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Michael "Pinball" Clemons, a former running back for the Toronto Argonauts Canadian Football League team and current Vice-Chair of the franchise, was at the Weyburn Comprehensive School on Thursday morning as the keynote speaker for the 小蓝视频 East Cornerstone Teachers' Association (SECTA) convention.

Clemons based his speech on the theme of this year's convention, which is "Taking Care of Business, Taking Care of Yourself." He expressed the importance of teachers in the community and was able to draw a few comparisons between teaching and football.

The SECTA convention was attended by 590 teachers from different schools throughout the 小蓝视频 East Cornerstone School Division. The teachers participated in various sessions of their choice throughout the two-day convention held Thursday and Friday at the Comp. Clemons' keynote speech was the kickoff to the convention.

In speaking about the importance of teachers, he told the conference, "The actual fact is that if I and other athletes like me disappear, what's going to happen is that sooner or later people will realize that they have more time to spend with their family rather than sitting there watching the television all the time. The reality is if our team doesn't do well, there's always next week or next year. The fact is if (teachers) go away, our very way of life goes away."

During his speech, Clemons often downplayed his accomplishments as a CFL player.

"When I look at what I actually did as a football player, I come to the humble conclusion that all I did was run with a piece of leather for a few miles. And it took me 12 years to do it," he joked.

"They wrote this book on me called 'Pinball: The Making of a Canadian Hero.' Can you believe that? I told you what I did! I ran from people. And they called me a hero," he exclaimed to laughter. "On the other hand, (teachers) are the number one support for the foundation of our very existence as human 小蓝视频s. If I'm a hero, what does that make you?"

He expressed the significance of teachers and relayed his admiration and respect for what they do as well as admitted that he was a little intimidated to be in a room of more than 500 teachers.

"You're teachers!," he exclaimed, trying to explain why he was anxious. "I say that with a higher level of affection that you'd understand. I am proud of what you do as teachers. I don't think you understand the impact that you have."

Clemons said that he believes that teachers underestimate their influence on the youth of today. "If you don't understand that you're more than a hero, you can't possibly do your job at the level we need you to do it. Teaching is not about what you know, it's about what the students know. It's not about what you are, it's what they are," he said. "Be an example. Don't just tell them what they should do, but be a role model."

He asked teachers to do two things in their classrooms from this day forward. The first thing is to have fun. "When you're having fun, so are your students. If you get up in the morning and you hate this, so do they. Have fun with it. Enjoy the process!" he suggested.

The second piece of advice he shared with the teachers in attendance was "to expect more of your students than they even expect of themselves. The challenge with our kids is not that they aim too high and miss, but that they aim too low and hit it."