The Studentawards “Thank Your First Class Educator” contest invited members to thank a special teacher, professor, coach, counsellor, TA or administrator who has made a difference in their lives. Turns out there’s a lot of gratitude out there, as we received almost 1,300 responses. Below are some of our favourites, in which members say “Thanks for Turning a Subject I Hated into a Subject I Love”.
I think one of the teachers I owe a lot to is Mr. Wade. He was (is) my grade 11 and 12 math teacher. Let me tell you that I am absolutely horrible at math. Last year I cried because I was so scared that I was going to fail and not graduate in my first regular math course. When I switched into his [class] it was like a miracle was sent to me. This guy could [teach] advanced calculus to a rock, and the rock would understand the material. I actually ended up winning a math award because of him. So thank you for all the time and effort you put into helping your students become much better at math Mr. Wade!
I would like to say a huge thank you to Mr. Meyer at York Mills C.I., Toronto, for his truly contagious enthusiasm, patience and love for teaching. General opinion and popular belief had led me to think that physics was a subject comprehensible to only a select, brilliant, few. Lacking as I am in the genius department, I was not only wary, but quite terrified, of what lay in store for me. From the very first day, however, Mr. Meyer immediately put me at ease. His style of teaching was completely different from any other I have ever experienced … I found that physics really wasn’t so bad. In fact, physics quickly became the class I looked forward to every day. His incredible dedication and passion for the subject touched each and every one of his students. I am so grateful that I was lucky enough to have Mr. Meyer as my physics teacher not only in grade 11, but in grade 12, as well. Thank you, Mr. Meyer, for blowing my mind every single class, for showing me that hard work really does pay off, and most of all, for teaching me that physics is FUN!
I would like to send out a big THANK YOU to my social studies 10-1 and 30-1 teacher Mr. R. Nelson! You are the most level-headed employee of the entire Alberta Ed system and it has been a privilege to be your student! Up until I was a part of your class, social studies used to be my very least favorite subject. Not anymore! You’ve made it fun and interesting and overall just a great class to attend each day. Thanks to you, I am now enlightened about all the worldwide events that no one ever thought to share with me before! … Thank you, Mr. Nelson, for being so awesome at your job #bestsocialteacherever
I would like to extend my thanks to Dr. Gregory Vugalter of Rutherford Private School, my current grade 12 teacher of Calculus and Vectors … He always goes above and beyond to ensure that students not only memorize but actually understand the concepts they are learning, and has helped me build a solid foundation in math. I have struggled my entire life with mathematics, but … he has opened my eyes to a whole new world of possibilities by showing me that no problem is too great under proper analysis … He has restored my faith in math and myself, and helped me excel in an area I always feared. I thank you, Dr.Greg, on behalf of all of your students …