I am not sure where I heard this but I heard it on tv years ago. I have spent the last 17 years of my 21 year career trying to “change the lives” of my students. We all know that we are here to change lives. Yes we want to teach students reading, writing, math, science, art, and many other subjects and content. BUT OMG!!!!!! In Arizona two of the most important things are AIMS Scores (standardized testing) and AP numbers and AP Scores. Yea, I know we need to get students into college and we need to do what the state says but really, that is what we talk about waaaaaaaaaayyy to often. I really am not that impressed if students can memorize facts and pass the standardized testing or an AP test. I care if students can ask great questions, identify real world problems, then solve them in inspirational and creative ways. It’s been an interesting few days. I have one student whose whole goal is to be number one in the class and will take as many AP classes as needed to accomplish this. Being number one is the primary goal. Another student, has the opportunity to be number one in her class and has decided the the pain, stress, and negative competition this will require is not who she is what she wants to do. Who is right. That is for them to decide. I do feel, by talking to other students and even some teachers, that my encouraging some students to drop an AP class or two is crazy. How dare I do this when we are being pressured to have more students in more AP classes. Are you kidding me? What does this really prove. I hear all the time I am supposed to encourage students to push themselves and to take as many hard classes as possible. Am I suppose to do this at the expense of them following their hearts. I agree that we all need to be challenged Not we need to not take the path of lest resistance. But I would suggest that we can not do this as the end game. In my opinion, the endgame of school is NOT to achieve academically, to learn facts, and to past tests I would suggest that the purpose of education is to help students to identify their likes and dislikes, to find what makes them passionate, to help them become the men and women they want to be, to help the learn how to identify and solve problems. We spend most of our time talking about things that WILL not transform lives. I would suggest that most of the things that we talk about are designed to help students learn facts, pass tests, and to help us look good in the newspaper. The endgame of education is to give students the tools, insight, and courage to grow, change, and to live great, rewarding and fulfilling lives and to become the men and women they want to be and not what others tell them they ought to be. Is the work that I have described- the liberation of the genius and goodness of all children, the creation of the new mind for the new millennium, and the creation of learning communities that invite and challenge the wonder and awe of the human spirit- is this the works the you want to do. ~Stephen Pace Marshall, cited from The Hero’s Journey
vaporwave
turnnoffyourmind
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
stormborns
izzy806
germansingergirl
2087