When I hear a song I like, I form a weird, obsessive attachment to it, and often listen to it on repeat for several days. This is my current song of obsession:
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1) Having an M.A. ≠ knowing how to: teach, develop a course, structure a syllabus, manage a classroom, give a four hour lecture, elicit respect from students.
2) Watching me teach was like watching a baby bird learn to fly—it was disjointed, jerky, and grimace-inducing.
3) Students think I know everything about the Bible. I do not.
4) Nodding your head, validating someone’s response, or asking another student to chime in, gives you ample time to recover from the, “I have no idea what this student just said, nor do I have any idea how to respond” thought going through your head.
5) Never make assumptions about what a student knows or doesn’t know.
6) Teaching involves a tremendous amount of hand holding.
7) Scaffolding information is a must.
8) I say “ok” way too much when I lecture.
9) Next to parenting, teaching is the most difficult, and time-consuming, job.
10) Having a connection with, or an impact on, just one student is enough.
11) While I was never brazenly heretical, completely uninformed, or intentionally misleading, I did potentially relay imprecise information to my students.
12) I still don’t know how to work my laser pointer.
13) Witnessing a student have an “ah-ha!” moment makes it worthwhile.
14) Regardless of how much I prepared, practiced my lecture in the mirror, tried to remember the material verbatim, class never went as planned. I’m learning to be ok with this.
15) I don’t want to teach full-time.
16) You can't see 28 point font on a Power Point presentation from the back of a classroom.
17) While I tried to adhere to the rubric, more often than not, my grading was arbitrary. I’m working on this.
18) If you really want to learn something, or become an expert on a subject, teach it.
19) I love teaching about Jesus.
Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a “list” person. When it comes to birthdays, Christmas, or other special occasions, when people ask me what I want, I intentionally, and thoughtfully, make a list of the things I would like. This list is not a guidepost pointing to other items I want. Rather, it contains the exact gifts I would like. This is the reason I make the list. As harsh as it sounds, I’m not interested in spontaneous, random, or “I thought you’d really like this” gifts. I don’t want an off-lister. If received, the likelihood of me returning it is extremely high...
I recently discovered that I don’t know the difference between perfection and excellence. To quote Brene Brown again, this has caused a spiritual awakening...
“Watching great people do what you love is a good way to start learning how to do it yourself.”
—Amy Poehler, Yes Please
The first night of class, I tell my students the following:
“Take ownership of your education. You’re responsible for asking questions if you don’t understand; you’re responsible for reading the syllabus; you’re responsible for submitting your assignments on time. You are very fortunate to be here pursuing higher education. Only 33.5% of Americans have a college degree[1], and only 6.7% of the world’s population holds a college degree[2].”
While this might seem harsh, intense, or a bit soapbox-ish, the goal is to instill responsibility into students, and let them know that education is a privilege...