On the Outside

The terms "liberal and conservative" have been tossed around for so long that neither has much appeal.  "Liberals" are associated with socialistic policies, and loosely held moral standards.  The conservative aspect is often seen as aligned with elitism, bigotry and hate.  Neither of these characterizations are complete or entirely accurate.

They do, however, make it easy for the average person to "pick a side".  "Side-picking" is what it is all about, isn't it?

The reality is that people are busy.  They don't have the time to delve deeply into issues and policies, even though they are directly or indirectly affected.  Hence, the need for simplistic characterizations, such as, liberal and conservative.

Recently, the passage of RFRA, in the state of Indiana, created a massive stir.  Huge names in business, politics, and entertainment pushed back hard on this "conservative" policy.  Governor Pence and Indiana's state legislative bodies, in the end, were forced to modify RFRA.

Conservatives lead with cries for religious freedom, while liberals countered with the need for anti-discrimination protections for LBGT persons.  Pressure was applied and conservatives gave ground.

At heart, both sides simply want respect. People of faith want to live their faith in accordance with their beliefs.  LGBT people want to be viewed as equals and treated fairly at work, at play, and at worship.

Last night, I attended a Town Hall event intended to clarify RFRA and continue to mobilize LGBT citizens to participate in their government. As I looked around the room, I saw and heard many intelligent people express their desire and hope for equity in all aspects of their lives.

I also discovered my injuries and personal pain from years of living a less than authentic life. Then, I multiplied my pain by thousands.  I discovered the exponential pain of the LGBT citizens of our world.  I wanted to run to the shadows, hidden from your view. I also wanted to stand up and be recognized.  Big things are really never simple.

As we legislate in our country, our states, and our communities, let's weigh the cost of any law in measure of the human pain it will procure.   Are the benefits grounded in equity?  Do the benefits outweigh the human cost?

Of course this is a much more difficult course to take.  It is far easier to continue to see ourselves as simply "liberals" and "conservatives" and make all of our decisions based on these shallow measures.

A Balance-Driven Life

I am old enough to remember the first time I watched TV at school.  It was a big deal.  Walter Cronkite was reporting the details of the Martin Luther King assassination.  The impact of his death and the magnitude of this event was initially dwarfed by my excitement.  Television was still relatively new and had never been a part of our learning process. I was just a kid.

That weekend, I had a cold and was bound to the couch.  I watched Martin Luther King's funeral live on a a little 12 inch black and white TV.  This time, the significance of his death became real to me. Masses of people were grieving. I was moved. For the first time, I cried for someone I did not know and would never know.  The television allowed me to participate, to be touched by this man and to discover, firsthand, the beginnings of an amazing legacy. 

The year that King died, there were three TV channels.  Our family watched television together, after dinner.  When my parents were young,  their families would gather each evening around the radio.  

Media was a family event.  What was heard and seen was discussed at dinner tables and among family and friends.

Playboy magazine was behind the counter at the drugstore and covered in brown paper.  Of course, I wanted to peek, but couldn't.  Today, the Internet is a window not only to a wealth of information, but also a portal to any image or sound imaginable.

I am a proponent of change. I am a supporter of a technology-infused curriculum.  TV had a big impact on my life as a learner. Today, computers and devices of all types are providing innovative and creative opportunities for students and teachers.

Still, I am not quite comfortable in this high speed, high tech, device-driven life. I wonder about the ramifications of too much connectedness, too much information, too much of the time. I wonder if I can set the limits that children need to feel safe in such a complex world.

What if?

What if we slept side-by-side with the families of war torn nations?   What if we became a part of their lives?  What if we helped them to rebuild their homes, their towns, their cities ?  What if we asked for nothing in return.

What if we stopped working on our own privileged lives and focused on those in need. What if we all did this? What if we carried no weapons, but instead, risked our lives by leading with trust?

Some of us would surely die. But, we are dying now.  

We are afraid and we are killing.  They are afraid and they are killing. We are angry and we are killing.  They are angry and they are killing.

What if we started with our own country, first?  What if the rest of the world watched us as our problems dissolved?  

Could we start a war of healing?  A war comprised of a wave of human compassion so large that it became a tsunami of comfort, love, and support.

What if we stopped everything we are currently doing?  We joined each other in the center of each of our towns and cities.  We found all of the people who are suffering amongst us and responded with love.  What if we gave of ourselves?

My heart is layered in sadness.  There is no comfort.  I know that I am living better and with greater ease than many of you.  Yet, I am frightened to change.  I am frightened to reach out to those who need.  I need others beside me.  I need you to change with me.  

Mean Teachers and Other Scary Stuff

On Thursday, I had a panic attack the size of George W. Bush's brain.  Oh, whoops...no, this was a REALLY BIG panic attack!!! It was more like the size of say...oh, Obama's magnificence!   :o)

I have tried to make friends with panic, but she is so large and pushy that I have a hard time giving her space in my life.  What I have learned to do over the years is to allow for her.  She is going to come when she feels like it.  I don't have a say in the matter.  I bend to her, because I have no other choice.  She owns me.  She dwarfs me. She runs through my mind and body like a jet on steroids.

