Counting Your School Blessings

My twitter account exists as a professional learning tool.  I follow Scientific American, CERN, Fermilab, and some other things that keep me up with current science.  I follow Buzz Aldrin and NASA.  This year, I have made the effort to follow other educators, thinking I would find some interesting ideas.  What I have found are people who are reaching out for encouragement.  This year, I have spent more time talking education with educators outside of my school than ever before, and so many are feeling alone in their schools. 

Since I had a year like that in my career, I have reached out to a few.  They are generally idealists who adore their students and want to do what is best for them.  They feel their hands are tied by systems of testing over-emphasis, unsupportive administrators, or schools in which student compliance is valued above learning.

What I have also found on Twitter is a group of teachers and administrators who seem to be made of encouragement.  If you need some online boosting in your job, try following Fixing Education (@WhyTeaching),  Dave Stuart, Jr. (@davestuartjr), and Bethany Hill #JoyfulLeaders (@bethhill2829). 

These are all great, but the account that drips with enthusiasm, love, empathy, and encouragement is that of Danny Steele (@SteeleThoughts).  Just to give you an idea, here's a screenshot from a few days ago.

On December 19, @SteeleThouts tweeted this:  "Do our students know we love our job?  I hope so."  Some of the replies he got to this tweet were amazing teachers showing how they communicate their enthusiasm to their kids, even a principal dressed up as a Christmas tree.  Other replies were heartbreaking, like this one from @JeffcoEducation - "Danny, my son comes home and tells me about his teacher sitting in the corner, reading her book..... he asks: “if she doesn’t want to be here.... why should I want to be here?”.

The one that stuck with me was from @EthanAdshade.

Aside from how sad it is that a person in his position (his organization pairs experts and educators so that students will be exposed to people in higher education) has not observed many positive school cultures, he reminded me to be grateful that I am in a supportive and encouraging school environment.  Here are a few things that spring to mind.

- I laugh with my students every day.

- I laugh with my colleagues every day.

- My administrators pray for/with me.

- I am trusted and respected by my administration (a fact that a teacher who came from a different school reminded me of on Friday)

- My administration asks for my input on important decisions.

- My administration creates space for us to encourage each other.

- My administration and colleagues help me solve problems.

- My colleagues share ideas and resources.

There's more, but I would like to say based on Ethan's reply, "I consider myself blessed because I do love my job."