Mrs Gruwell believed in each individual learner and never judged any of them. She truly had respect for these learners and she valued and promoted diversity. She stayed optimistic and was an excellent example of a role model for these learners . Even though the learners, at one stage, told her that they hate her, she never gave up. Her teaching reflects the philosophy of progressivism, as she transforms the traumatic lives and relationships of the students into an opportunity for learn to take place. She changes their lives by believing in them and never giving up on them. Ms. Gruwell worked two other jobs to have money to buy books for the students, as the school did not want to grant these learners any resources because they’re convinced that the students would vandalize the books. Ms. Gruwell really had to motivate learners to work, as they believed that they were incapable of having a successful future or career. 

Examples from the film:
Ms Gruwell set curriculum work aside and found a way to incorporate their emotional attitudes and academy at the same time.  She used their real-life problems and helped the learners to deal with this trauma by reading, writing and speaking. For one lesson, she used music that the learners like and started teaching them about the rhyme words in the music. She bought each student a diary in which they could write anything that they wanted to. This not only helped learners to work through the traumatic events that they have experienced, but it helped them to write and spell as well. By doing this, the students started trusting Ms Gruwell. As previously mentioned, she worked two other jobs in order to have money to buy the students new books and she chose books that the students could relate with, such as The Diary of Anne Frank. The students loved this book so much that they started tolerating each other in the classroom, which concluded in a learning environment. They also begged Ms Gruwell to raise money so that they can meet Miep Gies, the woman who hid Anne Frank from the Nazis. When other teachers did not want to help her with recourses, she asked them: "Why should they waste their time showing up, when they know were wasting our time teaching them." This is yet another sign of her passion and determination to fight for her learners. Ms. Gruwell put the specific curriculum aside when she realized that more learners have been shot at than how many know the word "holocaust."  She also took the learners on a field trip, where they met people that survived the holocaust. The students learned so much from these survivors and it concluded them looking at life from a total different perception and with changed attitudes.

 Eventually, the students transform from learners who did not work in the classroom at all to learners who got very excited when Ms. Gruwell got them new reading books. Ms. Gruwell organizes something to drink so that each learner can celebrate themselves; she called it “Toast for change”.