Panic is a like a mean teacher.  She punishes me and provides absolutely no direction.  She is a puzzling witch with a big wart on her chin. She is darkness and all have is a wet match.

She is a beast.

My body is wired to panic. I truly believe this.  I imagine panic to be sort of an emotional seizure. My mind and body are saturated with fear and my only tool is surrender. I drip vulnerability.  She humbles me.

When I was young, panic ran my life.  I gave her all of my power.  Now, we live in begrudging harmony, and she rarely visits anymore.  

For all of her apparent ugliness, she has taught me much.

Surrender. Humility. Vulnerability.

Each day, as I approach my classroom, I think of her.  I remind myself that my students face their own beasts.  That they too have and will have enormous inner struggles that will dwarf them and leave them limp.

Education and Business: Enemies or Bedfellows?

Education has focused a lot of energy on pedagogy, as well as, assessment of student and educator outcomes. Technology has also provided educators an opportunity to increase student engagement and to enhance instruction. There is no doubt that this focus has improved performance for some, and created a more student-focused classroom for many.

However, the path forward needs to take a broader view.  This view requires that business, education and government work together to create ground-breaking changes.  These changes will require huge shifts for all involved.  It's time.

Historically, business has asked that education produce certain types of workers.  Since, the globalization of the marketplace, business need has driven education to produce more white collar workers. The reality is that not all people are wired to be white collar workers.  Not all people want to be white collar workers.  

Big business drives our economy, and in turn, the job market for our workforce. The fact that skilled labor has shifted overseas from American soil is not a new revelation.  However, it is having a deleterious affect on the American worker.  Education in America is forced to respond to the desires of the corporate sector, instead of responding to the diversity among American students and the broader populace.

It is time for big business to listen to education.  We need to continue to be the innovators of the world, as well as, becoming(once again) the leading producers in the world.  Yes, big business will have to pay American workers more money than workers overseas.  Honestly,  is a 3 trillion dollar annual profit rather than an 6 trillion dollar annual profit really a hardship for corporate America? Yes, I am just throwing out numbers, but you get my point.  Half of a whole lot is still a whole lot.

Capitalism is a great start up economic system.  However, it encourages greed, overly-competitive, and selfish behavior.  These are the models that our children see.  Yes, education needs to continue to change and improve.  Assessment isn't a bad thing, but assessment should fit student goals and capacities...not business goals focused on building an America that provides for an elite few.

We are the greatest country in the world.  Let's lead the way in humanism.  Let's define a business model that makes America great again.  Education will be happy to help!

Bridging Our Differences

What happens inside the classroom can profoundly effect the lives of students outside of the classroom.  Like parents, teachers are models and exemplars.  The complexity of this role can feel daunting.

When students enter our classrooms, they bring with them different cultures, languages, religions, and socio-economic backgrounds. They possess a variety of learning styles, cognitive, and social-emotional skills.  Their families are comprised of parents, step-parents, adoptive parents, siblings, cousins, friends, and guardians.  Some students have been abused, neglected, over-indulged, entitled, criticized, adored, and violated.

As teachers, we have to consider the similarities among our students and honor their differences. In the face of the diversity of our student population, this task can seem overwhelming.

It doesn't have to be. Here are a few tips.

• Be Inquisitive.  Lead as a learner. Be willing to ask questions, when you don't know the answer. 
• Select Instructional Content that reflects Diversity.  Look for content that expresses the diversity that exists in the world.  Use the content as a springboard for meaningful discussion that raises awareness and understanding of our differences.
• Emphasize Similarities. We are all human.  Our humanity connects us.  Everyone loves a good laugh, a friendly gesture, and compassion.
• Be Human.  Remember none of us is perfect. It is ok to make mistakes.
• Set Your "Shoes" Aside.  It is easy to get entrenched in our own perspectives, backgrounds, and beliefs.  Remember to step outside yourself and practice humility.

Diversity is a beautiful thing. If we were all the same life would be uninteresting.  We would be clones. We would have no motivation to learn about or from one another.  Above all else, dare to be you and allow others to be themselves.  If you do your classroom will be an engaging place where connection between others will ignite learning.

#EPIC Failure

We fail far more than we succeed.  It is our failures that allow us to move closer to our best. Failure knows no limits. It touches the old and the young, the wise and the numb. Everyone suffers a skinned knee and a wounded heart.

As a teacher, I feel that our curriculum says little about failure. Certainly, there are stories of failure that are told and gaffs in history that are reviewed. We examine the world in hindsight. But, we do not teach our students to examine themselves. 

We should. 

I would like to teach a course called, Failure.  As a part of this course, students would become intimately familiar with failure and how to move beyond it. They would examine their feelings and the reactions of others, including their peers, their parents, and their teachers. 

They would learn to identify the reasons for their failures and ways to rectify them moving forward.  They would learn to be experimental and take thoughtful risks. They would develop a metacognitive relationship with failure. The ability to embrace their wounds and analyze their actions. Failure would become a laughing matter. A part of life that is accepted and expected.

Students would become comfortable sharing successes and failures. Laughing, teasing, and bolstering one another. Facing their failures, with eyes open, and the tools needed to persist when success looms beyond their reach.