Missouri’s Teacher of the Year says her students, her fellow teachers, and the importance of what she does are the things that have kept her going for 37 years.
High School Social Studies teacher Margaret Williams of University City went to college as a prospective lawyer but she felt called to teaching. The state education department recognizes her for her ability to make history come alive in the classroom with hands-on lessons and projects.
She says she’s always nervous on the first day of school but quickly gets over it.
Williams says education needs to find ways to reach curriculum goals and do a better job of reaching students on the edges. If there was some extra money available, she says, she’d want more programs and more teachers to work with them–whether the children who are "very, very bright," or those who "really struggle."
Williams says she wants her students to clearly understand their world. She calls schools the foundations of our communities–and their futures. It’s a message she plans to deliver to state lawmakers and to others she will meet as Teacher of the Year.
Download Bob Priddy’s interview with Mrs. Williams (45:34 mp3)
