have a good day, Diane. One thing is certain, you are not wasting your time blogging & tweeting. You are making an exponential difference. You say what others are afraid of saying. And you make sure voices are heard.
Psychic pay is real. Thank goodness.
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Thank you. Today I finished a chapter in my book, so multitasking works for me! Blogging, tweeting, writing. I should be walking, running, biking, swimming. We all have our priorities.
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Maybe tomorrow, huh?
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Thanks so much, Diane! It really made my day, too!
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