Like many of us, I read and watched Fawn Nguyen’s story about Lillian. I won’t say much here. Only that it has certainly made me feel and think. I have three children and I love them deeply. They are are in pre-school, kindergarten and 2nd grade. Although Lillian is in 9th grade, I realized that only a short number of years ago, she was the age of my daughter. This really affected me. I’m not sure what to do about the whole experience or what it means. I made a short film to help deepen my relationship with the story and better understand my feelings about it.
If you haven’t read or seen Fawn’s post, here’s a link:
Harry, your film is a moving video-track to Lillian’s challenge. Where Lillian highlights the problems and stressors of education at the high school level, we see the joy and fun that students have a decade or more before.
Education typically stops being fun. Why? The pressure we and society impose? The push for “success” in grades, etc.?
The move to make education (at least math education) more game-focused is interesting, but I don’t know how to make that transition…yet. But maybe I need to.
Every teacher needs to see her/himself as a life coach. Not a screaming Friday Nights Light football coach, but a teacher/coach who affirms the good, provides laddered support for students, challenges appropriately, and helps students see the big picture.
Because the big picture isn’t a quiz, an exam or a certification. The big picture is having a meaningful, happy life.
No one asks me for my SAT scores. No one wonders where I was ranked in my high school or university classes.
Does education open doors? Absolutely. Does education mean success for everyone? Not always. Does more education generally translate to more money and a “better” job? Generally, yes. But is MORE money worth it? And what is a BETTER job?
But my worry, in this strange age we now find ourselves in, is how to motivate students into becoming independent, critical thinkers. Too many students in my classes just wait for someone else to do the work. And when we progress to something more challenging, there’s the demand “Isn’t there an easier way?”
The way I see things, the world IS becoming more competitive, jobs ARE demanding more and varied skills, all of which is likely to increase pressure on success, and tend to minimize the chance for exploration and joy in the classroom.
Thanks, Frank. Your comments remind me of some thoughts I’ve been having recently about the increasing complexity of the world. As we get more complex, do we become slave to that complexity? If it takes an increasingly sophisticated skill set to interact with the environment we’ve created, it might correspondingly take an increased amount of time and effort to master that skill set, which means we either put in the required time and effort (like Lillian is doing) or we pay the price of poor educational records. Maybe this complexity will be offset by automation?
Again, these are very crude thoughts. This post and this topic are not my area of expertise. I just began interacting with the MTBoS and Fawn’s post moved me. I’m really just hacking through the weeds here at this point. Thanks for offering your perspective to help me figure it all out.
Harry, we’re all in this together.
No doubt lots of us are asking the same questions, and seeking direction.
I’m reminded of a book by E.F. Schumacher called “Good Work”. The premise was that if you did your work well, with integrity, with the right spirit, any job can become meaningful.
Does it apply to the guy who scoops up the poop the carriage horses leave behind in Centeal Park? Possibly. It really centers around intention.
Thank you so much, Harry, for putting together this deeply tender piece.
Hi, Fawn. I’m thankful and glad you got a chance to see it. As I said before, it was a humbling experience to make and one which I am learning from in very unexpected ways.
Thank you so much for this beautiful piece.
I wrote my poem at one in the morning during a long night of studying. I used to use that as an apology, but I now realize that I should in no way apologize for my art. It is the perfect context for the meaning of this piece. Your video is the beautiful journey that it represents.
When I was in middle school and elementary school, I was the ULTIMATE overachiever (Ms. Nguyen can back me up, I’m sure). I was involved in every extracurricular. Every time there was an academic competition, I was first in line. I walked into high school with that mindset. Here I am, almost done with freshman year, and I frequently turn in work that is in NO way my best work. I am trying to put self-care in front of my grades, but I desperately want to get into NYU Tisch and god knows it’s competitive. If I don’t sleep now, maybe I’ll catch up later.
Obviously, this isn’t true, as I know it will only get more difficult. But I personally believe it is important that the communities of teachers realize that we aren’t being overdramatic and emotional because of “hormones” and “puberty.” I speak what I feel. Nothing less and nothing more.
I’m so incredibly grateful for the creation of this piece and the acceptance of this community. Your willingness to hear us makes us feel like what we have to say is valid. Our feelings must be valid.
Thank you. I appreciate what you’ve done, and I appreciate what you’re going to continue to work for.
Hi Lillian. I’m glad to have made it. As I’ve said the in the comments above, I learned a lot by doing so. I like the point you are making about taking you at your word. Someone else on Twitter posted something similar. The post said something like “One of society’s weaknesses is that we think that anyone younger than us isn’t worth listening to”. Your message challenges that. It helped me listen to my own children more. Stay bold and stay honest.