I wonder if…
When I was in my 20’s I can remember going on a mission to get healthy. I was eating right and exercising at home. I wasn’t getting the results that I expected based on the effort I was putting in. In fact, I was experiencing back pain that I should not be experiencing in my 20’s. My roommate, on the other hand, was going to a gym and working with a trainer. She was getting more and more toned by the week. She was feeling better and stronger. I decided to bite the bullet and ask her what she was doing differently. She agreed to work out with me one day. She stopped me in my tracks when we were doing lunges. She gave me a few tips on posture that made all the difference. After a couple of weeks I started to notice a difference in the way I was feeling. I no longer had back pain, and I was getting more fit. My progress was on the right track all because I asked for help.
I tell you this story because it makes me think about how hard every teacher I know is working, yet for some reason the results don’t always reflect their effort. There are so many factors that could contribute to that. One thing I wonder is what could happen if we opened our doors to allow an extra set of eyes on what we are doing. Or what could happen if we brought back true collaboration with our colleagues. The Pandemic interrupted so many good practices we had in place that actually made our lives easier as educators. We were able to rely on each other for ideas and tips. When the world stopped, we started to work in silos. That was a really hard time in education. Unfortunately we haven’t fully shifted back to some of those things that may have taken a little more of our time, but really enhanced our results and relationships. It makes me wonder what could happen if we strengthened our relationships with our coaches and colleagues. We may be able to figure out some small moves that could be really beneficial for kids. We may realize we are giving too much time and attention to things that aren’t getting us the results that match our effort.
I believe in my core that we are smarter together. My hope for the next school year is that we open our doors, minds, and hearts to our colleagues so that we can do really awesome things for kids. I also hope that teaching starts to feel more rewarding, and not so burdensome for all educators. Teaching is such an important profession. I hope to never lose my curiosity around the best ways to teach the students that we serve. ~Whitney
