Diane Guth wanted students to explore curiosity while in her class

BY DANI TIETZ
dani@mahometnews.com

Diane Guth just wanted to talk about books all day.

It didn’t start that way, though. When Guth, who retired from Mahomet-Seymour High School in May, went to college, she wanted to defend the defenseless. So, she began in pre-law.

But once she learned just how much schooling that career entailed, she switched her focus, creating an atmosphere where students could explore the world, their thoughts about the world and learn how to listen to others.

“I had some really inspirational English teachers in my high school experience,” Guth said. “I don’t know if it was even them; but if it was, it was the experience of being in a classroom where you were asking the questions and discussing different answers to the same question. And they would both be right.

“I value learning, because of the way it makes me feel and makes me part of the universe and part of the lives of people around me. And I just wonder about stuff.”

Her love of learning came from an environment where her parents were always exploring.

“My dad was a questioner, and liked to take us to museums and read and, you know, he just knew a lot about a lot of things,” she said.

Diane’s husband, Dave, is the same way.

“He just kind of knows about a lot,” she said.

“I’m kind of attracted to that kind of mind.”

Guth was following in the footsteps of her mother and grandmother, who were also teachers. Now, two of her daughters teach: one at Mahomet-Seymour and one in Indiana.

After raising her children, Guth spent five years as a long-term substitute at the high school before taking her post as an English teacher for 14 years.

During that time, she came across students who were as filled with wonder as herself.

“Hopefully, they’re learning how to at least continue the quest,” she said. “I don’t know that you ever get to the end of it.”

As a child, Guth thought that at some point adults might run out of questions, but as she enters the next stage of her life, she’s still on the journey.

“I think you just get new questions,” she said. “And it never ends. But there’s something really satisfying about knowing and understanding processes or meaning of things. And so I’ve always really enjoyed that.”

Introducing students to writers such as William Shakespeare and George Orwell, Guth wanted to help them see how the world operated in the past and present so they could discuss the layers of the text.

“You see it in a lot of (students): that they just want to know more, they want to feel confident in the way they use language, the way they talk about literature, or the way they understood a certain book,” Guth said.

She enjoyed watching students with Orwell in their hands.

“They read him and they realize what he’s trying to tell them through something entertaining, but something serious at the same time,” she said. “They get kind of excited. And so the value of being able to do that on your own is lifelong.”

At a young age, Guth had also hoped to become a writer, but the demands of teaching proved demanding.

She did, though, team up with retired Mahomet-Seymour High School Drama Director Carol Allen to write a Christmas play during her time at M-S.

Prior to that, though, Guth worked with Judy Swiger, who taught English at M-S for 34 years while also kicking off the drama department. Guth was an assistant drama coach for years before transitioning into costume work.

When Swiger retired, Guth was placed in the room she taught in, which included a stage that was requested for Swiger’s Drama 1 and Drama 2 courses.

Guth, who has taught every English course offered at M-S, took on the drama class the last few years.

Separate from the drama department, Guth hoped that the course gave students the opportunity to not only act but also learn some of the behind-the-scenes tasks.

She extended the stage use to her freshmen English course where students were not only introduced to Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” but also had the opportunity to try the lines out on stage.

Guth hopes that Mahomet-Seymour students know that she and the other staff at the high school genuinely care about them.

“I worry, they don’t know that I am cheering for them,” she said. “They think I’m just criticizing because I’m correcting. But hopefully, they feel that. And that I hope the best for them.

“I want them to know that we believe in them and that we think they can do things.”

Guth compared teachers to coaches.

“They love their coaches because their coaches are on their side cheering for them,” she said.

“It doesn’t always come off as cheering for them when you have that red pen. But, I am cheering for them. I’m trying to help them. So I hope they know that. I hope they know that what I did was to make them better.”

Not every student who came through her class liked to read. Guth said she struggled with that because she just wanted to help students find a way to connect with books, but she understood their feelings too, seeing as information is gathered in different ways in today’s world.

Overall, though, she just wanted to share her love and curiosity with students.

“I enjoyed it with my kids and I enjoyed it with students,” she said.

Now Guth hopes to share that love with her grandchildren.

“That’s probably the biggest reason I am retiring,” she said.

Seven grandchildren are spread between Indiana, Georgia and Florida.

“My goal is to be able to spend more time with them,” she said.

Although her husband is still working, the couple has a lot of plans for their extra time together.

But while he’s away, Guth said she will have time to “pick up a book whenever I want.”