Taking risks and experiencing failure...the two perfect ingredients

Educators across the country are returning to their schools with fewer resources, larger class sizes, increased work loads, and the fastest
changing student population ever...these challenges and setbacks do not
excuse us from taking risks and doing whatever it takes to meet the
needs of our students.

This school year several colleagues and I have chosen to
implement some major changes in our classrooms. These changes require
that we invest more time, more of our energy, and have more patience.
The initial implementation stage is crucial to making sure these changes
get off on the right foot. Additionally, as with anything new, we must
also accept the fact that when doing something new, you are never quite
sure what the outcome will be. The obvious question would be, "why did
we choose to make these changes in our classes; especially since it
requires more of our time and energy?" I will speak for my colleagues
here, but the answer to this question is simple...we chose these changes
because we believe they are in the best interests our of students, and
regardless of any challenges and setbacks, we have an obligation to do
whatever it takes.

My colleagues and I have all taken a risk by incorporating new forms of
technology and social media in our classrooms. I know it is still early
in the school year, but these changes have thus far proven to be both
beneficial and positive changes. I would be lying if I said everything
has been positive. These new changes have stirred up lots of opinions
and feelings toward technology and social media in the
classroom...change has a way of doing that to people. I can honestly
say I love hearing what other people think and believe when it comes to
improving education. Just as we teach our students, we should take
information from several sources, and then construct our opinion based
off of those pieces of information. If somebody has good solid
information about something I am doing that is wrong, you bet I want to
hear about it. However, finding out that something I am doing is wrong,
and not as effective as I'd hoped, is not going to stop and prevent me
from taking future risks to make education as applicable and relevant
for my students.

We have all experienced failure in someway or another in the educational
arena, the biggest difference is how we responded. Did you swear to
never take another risk again because of your fear to fail? Did you
isolate yourself from sharing and group collaboration? Did you tell
yourself to not rock the boat, and to just do what everybody else is
doing? Did you give up on yourself and the needs of your students...? I
hope, for your sake, education's sake, your children's sake, America's
sake, and the future of the world's sake, you did none of the above.
Taking risks and experiencing failure are what make us human, and as
educators we owe it to our students to continually search for new and
improved ways of educating them in preparation for their futures.

I encourage you to take risks in an effort to improve education, and when
you experience failure, use it as an opportunity to grow and further
develop your skills as an educator. Take failure, criticism and
pessimism as roads on the journey toward success. Never be
afraid to try something, do something, or start something that you
believe can improve the educational process.