This post
was something I had thought about at the beginning of this year, but left at
the title because of other pursuits. It
caught my eye again and combined with some current circumstances seemed to be
an appropriate time to revisit. A few
things had come to mind as the summer was winding down. I started thinking
about the school year and all the new things the students and I would be
experiencing, but the one that thing that had inspired this post had to do with
discovery and its importance.
Most of you who read my blog know that I mostly post about character, perseverance, and learning. This is in that vein, but from the perspective of not only our impact as educators, but also its importance. We have all heard it and even repeated Plutarch’s familiar phrase; “The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be ignited.” I personally explain it with the following phrase. Teaching isn’t about acting on someone, but rather having them act for themselves. I find this to be common sense if the true definition of understanding (according to Howard Gardner) is being able to take new knowledge and successfully apply it to an entirely different context. However, I want to take it a little farther.
Everyone one
of us has a key to our life. Our “True
North” if you will. It consists of our
core values, experiences, and lessons learned.
While it is not always clear to us, it exists and dictates your passion
and happiness with life. It has many
names; purpose, meaning of life, destiny.
No matter what label, it is important to align your whole life with it
to achieve your maximum ability to learn, potential, and satisfaction. Personally, I spent most of my younger years
trying to figure out what I wanted to do before realizing I want to help other
people by passing on the understanding I had come to concerning the
opportunities available through education and character. My
“True North” lay in the dissemination of mental toughness and the idea of
learning through failure by taking what you have and making it something
better. I have truly believed in the concept of over, under, around, or
through my whole life, but like most, never recognized my current existence,
experiences, or strengths as something to share. I wasn't always ready for education. I was
the first person in my family to go to college (because of what I accomplished on the football field). I was
almost even better at twisting arms on the wrestling mat during those
years. In fact, I’ve made a habit out of
doing things people told me could not be done because I believe that there are
no impossibilities with passion, hard work, determination, and the ability and
willingness to grow from my mistakes; get up from failures or in short…keep
moving north.
To be great,
effective educators we must help students with this aspect of their life. There must be a blurring of the lines between
the content we are teaching and their lives if we expect students to be engaged
to a level at which they retain and understand the lessons throughout the day. Fact is, everyone has a key to their life. Every
student has a key to their learning and understanding. As educators we must find their key by
looking at what they have done in the past and meshing it with where they are
at currently. If we truly want to unlock the potential growth in students we
must discover what they aspire to and integrate it with how we approach them. This is essential because life is
education. Trying to separate students’
outside life from the material (and location in which) they are learning
creates a disjointed experience that benefits no one.
I believe
that very rarely does anyone really know where their true north lies from the
outset. This is because we all get
temporarily blinded from time to time as we exist in those spaces of happiness
and satisfaction that populate our days.
Unfortunately, these fleeting moments are not what help us fill our
potential. Our true potential will not be measured in these small increments, but
rather from the lasting impact of our influence we have upon those others whose
lives we pass through on our journey in the world. Those of us in education must remember the
words of Robert Frost when he said; “I am not a teacher but an awakener.” We
must work with the students to help them begin the journey of discovery.
Education isn't about what happens to
people, but what happens within people. How are you sparking that flame exciting that fire? We
need to stop doing to students in the classroom and begin letting them act.
Do not act upon them. As E.M.
Forester said; “Spoon feeding in the long run teaches us nothing but the shape
of the spoon”
And really…in the long run, who truly cares about the shape
of the spoon as long as it serves the purpose we need it for; to feed us.
