The Marva Collins Story

Summary
The Marva Collins movie is based on the true story of Marva Collins. She is a
Chicago schoolteacher with a positive mindset, a strong desire, and a dedication to
teaching. She works to ensure that African-American students have equal access to
high-quality education. But she became frustrated with the failure of the school system.
At this point, she realized to open her own school. With the help of her loving and
supportive husband, her school was built on the second floor of their house, “Westside
Preparatory School” was the name of her school. She started with a small group of
students, most of whom couldn't afford the tuition and who were almost failing or labeled
as "learning disabled" by the public school system. In her first year, she encountered a
lot of obstacles but she never gave up and continued working on what she was doing.
Because of her dedication, a year later the school she built became famous for its
academic excellence. Collins achieved it because she used her own teaching
strategies, challenging her students from an early age, encouraging them constantly,
exposing them to great literature, and persuading them that education leads to a better
life. All of her sacrifices become a success not only for herself but especially for her
students.

My thoughts and feelings

As a student who taking an education course, it is a helpful movie to watch to be
inspired to continue to pursue our goal of becoming future teachers that will encourage
students to love learning as well. I learned in the movie that the role of the teacher is not
only to teach the lesson to their students but most importantly how the teacher handles
and changes the wrong behavior of their students. A teacher needs to develop a
student's attitude about other people. I find it motivating since I understand and see how
the teachers' efforts can make a child's future even more promising. The Marva Collins
Story is a great movie and I loved it because I like how Collins tried to work with their
students since they have differences. Additionally, I admired the way she teaches and
communicates with her students and how she builds a good relationship with them.
Also, how she believes in her student’s abilities and how she boosts their confidence.
This teacher emphasizes the importance of being a good role model for the students.
Teachers can have a significant impact on students' learning growth and development,
therefore as future teachers, we should set a good example for each of our students in
the future. Furthermore, the movie shows us that the work of a teacher is a difficult duty
and that they need to be strong to be able to handle all of the challenges they will
encounter. Lastly, I am grateful that we have a teacher like Marva Collins in our world
that inspired a lot of people therefore I want to be like her when I become a professional
teacher someday.