Here is the letter that Lincoln wrote to his son’s teacher:
He will have to learn, I know, that all men are not just, all men are not true.
But teach him also that for every scoundrel there is a hero.
That for every selfish politician, there is a dedicated leader.
Teach him that for every enemy there is a friend.
Steer him away from envy, if you can.
Teach him the secret of quiet laughter.Let him learn early that the bullies are the easiest to lick.
Teach him, if you can, the wonder of books.
But also give him quiet time to ponder the eternal mystery of birds in the sky,
bees in the sun, and the flowers on a green hillside.In the school teach him it is far honorable to fail than to cheat.
Teach him to have faith in his own ideas even if everyone tells him they are wrong.
Teach him to be gentle with gentle people and tough with the tough.Try to give my son the strength not to follow the crowd when everyone is getting on the band wagon.
Teach him to listen to all men.
But teach him also to filter all he hears on a screen of truth and take only the good that comes through.Teach him if you can, how to laugh when he is sad.
Teach him there is no shame in tears.
Teach him to scoff at cynics and to beware of too much sweetness.
Teach him to sell his brawn and brain to the highest bidders but never to put a price-tag on his heart and soul.Teach him to close his ears to a howling mob and to stand and fight if he thinks he’s right.
Treat him gently, but do not cuddle him because only the test of fire makes fine steel.Let him have the courage to be impatient.
Let him have the patience to be brave.
Teach him always to have sublime faith in himself because then he will have sublime faith in mankind.This is a big order, but see what you can do.
He is such a fine fellow, my son !
Well, I guess there are very few teachers who teach these things now-a-days. In school, I learned mostly about how things work, who invented what, which is the longest river, which is the highest mountain, who won which war and when, and many other useful things.
But it seems that the letter was not originally written by Lincoln himself. The letter first appeared on an Indian website as mentioned by Jose A. Carillo in his articles: part-1 and part-2. But even if it is true, it doesn’t reduce the value of the content.
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so great thing you have given to be great teacher
i am as a teacher i love to teach my student and try to give as much as kmoweldge i can give to my student
with respect
harish singh
india -
Thanks Harish. Good to know that you take teaching seriously and make efforts to be better. Your students are fortunate to have you as a teacher. Good luck.
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as a teacher i have to play a role of frind,father,mother and sister, becouse teacher help and show to there student way that leads them to bright future
the student is like a small baby who depends upon there teacher guidence
i think my self very happy when my student achieve success in there repective field. this is nobel profession that give everything to there student and doesnot ask any anything just one thing every teacher asked bright future of there student
my most of student are doctores,engineers,and in other field. they are earning much then me,and in higher postion but when they come to meet me they forget all passion they have they respect me ,, that is great rewards for me
in india teacher is called as guru. -
Harish, I agree with you that a good teacher only expects his students to do well. Imparting knowledge is important but also giving them the freedom to think on their own is also equally important. Sometimes teachers forget that. They keep trying to mold them according to what they think is right not allowing any space to student to develop his own thinking.
I think you are doing great work and I hope that you inspire your friends and colleagues to do the same. Keep spreading the good ideas. -
When I was a littel kid, I found my teachers as very interesting persons who knew many many lots of things. I wondered. Then at the age of 11 I had a very painful experience caused by one of the teachers at high school. That forced me out of my school and drove me out of my hometown. I gathered deep hatred and became fearful of them. I came back 6 years later after obtaining my high school graduation with distinction from a very renowned school at the capital. The teacher whose mean attitude and motive once drove me out sent someone to me to seek pardon for his fault done in the past. I was not moved. Then I had a teacher of outstanding quality, Mr Omar Faruq, who actually transformed me into a new one by his pureest to the pure love and affection. Though I had many academic teachers throughout my life, but after completion of my academic persuits 35 years back, now I can only name one teacher in my life. And that is Mr Faruq from Shahzadpur (famous for having an establishment of the great poet Rabindranath Tagore). Now he is no more. But I wish from heaven he listens to my cry that I am one of his most grateful students who still remember him and would do so till his death.
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Mesbah, thanks for sharing your personal story with us. It is quite moving and inspirational. Most of all, it reaffirmed my faith in the importance of good teaching, which I think is more than just passing down the knowledge. I hope your story will motivate other teachers to improve and take the responsibility to shape our future. I believe that even if we might not be teachers by profession, we can help others in our capacity to become educated beings.
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Rise, thanks for your kind words. Like you I also believe that teachers can do more than simply educating us. They help make us a worthy human being with all the goodness of life. But what is my experience is rather different. Like all in god’s world are not equal, a very few of them can imprint their goodness in their pupils’ being.
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there are many good and considerate teachers out there that care enough about a child to help he/she grow into that type of adult. The problem doesn’t rise so much with the teachers but with the politics behind the teacher. New York City teachers have to deal with a very liberal society that demands childrens rights no matter what the circumstances are.
The problem with liberals is that they want Lincolns letter to revolve around their beliefs which can never happen.
Lincoln may have been a democrat but he had the backbone of a Republican.
The liberal will one day destroy our system with their sick, degenerate ideals. Speaking kindly to 30 students is fine in the suburbs of Connecticut but will not work in the South Bronx… Sorry i believe that some of these kids need their backsides tanned but good. We need a system that seperates child abuse from discipline and doesn’t call it the same thing because it’s not. -
Mesbah: I understand what you are saying. I believe that one has to be a good person to become a good teacher.
Joseph: I can’t take sides as I don’t have much idea about those things but I do agree to some extent that there must be a good understanding of difference between child abuse and discipline. Some people tend to be on extreme sides of this. But the problem is how do we define this fine line?
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Great letter…as a teacher I know this is what many of us strive for, but sometimes the powers that be (FCAT testing etc.) make it difficult and many teachers forget why they got into th profession in the first place.
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