Local teachers add tales to national storytelling effort

VIRGINIA BEACH

On her first day, Kenya Smith said, she was lucky one of her students didn’t lose an eye.

She was a 21-year-old student teacher in a class of at-risk 11th graders, she said, when a girl picked up a pencil and stabbed another student in the eye.

“I’m yelling for help, and all the teachers go into lockdown,” Smith said.

The injured student was fine, she said, but the situation provided valuable lessons.

Smith, now a Virginia Beach teacher, told her story as part of a 40-minute conversation with friend and fellow Renaissance Academy English teacher Karol Buckhalter during a recording for the StoryCorps National Teachers Initiative.

Over three days, 18 teachers – along with an interview partner – will provide oral histories through StoryCorps. Since the initiative launched in September, more than 300 people in 25 cities have recorded their stories.

The recordings will be edited and aired on NPR’s “Weekend Edition Sunday” throughout the 2011-12 school year, according to Diana Velez-Griffen of StoryCorps.

To narrow down a pool of 30 teachers interested in recording their stories, StoryCorps worked with WHRO and the Old Dominion University Center for Educational Partnerships. They looked for teachers with diverse background from different schools, Joanna Garner, a research assistant professor at Old Dominion University, said.

Buckhalter and Smith, both 38, hoped their stories would dispel some of the negative stereotypes associated with teaching students at Renaissance Academy. Many students at the alternative school have had disciplinary problems and come into the classroom with a negative view of education and teachers, they said.

“Education is a tough thing, sometimes an evil thing, to them, and we have to undo that,” Buckhalter said.

“I see it almost like a ministry,” Smith said. “You can be the only person who changes their lives.”

Faculty and staff at the school embrace slightly alternative teaching techniques, they said. Sometimes tiny adjustments – allowing a student to stand at a desk instead of sitting, or allowing gum-chewing – can make a big difference.

If students curse in class, Buckhalter said, she won’t immediately punish them. Instead, she’ll focus on the students’ overall message and help them figure out ways to get their points across without profanity.

Humor also helps, Smith added. Informal language like cursing can lead into an English lesson, she said.

“Word choice is part of what we teach,” Smith said.

To connect with students, Buckhalter and Smith said they sometimes tell personal stories about military life or divorce. During the StoryCorps interview, Smith described telling her students about how she grew up with a speech impairment.

“For me to teach English is an accomplishment,” shesaid.

“And I feel like, I may not be the best teacher ever, but I’m a good teacher. And if I can overcome, then I feel like any kid can overcome.”

While it can be difficult to get through to all students, the teachers said their successes make the daily struggles worthwhile.

“Breaking through those walls makes you feel successful,” Buckhalter said. “It keeps you going to work.”

Sarah Hutchins, 757-222-5210, sarah.hutchins@pilotonline.com