I have been coaching soccer for about six years now, ever since I stopped playing at UDM. The ability to coach has always been something that has come easily to me, as I try to envision exactly what the players might be thinking about. I have coached and played at a high level for a while, which has made my expectations quit high. I expect a lot of myself and demand top play from my players.
However, what happens when I am not connecting to some of the players as well as others. I just worked very closely with a junior varsity program that was not at the same level as I would like them to be. Some of the players are not very dedicated and tend to take the easy way out. I found myself allowing them to sit out of drills and fitness exercises when I should have been asking them to work harder and develop new ways to get through to them.
This is the same as in the class. This is the going to be one of my biggest challenges as a teacher. I need to make sure that I am not just catering to the needs of the talented students. I worry that I will relate to the students who are willing to work hard, but I should also be focusing on getting others involved. There will be all types of students that come through my class, all of whom I will need to challenge and engage.
Just like in sports, you can't just focus on the good players and allow the others to fall behind. If you do that, there won't be a team in the future.
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It's just easier (and in the short term, much more pleasant) to connect with the students most like us, or those most interested in what we're doing. That's human nature, I think. So I applaud your recognition of this issue, Phil, and your willingness to confront it. In a sense, what we wind up doing with a lot of our students is asking them to go outside their comfort zone, and to come and engage with a subject that is *very much* within ours. It's paradoxical.
ReplyDeleteSo I am especially happy to see you trying to draw meaning from an experience that wasn't fully satisfying for you. Those moments when WE are out of our comfort zone can be really useful reminders, and helpful opportunties as we build our empathy for those students who'll struggle in our classes. Your highlighting the vital importance of trying to recognize (and prize) effort seems like an crucial step, Phil...keep thinking it through.