Mother Teresa had several personal achievements which exemplify her dedication to her work. These include:
- In 1962 Mother Teresa won the Pandra Shri prize for extraordinary services.
- Mother Teresa received the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize in 1971.
- In 1979 Mother Teresa received the Nobel Peace Prize for work undertaken in the struggle to overcome poverty and distress, which also constitute a threat to peace.
- Mother Teresa received the John F. Kennedy International Award.
- Mother Teresa received the Templeton Award for progress in religion.
- Mother Teresa also received the Jonaharlal Nehru Award.
Her innovation and dedication are clear indicators of leadership. When a crisis arose she was not afraid to tackle it head on and come up with a positive solution. As educators we to need to face educational issues of the 21st century and develop innovative and creative ways to challenge our students and in order to remain competitive in the global market. Mother Teresa's compassion was evident. Through compassion as teachers we can gain the trust of students and colleagues. She strove to make the world a better place and to educate and feed children of the world. On a smaller scale in our own world if teachers can take a small part of her determination and innovation sprinkled with compassion we can create an environment of life long learners.
Avolio, B. J., & Bass, B. M. (1994). Improving organizational effectiveness through transformational leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA.: Sage Publications, Inc.
Bass, B.M. & Avolio, B.J. (1993). Transformational leadership: A response to critiques. New York, NY: Free Press.
Desmond, E. W. (1989). A pencil in the hand of God. Retrieved March 12, 2003, from Time Magazine Online: http://www.time.com/time/reports/motherteresa/t891204.html
Heather,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your synopsis of Mother Teresa. The image I can’t get of my head is she was this small, elderly, frail looking woman. What was most amazing about her is that there was nothing frail about her at all. She demonstrated courage, strength, compassion, and dedication. Her moral compass always pointed her in the right direction.
As I think about what education can learn from Mother Teresa I really like what you said. You stated, “As educators we to need to face educational issues of the 21st century and develop innovative and creative ways to challenge our students and in order to remain competitive in the global market.” We must always challenge our students. They are our focus. Mother Teresa had a moral compass centered on what is right for world hunger and peace. As educators our compass must always point to students as they are the center of our decision making and leadership.