Dear colleague, Recently I came across this article in my archives from 2017 and found it very helpful, in that it both convicted and encouraged me. Gotta say — it’s uncomfortable for me to read at this point in my life, afflicted as I often am with concerns regarding rapidly advancing AI, the student motivation […]
service
Successful v. Useful: Lessons on Teaching from Jim Collins and Peter Drucker
When management researcher Jim Collins was 36 years old, he was invited to spend a day at the home of Peter Drucker. Drucker is someone I’ve just started reading, as I’m in the research phase for a course on time management. The more I read on this topic, the more I find people reverently referencing Drucker’s work. The guiding question […]
Maybe It’s Time for a Diet
When Tracy DiNunzio was born, her vertebrae didn’t form around her spinal cord. Her spina bifida meant a childhood characterized not by the rambling around and bumps and scrapes that my kids experience, but rather by the pain and surgeries that her condition required. DiNunzio recalls that during this time, she “tried complaining and being […]
Tough Minds, Tender Hearts
I’ve been thinking lately about prioritization. Many teachers who subscribe to this blog — colleagues like you — write about how little time they have, how overwhelmed they are, how difficult it is to do all they’re expected to do. I don’t just read their frustrations — I feel them. And it especially pains me […]
We Become What We Do
The best way to become a certain kind of person is to do what those kinds of people do. This common sense dates back to at least Aristotle, who taught that the paths to both vice and virtue run through our actions. For teachers, this means that if we want to be sharper thinkers, then […]