The movie Beyond the Blackboard is a Hallmark Hall of Fame original movie.

It is based

on the memoir by Stacey Bess entitled Nobody Dont Love Nobody. It is a story of a

teacher in her very first immersion on the field of teaching, a story of overcoming personal

prejudice, showing of true strength of character, and true dedication in helping others

despite the adversities. The movie focuses on the dedication and efforts of a lone teacher

affected the lives of her students, their families, the state, and eventually the whole

country.

The School with No Name in which Mrs. Stacey Bess a wife and a mother of two, had her

first teaching job. It was not what she expected, the place is a shelter for homeless family

that is funded by the Salt Lake City district of Utah, and a single room was dedicated out

of the whole shelter to be the classroom of 20 or more students ranging from grades 1 to

6. The school program is the brainchild of the district and the shelter administration to

mend the problem they were facing. Students without transfer papers and immunization

records are not admissible to a regular school, hence the creation of the school with no

name to become a stop-gap measure. The school is run by a lone teacher in which she

has to teach the whole class on all subjects through grades 1 to 6 at the same time. The

school has no principal and property custodian, making the job of the teacher in acquiring

basic school needs for the students virtually impossible. Another problem of the teacher

is teaching 20 or more students who lacks the sense of obedience, and making sure that

the parents are also doing their job in helping their children as much as possible. Also

Mrs. Stacey Bess has an underlying disgust on poverty, in which the people in the shelter

represents. She has to overcome all the hurdles that are already present and the ones

that would eventually pop up. On top of dealing with all those problems Mrs. Stacey Bess,
a few days after her first day on the job, she found out that she is pregnant and has to

leave the school after the term. She would be overwhelmed if all the problems are not

addressed and properly dealt with.

Mrs. Bess overcame her personal prejudice with the help and support of her loving

husband Greg Bess. She dedicated her efforts in making the space that was their

classroom, look like a real classroom. As the district is taking their sweet time in providing

the basic needs of the school. Mrs. Bess used her own resources in providing the

necessary changes to the classroom with the help of some of the parents of the children

in the shelter, transforming the once dump into a real classroom in which the students

would like to study and feel secure with. She saw the hidden potentials inside her

students. She made an effort in getting to know them well and eventually unlocked the

potential in each of them. She found out that Danny the student who wears a cowboy hat

and smokes just like his mother is truly smart just like what his mother claimed. Danny is

one of the older kids in her class and showed true potential in leadership, he became the

class leader and the one who felt the saddest when Mrs. Bess announced her leaving the

school. There is also Maria, her constant helper and wants to become a teacher just like

her. She adopted Maria for a while, when Marias father broke the rule in the shelter of

No Alcohols Allowed and got kicked out. It is the only way for Maria to continue going to

school while her father is finding a way to get back to their feet. Maria was accepted by

Bess family and treated her like their own. Marias father eventually got back up and took

Maria to Albuquerque, Mexico. Mrs. Bess showed true dedication as an educator, and

helped her student see their potentials. She also made a drastic move to conduct the first

Parent-Teacher meeting, she asked the parents to approve her proposal in giving the
students a homework. She wants the parents to become more involved with their children

and helping them in their homework and dedicating the TV room of the shelter as the

study hall for her students 2 hours a day every afternoon. The parents all agreed on the

proposal as they have seen the dedication of the lone teacher in helping their children.

Another problem was addressed and eventually solved, when Mrs. Bess directly went to

the Superintendent Dr. R. T. Warren to address the basic needs of the school, instead

going usually to the Personnel Director Dr. R. E. Ross. Dr. Warren helped the school and

provided the basic necessities of the school, i.e. desks, chair, lamps, books, and etc. He

wholeheartedly supported the vision of Mrs. Bess and helped her on all the technical

needs of the school, he even appointed himself as the principal and the custodian of the

school to help ease the procurement of the school and the students basic needs. Its her

first time to have a full-time teaching job, yet she has so much more for the children of the

school. She touched the lives not only her students but also their parents. She helped

Graces mother Candy to read, in order for Candy to help her children. Mrs. Bess

dedicated much of her life into the School with No Name, that even if her contract is due

until the end of the semester only. She tried to prolong her stay and conducted a summer

class for the school, in order for the students to catch up on the subjects that they were

behind on the last semester. She managed to make the summer class into a family affair,

in which parents and the students had the time to bond in the picnics she hosted while

the students are playing a game of soft ball. Her husband Greg volunteered in being a

coach for the students, the students played with Greg and his children. They even had an

open-house, in which the students has to show what they had learned during the summer

class. During the time that Mrs. Bess was teaching, she had helped from Mr. Nelson
Peters, a mainstay at the shelter to teach the students in Arts. She had also talked to Dr.

Warren to approve Mr. Peters a teacher-grade salary and make him a regular arts teacher

for the school. Her strength of character shows that she is not only there to help her

students, but also touch the lives of the people who are living in the shelter. After having

her child, she was asked to return to teach at the school by Dr. Warren. The crusade of

Mrs. Stacey Bess had helped the country see the conditions in which the homeless

children suffers. It led to the passing of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Act in 1987,

ensuring the rights of the homeless children throughout the country. In 1988 the district

built a new building in which became the new school for the homeless children of the Salt

Lake City. She worked at the school for eight more years and decided to promote

education and community service all over the country. In 1995, Stacey was awarded the

National Jefferson Award for Greatest Public Service by an Individual Thirty-five years

or Under.

This goes to show that the traits strength in character, dedication, and willingness to help

is crucial in touching lives. For me this traits are ideal in becoming a teacher. A teacher

should be able to touch the lives of his/her students, help them grow into a better person

than they are now. A teacher should not only be able to teach the subjects that are

indicated in their workload, but also help the students grow and show them that the

subjects they are studying today would be useful for them in the future. I know that the

being a teacher is hard, and problems do really come with the job description. What job

doesnt, right? An educator is facing so many problems in any direction: There is the

pressure generated by the administration on top. Giving workloads to the teacher that has

nothing to do with their normal job description, without even giving the teacher a small
incentive for their hard work. This would lead to the educator slacking and instead of

dedicating their efforts in helping the school and students, they would only give what is

necessary and would result to the poor output of the students who are below the average.

Instead of reaching out to their student and find out what is wrong with the student, they

would not bother because as an educator they are under-appreciated by the

administration. A pressure to provide for their family can also be a deterrent to the teacher

in providing a quality teaching, too much pressure from the family would lead to the

teacher providing only what is necessary for them and not giving any effort on promoting

good education and values. An educator should be well-equipped with the latest

knowledge in teaching their students, a dedication in giving the student a quality learning

is a must to become an effective teacher. A teacher should be firm with her/his ideals in

providing the students a quality learning and safe environment in which they can prosper,

a strong sense of character is a must if you want your students to develop a good

character.

I find the movie very relatable for us students who are aspiring to become an educator.

The movie already highlighted most of the problems a teacher would face in her/his

profession. The movie also showed us what we need to overcome those hurdles in our

life. I would totally recommend this movie not only to those teacher-aspirants like me but

also to other people. A willingness to help others and selflessness is really needed this

time. To make the world a better place.