Facebook, Teaching, and Favoritism (AKA, I couldn't think of a title for this post)

I could talk about the wonder that is Facebook for DAYS, but let me share a brief example of why I love Facebook today.

In the '90s I taught high school journalism, which was a wonderful job because I had students who took my classes year after year (after year). I was given the opportunity to get to know them quite well. There were some newspaper and yearbook staffers that I knew and loved more than others, and my greatest regret as a teacher is letting that favoritism show.

I have a handful of former students that I've kept in contact with over the years, and now with Facebook I have been able to catch up with more of them. Tonight one of them instant messaged me while I was online, and he and I talked about The Biggest Loser and sociology and, eventually, what I'd done right and wrong as a teacher.

Here's an excerpt of that conversation.

Me: So here's a loaded question: What was the best and worst thing I ever did as a teacher? (Not that I'm going to ever teach again. I just want to atone for my educational sins.)

A: The best thing you did as a teacher was finding a sublime balance between letting us feel like we were in charge, and you actually being in charge. We felt a GREAT deal of ownership and responsibility for the paper, and clearly (for someone like me especially) you gave us a lot of leeway in what we could write about, but I never felt unsupervised or unsupported or like there were no expectations on me.

The worst thing is that you clearly had students you did like, and students you didn't, and we probably didn't get the same treatment.

Me: That's very, very true. That's one of my greater regrets as a teacher. There was definitely favoritism toward the kids who cared and wanted to be there, and I gave up too easily on the slackers.


In one quick conversation, I received confirmation that I wasn't a horrible teacher after all, and that I was right about my showing favoritism toward certain kids over others.

So here's an open letter to my former students, all 800+ of you. I'm sorry! I tried, I sometimes failed, but know that I did care about each of you. I'm sorry if I ever made you feel less important or less of a person or less worthy than anyone else.