Bet the victims of the US military aren’t saying thank you for your service. It doesn’t even matter if the person isn’t directly responsible, they still dedicated their time and energy to the system. That’s the difference. It’s thankless because it’s awful. It’s the exception rather than the rule to have a teacher that made a real difference, and the most common difference teachers make is protecting kids from harm they wouldn’t be experiencing if not for school.

Exceptional teachers help kids survive, not thrive.