Everyone Loves Dr. Ryland Grace, But Seem to Loathe Real Teachers
Before jumping into this blog entry I feel it's important to frame where exactly I am coming from with all of this.
To start, yes, I am a fan of the Project Hail Mary (PHM) film. I still need to read the book, since it ended up on my never-ending internal to be read list comprised of every single thing a colleague, friend or mentor has recommended to me over the past several years. I am a big fan of the BloodyMary ship1 and honestly the work of fellow fans is one of the few things keeping me tethered in an otherwise wild calendar year.
As I'm writing this blog entry I have entered my tenth year of teaching, yes, I beat the five year stat2. Over the course of my education career I have taught Grades 3 and 6 through to 12 covering a variety of subject areas in what one would consider normal conditions, and through the world perpetually being on fire… For my tenth year, I stepped into a new role in an incredibly old but well-maintained school on the one side of my city I’ve never thoroughly explored and I will admit this move has been a humbling experience: new students, new staff, new demographics… No classroom (a side effect of an outdated school and too many children) but a breakout space I can use one period a day that houses a tiny desk for me. Despite the change, I’ve clung tightly onto all the things my former students and mentors have told me make me a great educator: my eccentric style, a strong foundation for my pedagogy3, sticking true to my values, and a love for different fandoms.
Two weeks ago during a walking trip, I noticed one of my students staring at my beat up Chuck 70s with my DashCon 2 shoelaces and bright yellow Tiger Balm-er jacket. When they noticed I had spotted them they said “You kind of look like Dr. Grace...”.4 My first reaction was remembering how in my first year of teaching, my students at the time spent a lunch break discussing which fictional teacher I reminded them of and while I cannot find the post on Hellsite Lite5 I clearly remember the students arguing between: Ms. Frizzle, Ms. Finster, Levi Ackerman, or Kakashi. Now, ten years in, I don’t know if I fit any of those criteria and certainly hope I am never compared to Levi Ackerman again for the rest of my existence. My second reaction was noting how with the ongoing PHM hype I can see why a student would make this quick comparison, especially since they had been bringing their paperback of PHM to class every day since the first day of classes for students. But amongst the universal love for one fictional Dr. Ryland Grace, microbiologist turned middle school teacher turned saviour of Earth, I found myself beginning to ponder why exactly everyone is showing up for this teacher but not the rest of us educators…
Look, I get it, we’ve all shared had our collective bouts of positive and negative experiences in the world of public education (unless you went to a charter, private or home school) and I will admit… Public education in our current reality has mountains of issues that will not be fixed with strikes, student protests, or a sudden surge of funding, but when it comes to the unofficial best teacher of 2026, encountering a teacher like Dr. Ryland Grace is more likely than you think:
Note: If you have yet to check out the PHM film, you may want to skip this next section.
- Many experts in their fields turn to education because as noted in PHM, the world of academia or other elite fields isn’t always as wonderful as presented to those entering.
- His pedagogy and classroom management as depicted in the film are good practices. He’s built a growth mindset community, students are engaged and clearly feel safe enough to ask the hard hitting questions something many teachers strive for. Also, I swear the question game he plays with his students is one of the Project Zero Thinking Routines6but for the life of me I can't tell which one!
- When waking from his coma with his memories totally lost, while comedic, the first thing he remembers is his students... Something many teachers resonate with since we often prioritize time and resources for our students.
So, why is there still vitriol for real educators if there are Dr. Grace’s out there, possibly even in your own local school boards since these traits are so common? Personally, I think it is because while he is the ideal teacher... He's not a teacher in our current reality where the writing has been on the wall for several years.
UNESCO’s latest global report on teachers projects a global deficit of 44 million teachers by 2030, and this is just to ensure primary and secondary education needs are met globally7. Amidst the ongoing panic of visible teacher shortages in different spheres across the globe, this new statistic has amplified this panic. With ever increasing pressures from large class sizes, lack of funding fuelling disparity, overextended and stressed teachers many teachers are not staying in education and those who are sticking around are burning out at higher rates.
Additionally, I also want to touch on the elephant in the room, teacher-fluencing. The rise of teacher influencers over the years has become a double-edged sword. During the peak of the pandemic, teachers were praised for their pivoting and running community-led initiatives to maintain strong school communities. Now in ’26, the ethics of teacher influencing have been called into question especially with the privacy violations of filming classroom settings with students present. As a fellow educator, I praise the teachers who are raising awareness on the disparities across districts, school boards and more when it comes to public education but I cannot support the ones who want to influence more than educate.
Lastly, education in 2026 is not comparable to how education was even as far back as when I first started teaching. Alongside the already existing disparities that continue to be exposed, there has been a dramatic shift in the culture of education as a whole to the public. Education is no longer seen as a universal right for all and responsibility to follow through on, but rather a service that can be tiered and tailored to in whatever way a consumer chooses. The cultural shift not only has allowed for the deterioration of this intrinsic right for all children but for teachers to become the scapegoats for larger issues that rise in a community and cultural when education is not treated as a priority.
When the face of education is Ryan Gosling in a cute cardigan with a passion for science and a quirky personality however, we cannot point the finger for our failures at him... We all have to simply adore him.
Overall, not every teacher can be a Dr. Ryland Grace in the current state of things for educators, but if larger systemic issues are solved we probably could achieve the same degree of praise he is receiving for teaching on a picture perfect screen.
Check out this @coleydoesthing's video to learn more about BloodyMary↩
The stat that was mentioned in every single one of my Education Degree still remains true. Oof.↩
Side note dear readers, but I think it’s important to note here, I am not Ryan Gosling. Or a man. Or white. But Gosling and I are both Canadian!↩
How I refer to twitter... I refuse to call it the other name and I no longer linger on twitter.↩
Project Zero is run by Harvard and you can check out the Thinking Routines here What Makes You Say That? remains one of my favourites.↩