I found myself less inspired by the three chapters we read this week than the previous chapters. I’m not sure why, they had good ideas and practices to offer, but they didn’t reach out and grab me. That being said, I did have a few thoughts and reactions to share.
I have often found myself in situations where downward spiral talk abounds. Quite often, I’m the one doing it. It is so easy to get caught up in the negative of a situation, that you fail to see a way out. I like the idea of stating the facts of the way things are...not the opinions, but the facts, and then figure out a way to move on. I think sometimes teachers, myself included, get stuck on the way we see a non-responsive student, and can’t do anything else but complain and be frustrated. I’m sure we could be a lot more productive if we stated the facts, and then went from there. No, it won’t be perfect, but at least we can move on.
As I read through the chapter on passion, I had to admit that I often hold back and don’t let myself fully experience the moment. I’m not sure why, perhaps I’m afraid of looking stupid, but it’s something I would like to work on. I’d like to take a chance, and discover a whole new world.
Finally, there was the idea of lighting the spark. I found the story about Ben bringing the Philharmonic Orchestra to the failing school in London to be very inspiring. It’s amazing how things can work out when we quit manipulating and instead try and let people see our vision, and in turn allowing ourselves to see someone else's vision.
Response by Rebecca Day:
Carrie,
This past semester, I taught three 9th grade Literature classes. All of the teachers in my department had a common planning period and we would usually gather during that period and complain. Seriously. We'd complain about how stupid our students were, about some of the specific instances that made us wonder how shallow the gene pool was in the county, about how disrespectful the students were, about anything and everything that we could. But we never came up with any ideas to help, and we seldom talked about some of the good things that our students did.
We got caught up in the negativity surrounding us and falsely labeled it as "being realistic." I really hate that I let myself get caught up in all of that, but I know now to find something positive in my next group of students.
Becky
This past semester, I taught three 9th grade Literature classes. All of the teachers in my department had a common planning period and we would usually gather during that period and complain. Seriously. We'd complain about how stupid our students were, about some of the specific instances that made us wonder how shallow the gene pool was in the county, about how disrespectful the students were, about anything and everything that we could. But we never came up with any ideas to help, and we seldom talked about some of the good things that our students did.
We got caught up in the negativity surrounding us and falsely labeled it as "being realistic." I really hate that I let myself get caught up in all of that, but I know now to find something positive in my next group of students.
Becky
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