Becky Stajkowski- I'd Like to Apologize to Every Teacher I Ever Had

Title of Book: I'd like to Apologize to Every Teacher I Ever Had
Author: Tony Danza

Summary:
Tony Danza is an American actor that has recently found himself out of the work within the television business, he decides to fulfill a lifelong dream and become a teacher. Danza alerts friends within the media and soon finds himself at the centre of a reality show based upon his experiences as a first year teacher. Danza discovers himself overwhelmed with the responsibilities and challenges he faces, however he is insistent on reaching these inter city Philadelphia students through the use of new methods and perseverance. The readers follow Danza on his journey through dealing with difficult situations, students, and staff members, all while realizing that he himself had not been the best student to teach while growing up.

Establishing yourself and your classroom:

The book begins with Danza recalling advice and information he acquired from educational sources and contacts, and his struggle to establish himself as a unique individual. He tentatively hangs motivational posters around the room and writes his class rules on the board, those being: "1. BE here, on time and prepared 2. Be kind 3. BELIEVE" (Danza, pg. 4). He installs a hand sanatizer machine in his room and then quickly worries that students will find his insistence on clean hands to be eccentric (which they do), and he quickly doubts himself as an authority figure. He receives a tip from a former teacher in which he is instructed to not smile before Christmas, otherwise students will doubt him as a figure with power, and find it easy to walk all over him. Danza often discusses in the book that each teacher is different, and that respect is earned for students and from them. He finds it important to ensure that students know he is in charge, but not to make students feel as though he is a warden while they are serving a sentence within the school.

School Administration and Authority figures:

Danza insists that his teaching experience be the same as a "non famous" teacher, and therefore asks that his principle and colleagues treat him no different than they would anyone else. Danza quickly finds himself in trouble with the assistant principle Ms. DeNaples when he is informed that teachers are expected to sign in each morning and he has not been doing so. DeNaples scolds Danza, and his feelings of discomfort are very similar to what most beginning teachers would feel if they were in the same situation. He is reprimanded firmly and tries his best to talk and charm his way out of an uncomfortable situation, when he finds this effort to be fruitless he accepts his lecture and quickly learns from his experience. One of his lessons to the students is that they must make the best out of a bad situation, and he reminds them that the best way to do this is to stay positive and polite. This lesson is vital to first year teachers that may find themselves disheartened by a negative experience within their school, when being reprimanded by authority figures it is best to learn from the experience rather than lose your temper and ultimately your job. Danza is lectured constantly throughout the book by his principle and vice principle, and he blames this on his innocent ignorance. He finds that the best way to avoid situations such as these are to remain proactive, reading school policies and rules prior to being caught breaking them.

A teacher must play many roles:

Danza begins this experiment with the wish to become a teacher, however, he does not realize that in becoming a teacher he is also becoming much more than that. Danza quickly finds himself becoming his student's confidant, a person in which they can trust with their secrets and their reasons for which they find school a struggle. In this way Danza also finds himself a psychiatrist as he is often able to listen to students in a way in which they feel better and can find a solution (even if it is short term) to their current problem. Danza also finds himself in the role of coach as he begins assistant coaching the high school's football team, even skipping his family's thanksgiving in order to attend a big game. In chapter 3 of his book Danza finds himself assigned truancy duty, in which he is assigned to circle the campus and hallways in order to find stragglers and direct them towards their classes. Danza is reluctant to take this role seriously as it is one he has been assigned and is not fully comfortable with. He fulfills his duties through the use of humour, and affirming students that ushering them to class is not his idea of fun either. I think this is an important lesson for teachers as it discusses the ways in which the roles are not always adapted, but sometimes assigned, relating back to Danza's idea of compliance and politeness when it comes to authority figures. Other roles in which Danza adopts are those of chaperone, talent show creator, and tour conductor. He fulfills these roles to the best of his ability, all while maintaining a positive attitude and a sense of humour, a must if one is to enjoy their teaching experience.

