National Hall of Fame inducts Blue Valley science teacher |
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| Education | |||
| Written by Kristin Babcock | |||
| Tuesday, 30 June 2009 23:00 | |||
 At the start of every one of his 46 years of teaching, Ken Bingman got butterflies in his stomach. “I think it’s because I’m excited about teaching,” Bingman said. “Excited about meeting my students. I’m excited about the prospect of the year of working with them.” Bingman, who teaches high school biology, was recently inducted in the National Teachers Hall of Fame in Emporia, Kan. On June 19, Bingman became the seventh teacher from Kansas to be inducted. He joined four other teachers from across the country in a two-day celebration that included welcomes on town marquees, a mayoral proclamation and an induction ceremony. “It was an experience like going home and having your relatives meet you, and we’re glad to see you and how proud we are of you,” Bingman said. “It really doesn’t get much better than that. It was a fantastic two days.” Bingman, a teacher at Blue Valley West High School, 16200 Antioch Road, Overland Park, is the first Blue Valley School District teacher in the hall of fame. He also spent 33 years as a teacher at Shawnee Mission West High School. Bingman’s lifelong interest in science began as a child growing up on a Missouri farm. His family raised crops, cattle, pigs and chickens. “I had a lot of questions about nature,” Bingman said. “I didn’t understand a lot of things I saw happening. I wanted to learn about nature so that I could better understand how plants grow and what effect fertilizer has on plants.” Two of his brothers were biology teachers, so he “went right after it.” Now, he works to encourage his own students to ask similar questions about nature. On days when classroom discussion is limited and confusion seems to be settling in, he reminds them he is there to help them, he said. “I say, ‘You know every day on my way home I think about my day. I want to feel like I’ve done my job. I want you to ask questions. I want you to help me feel good about this day so I can look forward to another day, but this is about today and I really want you to open up here and ask questions and tell me what you don’t understand.’” Soon after, the hands usually start “popping up,” Bingman said. “I try to walk that walk of students being the most important people in class and we are there for them,” Bingman said. It is this rapport with students that makes Bingman so successful as he guides them through lessons about DNA, genetics and animal behavior, said Blue Valley West Principal Tony Lake. Bingman’s students’ test scores are “very good,” but the experience they get in his classroom is what guides their learning, he said. “Ken is one of a kind,” Lake said. “He has this natural ability to connect with kids. The students want to work hard for him. What is so amazing to me is how students stay in contact when he leaves here.” Bingman said he receives several e-mails a week from former students, an experience he called “gratifying.” One student who has kept in touch is Hogan Miller, a 2006 Blue Valley West graduate. Now a senior at the University of Notre Dame, he said lessons from Bingman helped him integrate science into his college coursework. Science has never been his strong suit, Hogan said. “He made sure I didn’t use that excuse as a crutch and that I challenged myself,” Hogan said. “Being able to use science and the theory of evolution and knowing about scientific concepts and (working) that into politics is really rewarding for me. “Mr. Bingman is one of the most personable teachers I’ve ever had. His care for students is really evident from the first day you have him in class.” That first day is one of the “really, really” special days of the year, Bingman said. School begins in a few weeks, and he already has butterflies, he said. “It will be 47 years and I still get butterflies,” Bingman said. “I hope I continue to get butterflies because that kind of tells me hey I’ve still got the fire in the gut to teach and I want to work with students and I’m excited about a new year. I hope that continues and I know it will this year because I’m already excited about it.” The 20-year-old hall of fame includes more than 85 teachers from 32 states and the District of Columbia.
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