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New TV ad plants ‘seeds of knowledge’
Feb 28, 2008 3:02 PM
City teacher, students featured in UFT campaign
The actors — (from left) Savannah Diaz, Peyton List, Liana Mieles and Emmanuel Lyons — mug for the camera.
A new television campaign sponsored by the UFT takes the broader view of what it takes to fully educate a child, spotlighting those teachable moments that more often than not occur when children are inspired to learn.
The 30-second spot features a teacher guiding small groups of children engaged in a learning project. In one scene, the teacher is the symbol of assurance behind a little girl absorbed in planting seedlings in a jar of soil.
The union’s “Seeds of Knowledge” ads began airing Monday, Feb. 25, and will run for four weeks on major network and cable channels in the metropolitan area.
The crew helps Peyton prepare for a shot.
More than 80 percent of adults over age 25 — more than 12 million people — are expected to see the spot at least 10 times during its run. It will appear during shows such as “Today,” “60 Minutes” and the “Late Show With David Letterman.”
“While testing is an important part of measuring student progress, it should not be done at the expense of educating the whole child,” said UFT President Randi Weingarten. “We wanted to bring attention to the need for teachers to be able spend time encouraging curiosity, knowledge and higher learning in their students, in order to help them achieve.”
The star of the spot is Liana Mieles, a teacher at PS 325, Manhattan. The children featured with her in the commercial are all New York City public school students.
In this scene, Mieles watches Emmanuel and Savannah paint.
Mieles has been a special education support services teacher for three years. She said she loves what she does, though admits it’s not an easy job.
Most often she works with 2nd- through 6th-grade learning-disabled children in small settings outside their classrooms. The nature of her job allows her to pull them aside and give them the individualized attention they may need in a particular subject.
It can be very challenging, she said, “when you have to figure out different strategies. What might work for one child might not work for another.”
It can be difficult, she added, “but it can be done.”
When she sees a student hurdle a stumbling block and improve, “You become very happy. It’s very rewarding work, as well,” she said.
The “Seeds of Knowledge” campaign shows the impact that teachers have on the lives of their students, said Mieles.
“We give them the tools they need to grow and learn — and so we are planting seeds in people.”
