One day towards the end of last year, my friend and I were standing in a classroom talking to a teacher.

"My grandfather is so old-fashioned," my friend complained, "He doesn't think women can do anything. He says a woman should just be a wife, or a teacher."

My teacher flinched at those words, but my friend continued, unaware that she had just hurt someone.

Scenes like these are all too common. Teachers don't receive the recognition and appreciation they deserve. Kids spend the greater part of their days in school, and pick up habits as well as values from those around them. In this way, teachers are responsible for many of the factors that influence a child or a teenager.

I consider the teachers I have met at my high school to be among the best people I know. They care, and possess a desire to make a difference through education. Teaching as a profession is looked down upon, but few people have both the desire and the ability to face a group of teenagers day after day and break through to bring about understanding. I admire teachers, and if I some day realize my goal of becoming a high school English teacher, I will owe it to their inspiration! n