Have you ever agreed to do something and later wondered what you were thinking? I’ve got that dilemma starting tomorrow. At the end of the school year I said goodbye to my tutees and began to dream of long days with no obligations. Surprisingly an email appeared in my inbox asking me to be part of the summer school program. I quickly pointed out that I had already made plans for a camping trip during the second week of the session believing that I would be off of the hook but soon a reply came. The sender announced that it would be just fine if I had to be gone for a time. Before I even took the time to reflect on the pros and cons I had agreed to take part in the session. Now that I am one day away I find myself wondering why I assented to doing such a thing. Continue reading “Keeping Promises”
When I was searching for a teaching position at the beginning of my career I had a general interview with a man who was old enough to be my father. He mentioned that he had worked for the school district for his entire career and that he had seen a number of changes over the years. He knew a great deal about me before I even showed up to his office because I had to include a photograph of myself with the application and I had checked a number of demographic boxes including one delineating my religion.
As educators we do our best but those of us who are honest know without a doubt that we sometimes make mistakes. Hopefully when we do so we are willing to admit our errors and redress them. Unfortunately that doesn’t always happen in our educational system. Children are sometimes unwittingly hurt and nobody does anything to step forward and change things. It’s difficult to upend the system. Most of society is unwilling to do so for fear of being thought of as rebellious or troublemaking. 
As parents we often like to believe that we are the sole arbiters of our children’s lives but the reality is that it does take a village to accompany our young from the time that they are babies until they become adults. Even those who choose homeschooling inevitably must allow the influences of others to affect their youngsters. It’s a difficult situation for parents and takes a dramatic leap of faith and a heap of wisdom to navigate successfully. The trick is in knowing when to protect a child and when to let him/her get hurt. Anyone who has ever tried that knows that it is a daunting task. 
All It Takes Is A Little Love 