You may think free movie passes are no big deal, but to over-worked, under-paid teachers, they are much appreciated.
Education Politics/Community

Five Reasons Teachers Lose Their Minds for Free Movie Tickets

You may think free movie passes are no big deal, but to over-worked, under-paid teachers, they are much appreciated.

By Tessa Adams of Family Footnote

Recently, a very generous movie theater has offered one free movie ticket per day to teachers as a spring break gift. And teachers are reposting, forwarding, sharing, and spreading this good news throughout our city. This euphoric response may be perplexing to outsiders. I’ve heard mumblings of, “It’s just a movie ticket.” Or “One six dollar pass per day is free, so what?” from those working outside of the education profession, so I felt it would be helpful to explain why teachers are losing their minds:

1. They are really free. This ticket was given with no condescension; no mutterings of, “Oh, your job is adorable. Here’s a little ticket for a movie of your choice.” It was furnished with nothing expected in return. It was provided without an ulterior motive. It was simply given. These angels offered an explanation–as if one was needed–acknowledging that teaching is a difficult profession, so here is a token of our appreciation. No strings attached.

2. Teachers are used to things being taken. We know that a free public education is not actually free for many. It is no secret that teachers everywhere don’t hesitate to purchase supplies for their own classroom and students. Each year programs, funds, and time are stolen from educators in the name of budget cuts, disinterest of politicians, and a struggling economy. Someone somewhere seems to love watching educators do more with less each year, and those same people proceed to complain about education in America. This movie theater is offering teachers a two hour vacation for five consecutive days. This token of appreciation is echoing off of our hallways; we are so thankful for the support.

3. It gives us a distraction from the Betsy DeVos reality. Never has a president’s disinterest in America’s public education spoken so loudly as the current POTUS’s. Never has a political slap in the face stung so hard. Appeasing a campaign donor by giving her the secretary of education position is one of the biggest insults educators and students have ever received. Each teacher celebrating this gratuity watched many of their local representatives ignore them. Almost every representative agreed that DeVos was a dangerous person to assign to such an important role, but were mollified by the promise of her money gracing their campaign endeavors. A free movie is the perfect way for us to regain composure before we go to the polls in 2018 to fix the local political problem of electing people who choose to abuse public education.

4. We are on the receiving end of grace (from adults). Most teachers will tell you that the children are the reason we are in the profession. Very little of our stress is due to student behavior, and almost all of it comes from the adults who don’t have the students’ best interests in mind. Instead of receiving anger and blame, they are accepting a gift with no strings attached. It is such a new feeling to not be on the defensive when it comes to their profession, so you had better believe many educators have turned to social media to document this “unicorn” moment in our country.

5. A movie is a perfect gift. This year has been pretty exhausting for teachers. With unanswered protests, more budget cuts, and the threat of vouchers, a movie is a perfect escape from reality. It may only be two hours a day, but it is something glorious.

If you are one of the many wondering why otherwise calm adults are acting like free movie tickets are a trip to Disney World, think about the year educators have had. And in spite of these attacks from the government and news outlets alike, they persevere for kids. Thank you to the theater for giving educators a “no strings attached” movie ticket. You make a difference, and your message is a cherished one.

*********

About the Author

Tessa A. Adams is a graduate from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a Masters in reading. She is a language arts and creative writing teacher and is the co-author of the blog www.familyfootnote.com. She has three children and when she is not mothering or teaching, she is writing. Her work can be found in Huffington Post Parent, Fine Lines Literary Journal, Empty Sink Publishing, Route 7 Review, Sammiches and Psych Meds, xoJane, and Parent.co.