Whenever I hear the word “champion” I start to hear music. How could you not?
What exactly is a champion? According to Merriam-Webster, here are the top two definitions.
In the realm of education, we (or at least I do) often get caught up in race of test scores and teacher rankings. We want to win, to be the best, to be the champion (of the world!).
But really, that’s not the way to propel or profession forward. Instead of following the first definition of a champion which infers education is a contest to be won, we need to push further beyond ourselves and help one another to fight in support of a person, belief, or cause.
As educators, we are often fighting for a person – persons in our case – as we champion our students toward success. We create environments and experiences to help them uncover their strengths and passions in order to reach their full potential. We are our students champions. And it doesn’t have to just be the students in sitting your classroom everyday. Because of the way the project based learning program I teach in works, I interact with students daily that are not on my roster. I get to know them and work with them. It creates an awesome dynamic. You may not have this same environment at your school, but you can still look for ways forge relationships with the students in your school beyond the walls of your classroom.
Educators also fight for our beliefs. We believe every child can learn and succeed. We believe our profession is important and should be valued. We believe our education system is a beautiful thing even with its flaws. We believe we can make education better, make our classrooms better, make each lesson better than the one before. We believe that to teach is to constantly grow and learn.
And we fight for our causes. Personally, I love STEM. It’s a cause I fight for; one I hold dear. Do I expect that every student will end up in a STEM field? Of course not, but I think the focus on STEM will help some of our students find their passions. There are other causes we fight against, too, like the beast of standardized testing.
As you see, as educators, we are champions. As we champion in support of students, beliefs, and causes, the best way to be successful is to share. Share what works. Share what doesn’t. Share what needs to change. Share lessons. Share ideas. Share programs. That’s why I share on Twitter. That’s why I blog. It’s why I love leading professional development and writing online courses for my colleagues. Together, as we share, we become better. We become one another’s champions. And as we champion, we reach students in our classrooms all over the world. And our students will reach the future, and maybe (hopefully), they will change the world.
Maybe Queen was right after all. We ARE the champions of the world!
so good Janelle. It has become such a pleasure to read your blog.
Thanks so much, Chris! This challenge has been just what I needed to get me back to blogging consistently. Thanks for organizing it and for your support.
You had me right up until the part where teachers help students find their passions. I think this is okay to do. Better would be to help students look for things to be passionate about. It’s a subtle but significant thing. When I was five my passion was Sky King on Saturday mornings. At 10 my passion was finding frogs in the creek near the factory down the block. Passions evolve over time. Today’s passion is yesterday’s blah. Encouraging students to be curious, to ask and seek, that’s the ticket.
Thank you for arousing my curiousity.
That’s an interesting distinction that you are making. Although passions evolve, some just morph into something greater. And I think if students are uncovering their true deep passions, it won’t fizzle out over time. However, I absolutely agree that encouraging curiosity, asking, and seeking is extremely important.
Thanks for your comment. It’s definitely made me think.
Great piece Janelle; enthuse, excite and foster curiosityin our students (and teachers), and in the case of STEM – hook em while they’re young!