I can remember the first day of class for my sophomore year at Lee County Senior High School in Sanford, North Carolina. It was roughly 95 degrees Fahrenheit and my nerves were pretty much on fire. You see, by this point, I had heard the horror stories about my Honors English teacher for almost a year. One student had encouraged me to drop out before it was too late while another had jokingly given me a sympathy card. To put it lightly, I was absolutely terrified. I received my class schedule in my homeroom class, and when I saw her name, MRS. PAMELA BEAL, I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to be excited that I had her for sixth period or terrified that I had to wait the entire day before her class was over. As the day went on, I could feel my heart beating at an unhealthy pace and all I wanted to do was go home.
Apparently Mrs. Beal had heard all about her own horror stories, because as soon as sixth period arrived and I walked into her classroom, she attacked me. Well, maybe attack is a little strong, but she immediately began questioning my incentive in arriving to class first. I thought that she was kidding, what teacher would ever ask their students why they were on time to class? So, I continued to walk to my seat and politely sat down only answering her question with a smile. She asked again, this time a little more annoyed, and I quickly said the first thing that entered my mind, “I just wanted to go ahead and get it over with.” Now that might not have been the best answer in another teacher’s class; however, Mrs. Beal laughed and said, “In my class it is important to not only know the answer, but to be able to justify it and to be honest.” I knew at that very moment that I would survive.
Mrs. Beal had a way about her that is nearly impossible to explain. Her frizzy hair, piercing blue eyes, and profound sarcasm made me want to not only make her happy but to succeed. She spoke of Gilgamesh, The Odyssey, and The Iliad with such understanding and awareness that made all of us 15 year olds want to learn more. Explaining Socrates and Plato to a group of students that understood the foundation of literature almost as well as a 2-year old would understand the Civil War, must have been no small feat. However, she pushed each of us to see past what we had already learned and to expand our minds. She looked at her Honors English class and saw a desire to learn, thus she challenged us in a way that I will never forget.
I can remember feeling so angry with her, while simultaneously respecting her in a way that no other teacher had ever earned before. She didn’t look at us as gifted and simply pacify our parents with worksheets; she forced us to look outside of the box, to recognize vital themes in literature, and to expect the most from ourselves. She taught me that just because I made A’s didn’t mean that I had learned anything, but that challenging myself would create a learning atmosphere that would last forever. She showed me that learning was far more active and significant than any final grade would ever suggest.
Mrs. Beal touched lives in a classroom that barely had enough seats for her students. She encouraged spiritual growth and an understanding of multiculturalism to a group of kids surrounded by negativity with little more aspirations than to finish school. She did this by assigning books like Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe and Siddhartha by Herman Hesse with themes encouraging the embracement of culture and the acceptance of individual thought as being valid, such as what is represented in existentialism.
In many ways, Mrs. Beal saved lost souls, by forcing us to work hard and to achieve at our own levels and abilities. She enforced the notion that one must work hard to achieve in life and that achieving isn’t just doing well in school, but also to aspire to improve even in virtually impossible circumstances. She encouraged us to not only live day to day, but to make a mark on society that would show that we were actually there. I could never thank her enough for showing me what it really means to have a teacher that cares.
I guess it goes to show that it’s okay to be afraid of what you are unsure of, but not okay to avoid the challenge. If I had never taken Honors English my sophomore year, I would have never had this experience, which changed my perspective on life and on the importance of a real education. Through Mrs. Beal’s efforts and her own personal talents as a teacher, I can say that I learned more in one year with her, than I did for nine years before she came into my life. Her course, although often frustrating, helped me focus my attention on self-improvement and academic achievement. Without acknowledging the significance of these two life lessons, I would not be who I am today.
-- Ashley Thorton, American University