Changes in the school environment:

Danza does not discuss the ways in which curriculum changes, but rather writes about the way in which he feels that educators must change their teaching styles in order to engage a generation so deeply connected to technology. He discusses the way in which students expect to be engaged and entertained from the minute they sit down in a classroom, otherwise their attention will soon drift to handheld devices and the internet. He uses this knowledge to take subjects that students would regularly find boring (such as Shakespeare), and thinks of ways in which he can creatively hold his student's attention while also teaching them.  The other changes Danza discusses is the ones that surround the attitude of safety within schools and the society around them. He mentions on his first day that he must pass through a metal detector, something completely alien to him in a school setting. He recalls his memories of high school and writes, "we remember fistfights after school, but no gunfights. We remember walking home from school without fear of getting mugged. We remember parents who pressed us to do well in school so that we could go on to college" (Danza, pg. 49). Danza admits that territory such as this is foreign to him, but it increases his insistence that students need empathy more than ever from their teachers. He understands that every student is an individual with unique experiences, and that often these experiences can be traumatic and difficult for students to overcome. The changing environment of school and violence requires teachers to strive harder than ever to fulfill roles such as "the reassurer" and "the listener" so that students know they are not alone in the world, and that they have at least one adult that cares about their wellbeing.

Parental Involvement:

Danza often writes about parent teacher interaction, and he unfortunately finds that many parents within the Philadelphia school system are absent. Many students struggle with parents that have died, or parents that are uninterested in their children's education. Danza finds this hard to cope with, however, he also writes about the ways in which parents can become over involved in their children's learning. He writes about an incident in which a student disrespected another teacher and used inappropriate language in order to engage this teacher in a conflict. When the student was brought to the office his mother stormed in, blaming the teacher immediately for her child's failure and absenteeism. Danza remarks that times have changed from when he was enrolled in school, a time in which parents sided with the teachers, rather than believing their children without the required information. He writes, " the school's forced to reprimand teachers whose only crime may be high standards. It's an exhausting, destructive cycle" (Danza, pg. 177). It is important for teachers to remember that they may not always have parent support, and that they must keep documentation in which their argument is supported.

The Small Victories:

Danza struggles throughout his teaching year, he finds it difficult to cope with new challenges and struggles, often ending with him in tears. He reminds the readers that he is told all teachers cry, and that students have a way of making you feel emotions you did not believe possible. New teachers often find themselves overwhelmed and Danza reminds them that you cannot take everything personally, an upset in the classroom does not mean that you are a failure. He also says that the most important thing to do in order to keep your spirits up is to remember the small victories, the days and events in which you finally feel as though you are making a difference. When he makes a difference in a single student's life, Danza feels as though he has accomplished great feats. Any success in the classroom and with students must be celebrated, instead of allowing yourself to fall prey to self doubt. When teachers attempt to make little differences in their student's lives they are doing much more than they imagine. Danza believes that by simply listening to a student, both the teacher and student are emerging as winners.

Critique

Overall I thought the book I'd Like to Apologize to Every Teacher I Ever Had was very well written. I liked that Tony Danza made the book so personal with many personal stories and anecdotes. This book particularly appealed to me as Danza is writing from the perspective of a first year teacher, and includes not only the positive, but also the negative circumstances he finds himself in. Danza is very accomplished in the way in which he makes the reader believe his conviction when it comes to the topic of education, the reader understands that Danza truly means to make a difference in each student's life. The book was very useful in discussing the ways in which inter city schools are different from those that I am most familiar in, and he managed to introduce the challenges without scaring the reader off. I found that while the book was a fascinating read, it was a little hard to recognize Danza as a teacher presented without bias. He discusses the ways in which he was able to connect with students through buying them devices. He writes of the way in which he teaches a student to control his anger by buying him a punching bag and the way in which he rewards a poetry contest held in his class by buying the winners flip cameras. I felt that this was an unrealistic portrayal of modern teachers as many do not have the school budget, or personal budget that would enable them to buy their students extravagant gifts such as these. I also found that Danza ignored the fact that his fame and television show was clearly the source of some of his power. I have found that students do not just naturally gravitate towards a teacher and spill their life secrets, yet Danza finds himself almost instantly overwhelmed with student attention. I feel that much of this attention is due to the fact that he is a famous celebrity.
The book was very enjoyable, and Danza was able to use his comedic talents in order to make his book humorous for the readers. I would recommend it as a definite read for first year teachers, yet I would take Danza's stories with a grain of salt

Resources:
Danza, T. (2012). I’d like to apologize to every teacher I ever had: My year as a rookie teacher at Northeast high. New York, US: Crown publishing group.