‘Relections on my years in education
‘To teach is to learn twice.’ The timeless truth of that apt aphorism by Joseph Joubert has been much on my mind and deep in my heart recently, as I taught my final classes at Motlow in McMinnville.
Actually, I believe to teach is to learn many times. That’s certainly been true for me, as I reflect on my 19 years of college teaching. I learned something new and interesting literally every day, from my colleagues, my students, and the many public officials who gladly graced my classrooms through the years.
I’ve been a student and a teacher most of my adult life. I was a student, broadly defined, in the Army, as I learned the many lessons a fledgling soldier needs to know, to survive and thrive in the military milieu. As I rose through the ranks from buck private to staff sergeant, and then through Officer Candidate School to become an officer in the Infantry, I continued to learn and then to teach and learn again the art of being a professional soldier.
Fortunately, the Army gave me ample opportunities to grow, personally and professionally. Along the way, I came to understand what Malcolm Forbes meant when he said ‘Education’s purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one.’
From apprentice courses, like Airborne and Ranger training, to professional military education courses, like the Command and General Staff College and the U.S. Army War College, to civilian schooling that culminated in a Master’s Degree in Political Science ‘ all enriched and empowered me ‘to be all I could be’ as a soldier and leader.
Ironically, I was once a high school dropout. That episode in my life is another story. I’m glad I dropped back in, with the encouragement of teachers and other mentors. Among those who influenced me most, besides my mother, in those days were J.S. Carr, John Cox, Jonah Fitch, Joe Nunley, Jim Lane, and Miss Joy Bragg. What they saw in me, I don’t know, but theirs were the sparks that helped ignite my lifelong desire to keep on learning and teaching.
Sometimes I wonder if teachers realize how much impact they have on their students. I’ve heard hundreds of stories from my own students through the years about teachers who had touched their lives, in both positive and negative ways. Maybe it was a word of encouragement, or a disparaging remark. Either way, it had a lasting effect.
Today, our nation is facing an epidemic of high school dropouts, and Tennessee is not exempt from its impact. Indeed, we are way too high in the number of students who, for whatever reasons, leave the classroom too early, never to return again. Many of these dropouts are doomed to a life of dead end, low-paying, menial jobs.
The dropout problem did not occur overnight, and it won’t be solved overnight. Still, educators, parents, students, and community leaders need to take on the task of reducing our shameful dropout rates. As a former dropout, I’m eager to help whenever and wherever I can.
Thomas B. Vaughn is a retired Army Colonel and former college professor. He is also a popular radio personality, public speaker, and award-winning songwriter.
Thomas B. Vaughn can be reached by e-mail at tbvbwmi@blomand.net.