If teachers are supposed to externally motivate their students to be internally motivated, isn't that a contradiction in terms?
Yesterday, I had my homeroom engage (though not so much) in an activity that required a smiggin of thinking outside the box. They had to line up in birthday order without talking. Two immediately cheated (I wanted to throw something hard or sticky at them), and then - when I finally got them off their behinds - looked at the floor and chose to be defeated. This lasted for what seemed like hours. Years later, I reminded them, "There are other ways to comunicate, you know," and then I got the deer in headlight look until I was thirty. The worst part was, when they finally got somewhat going (amidst the numerous rolled eyes) and finished with only a few mistakes, I asked them what they learned. The (serious) response, "That you should never have us do something this stupid again," "That that was too hard to do." I tried to redirect them - "What could you have done differently to make it a little better/easier?" Response: "I could've given up earlier."
What's sad is that these few that were actually conversing with me were very serious and this is not an isolated insident. In general, this crop of teenagers is so used to giving up at first sign of difficulty that they never give themselves the chance to grow into something more than they currently are (and let's just leave it at They have a great margin for improvement).
I pray that the Lord creates light in the darkness of the minds and hearts of these little ones, as only He can do, and gives them the willingness to thirst for life, thirst for learning, and mostly, thirst for Him. It's kind of like sharing the gospel - I know that I can't internally motivate them, since obviously I'm not inside them. I pray also that I can find the balance of wanting this passion for them, showing them my passion, and letting it go when they don't take hold (do I don't get so frustrated, drained, and hurt).
4 comments:
...their parents fault.
I think you should keep taking them out of there box, and challenge them weekly.
i disagree with mom...don't push them. let them suck for the rest of their lives and tell other teachers in the same school to do the same. then raise your future children better than them and let your children take their potential jobs and future earnings.
it's a small world...and we should make more room for our own...
just a thought.
Asher must be an accountant, rather than an economist... to avoid cutting the pie up in ever smaller pieces, the role of education is to enlarge the (economic) pie, by increasing the productivity of the educated.
Don't give up. Sometimes even deer catch on in time to avoid the consequences of perpendicular travel on the highways.
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