After having spent a year teaching high school, actor Tony Danza says American teachers deserve an apology for everything they have to put up with and the lack of gratitude they receive.
The Who's The Boss? star spent a year teaching 10th grade English at Northeast High School in Philadelphia, and quickly realized how difficult it is to get children to focus amid the distractions they face today and realize the importance of getting a good education.
“In the midst of a tough economy and continuous budget cutting, how do we send a message to students that being in school and making the most of their time there is important?” Danza writes in an op-ed for USA Today.
In his new book titled, "I'd Like to Apologize to Every Teacher I Ever Had," Danza talks about his experience teaching and how he finally understood how hard teachers work to inspire students who are constantly distracted and facing an even more competitive world.
"I hoping the book not only talks about the great moments that we have but it also talks about issues," he says. "Issues that are faced in education now a days and how important it is that we educate our kids so that they can compete with the rest of the world."
Danza says today that is even more critical, considering the jobs that students could slide into with mediocre performance before are no longer available today, noting that "in 1950s and 60s when I went to school.. you could slide by...now those jobs are no longer around and that's why schooling is so important."
Much of this, Danza says, comes from the student's lack of interest in school rather than the teacher's level of commitment. We need to stop blaming our teachers for everything in the classroom, Danza is quick to note, adding that parents have to be more involved.
"...Teachers have no problem being held accountable by parents. In fact, they crave parent involvement," he says, adding that it is the parent's job to encourage success in school and talk to their children about the importance of a good education.
After working as a teacher, Danza writes about how difficult the job is and realizing that he wasn't always the best student for his teachers.
"And lastly I really would like to apologize to every teacher I've ever had."