They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Following is a short piece put through a Spanish-to-English online translator to demonstrate its shortfalls and remind us that there are no shortcuts to learning:
“Returning to school is an occasion to remember that studying is a way of working. Those who read a summary of a novel or vocabulary not learn or appreciate the style and good understanding of the scene. Those who do not learn the rules of mathematics can not solve problems. To demonstrate how difficult it is to learn a language abroad and how important it is to put brick by brick to get it done, I submitted this letter to an automatic translator on the computer.”
Okay, here’s what I meant to say: as students go back to school it is a good time to remember that studying is work. Those who read a summary of a novel never learn its vocabulary, or get to appreciate its style or the scene that was set. Those who don’t learn math rules can’t solve problems. To show how difficult it is to learn a foreign language well, and how important it is to lay one brick after another to achieve it . . .
You get the point. Remember the phys ed teachers say “No pain, no gain.” But also remember that learning can be fun with lots of eureka moments. Don’t cheat yourself out of that!
The other educators
While it goes without saying that our teachers are the most important employees of our local schools, their administrators and support staff, and our school boards also deserve our thanks.
Our school boards and administrators provide the vision for our schools. Managing a multimillion dollar school district requires years of training and specialized study. It is easy to second-guess but hard to step in their shoes.
The support staff help keep the place running. Most of us can remember at least one custodian, nurse, secretary or cafeteria server who taught us a valuable lesson, often by example.
Fly the flag on 9/11
Several memorials are being scheduled to honor the memory of those lost in the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11. But let’s remember to fly our flags on that sad day as well, to let the victims’ families know we will not forget.