“I am not a teacher, but an awakener.”   – Robert Frost

Teaching takes many different roles.  I think in our society today we are doing the world of education a disservice by failing to embrace the complexity of what we ask teachers to do.

We are actively promoting critical thinking, problem solving, and inspirational learning.  We have Makers Spaces and flexible learning environments . . . we encourage student voice and choice.  We celebrate these qualities in our teachers . . . we seek ways to lift-up these important skills.

Don’t get me wrong . . . don’t miss my point.  These attributes are essential in the education we provide students today.  We must grow thinkers . . . we must discover passion and inspire greatness.

But . . . and this is an important but . . . we must also provide the foundation for learning.  We must also prepare students to do the necessary work.  Just as we inspire passion, we must also instill discipline.  Just as we grow thinkers, we must also teach respect for process and understanding of organizational structure.  Part of a well-rounded education is preparing students to live in a society that has laws and expectations.  Life often requires hard-work, dedication, and digging in to get things done.

Teachers are awakeners . . . they awaken the passion and inspiration in their students.  They awaken the students to the reality of what success requires.  They awake a balance – the balance that is required to be Ready for Tomorrow.

“Teachers teach because they care.  Teaching young people is what they do best.  It requires long hours, patience, and care.”  – Horace Mann

Teaching isn’t a job . . . teaching is a calling.  For teachers, their work is in their blood – it’s part of their DNA.

Teachers plan lessons on the weekend and grade papers on the couch into the late hours of the night.

Teachers worry about their students and continuously reflect on how to be more supportive, more challenging, and better prepared.

Teachers collaborate with parents . . . they are honest, real, and professional.

Teachers teach because they care . . . they are inspired to build foundations that will last for lifetimes.

It has been said that, “Teaching is the profession that creates all others.”

Every doctor, every lawyer, every engineer . . . every teachers has been taught by teachers.

Next to our families . . . our teachers shaped who we are today.  Our teachers have provided us with academic skills and developed life skills in each of us.

Our schools are the center of our student’s social development.  Students learn to engage their peers, develop the skills necessary to interact in groups, and appreciate the diverse community in which we live.  Teachers cultivate these skills in their students.

During this teacher appreciation week take the time to thank a teacher.  Our teachers are creating the future.  Teachers are cultivating the minds that will be our future doctors, lawyers, engineers, and yes . . . teachers.

Occam’s razor – all things being equal, simpler explanations are generally better than complex ones.

Occam’s razor is a heuristic used to help scientists through theoretical models; it is a process to help frame logic and test results.  We live and work in a complex world.  We face challenges; we deal with events, each and every day.  We have been working with Tim Kight on implementation of another heuristic, E + R = O, Event + Response = Outcome.

As we face events throughout our lives – both personal and professional – we must be intentional and purposeful in our actions.  For me, this is about stopping for a moment – pressing pause – to consider my emotions and the desire outcomes.  These heuristics, or methods to view a process, are a framework to reach the intended outcome.

As we consider our response to any event, application of Occam’s razor is essential.  Don’t fall into the trap of creating complex solutions for simple problems.  The simpler the solution, the better for everyone.  As we press pause and get our minds around what is required of us . . . keep it simple!

The idea of unintended consequences isn’t new.  From John Locke to Adam Smith, from economists to sociologists, the implication that decisions in a complex system may create unexpected or undesirable outcomes is widely accepted.

In our world today, we strive to avoid unintended consequences through discipline, intentional decision making processes.  When we rush to make decisions, when we make decisions based in impulse or emotion, we often fail to take the time to thoughtfully consider the consequences of our actions.

We must develop our ability to process the desired outcome of our own behavior.  We can’t control the events we encounter; we often inherit situations and are expected to respond appropriately.

Processing the situation, asking the question, “What is required of me to achieve the desired outcome?” is essential.  The outcome must be more than ‘in the moment” . . . the outcome must take into account unforeseeable consequences.  Making an easy decision now . . . giving in to the temptation to take the easy way out or to achieve instant gratifications . . . often falls right into the trap of negative unintended consequences down the road.

We live and work in a complex system.  There are very few easy decisions.  Thousands of students count on us every day.  Make sure you take the time to process each situation – to press pause and consider what is required of you – to avoid unintended consequences.

The other day, in a moment of pure frustration, I made the comment, “I sometimes wish I didn’t care so much.”

The danger in caring too much is the temptation to expect perfection.  I truly hope to make everyone happy . . . I strive to solve every problem and bring order to every situation.  My sensible side, the thoughtful portion of my brain understands that it is impossible to make everyone happy.  The emotional side of my brain says, “The only way to even get close is to try.”

Life would be simple if we lived with simple right and wrong; if we faced black and white decisions.  Our reality is we are consistently faced with difficult decisions, competing interests, and high emotion.

As educators, we care for each and every student we serve.  Our reality is a world of limited resource – a world of choices and decisions.  We do our best . . . We care!  There are times decisions aren’t fair; there are times decisions hurt.

While in that moment, it would be easy not to care so much . . . not caring would make us less than our best.  The desire we have to be elite . . . the effort, passion, and dedication, pushes us to make the best decisions possible in difficult situations.

“I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.” ~Mahatma Gandhi

We live in a world full of negativism.  It is increasingly easy for people to vent, to complain, to blame, and to defending their actions.  From social media to the evening news . . . negativity is pervasive in our world.

It is up to each of us to decide how we respond to the events in the world around us.  We must be discipline to be aware of the world in which we live, but to not allow it to define us.

We listen to others . . . we hear their concerns, complaints, and suggestions . . . but we fight the battle to keep our own minds above the line.  We don’t permit others to bring us down – to pull us below the line.

We must have filters – filters that separate the dirt from the important information.  Our filters permit us to get to the heart of the issue without being pulled into the mud.  Our filers create solutions to problems without internalizing them, without living the problem.

Be intentional today; specifically catch yourself when you permit others to walk through your life with their dirty feet.  Be discipline today; live a life of service, hope, and purpose.

“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.” – Albert Einstein

Take a moment and think back on the best teachers in your lifetime.

It may not be a classroom teacher . . . it may be a mentor, a coach, or an instructor.

The best teachers make learning simple.  The best mentors make understanding easy.

The difficult part – the part that takes discipline – is learning something well enough to be able to do it . . . and to explain it . . . simply.

Our work is complex and our work is to prepare today’s young people to be tomorrow’s leaders.  We must devote ourselves to understanding our purpose well enough to keep our work simple.

“Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” – Aristotle

One of the areas of our Quality Profile, our locally developed report card, is the Whole Child.  This isn’t a new revolution . . . it isn’t a twenty-first century revolution.  In fact, the most successful time periods in world history were marked with advances in academic fields at the same time there was a renaissance in the arts.

We are at our best when we have balance.  We seek balance between personal and professional, between family and work, and between heart and mind.  We are at our best when our heart and mind are in alignment . . . when we feed our soul and simulate our brain.

Education is more than reading, writing, and arithmetic . . . education takes place in our art classes, in the music room, during choir, on the fields of athletic completion, and in the dance studio.  Education takes place in the third grade classroom and on the playground . . . life is about balance.

Today . . . during the grind of your daily work . . . take time to ensure balance.  Turn on some music in your workspace . . . stop and look at a piece of artwork in the hallways . . . drop in on someone living their inspiration.  Where is your heart?  How can you feed your soul?