Is the Secretary of Education Pondering What I’m Pondering?
I am completely unmotivated by my students’ standardized test scores. When someone tells me I need to do something as a teacher to bring up the scores, my first thought is, “Why?” I’m happy if test scores go up anyway, sure, but it’s not a reason for me to do what I do. So when the conversation turns to motivating me by stressing the need to raise the scores, I realize I need to create my own motivation for doing what I do.
I’m fortunate that my students help me do that on a daily basis with their thoughts, their comments, their questions, even their friendly “Hey Dr. Dave!”s in the hallways.
But then I wonder, if my students don’t care about what I think they should care about, how many of them will find their own motivation?
Once again I look to my experience as a teacher to find answers on how my students are thinking and responding to the system . . . and I tend to find as many questions as I do solutions, if not more.
About Dave Thomer
Born and raised in Philadelphia. Studied philosophy at Fordham University in the Bronx, where I made many great friends and met my wonderful wife. We moved back to Philadelphia, where I studied philosophy some more and became a teacher. Online and off, I'm looking for ways that we can be better citizens and build stronger communities.