VIDEO: CBS THIS MORNING Announces 'Teacher of the Year'

Jeffrey Charbonneau of Zillah High School in Yakima Valley, Wash., was announced as the winner of the 2013 National Teacher of the Year award, in a segment that was broadcast live, today, April 22, 2013, on CBS THIS MORNING (7:00-9:00AM) on the CBS Television Network. Check out the appearance below!

"A great teacher is somebody who thinks of content second," Charbonneau told co-hosts Norah O'Donnell, Gayle King and Anthony Mason. "The subject matter is secondary. It's the relationships with the students that come first. If you can make a positive relationship with a student, you can teach them darn near anything."

Excerpts from the interview are below.

MASON: You yourself were a student of Zillah High School. Is there a greater connection when you're teaching at your home school?

CHARBONNEAU: Yes, absolutely. We're a small school, only 400 students in the entire high school, and most of the teachers who are there now were my teachers when I was a student. So I got to learn from them then, and now.

KING: Why did you want to go back there?

CHARBONNEAU: It's that opportunity to make a difference, but it's also a big recognition of how good of a school that is. The quality of the people that are there – it's an atmosphere of success. All the teachers push each other to do just a little bit better every day, so it's a very positive place to teach.

To post a comment, you must register and login.