OK, so what's happened lately. I know this is supposed to be about technology. Right now I'm still very overwhelmed with the amount of work I'm doing for my classes and while I'm still incorporating a lot of technology, very little of it is anything new. I have a lot of ideas of things I'd like to try out, but can't seem to find the time. So I'm going to digress a bit from the technology.
My kids have been doing some martial arts classes lately. Other than the idea that they might be able to beat up a bully sometime, the main reason we've enjoyed these classes is because they have a big emphasis on character building. I would say the character building is considered of equal importance to the martial arts. This has led to me thinking about the character of the students I teach. Like everything else, I find quite a wide range when I consider their character, but overall I'm really not impressed. I find that a large part of this population is happy doing average or below average work. The amount of students that really strives to excel in their work is so very low. Are we creating a society that is satisfied with mediocrity? I really don't know. I think that sometimes this is my fault as there are definitely times where I feel like I've had to lower my own standards just so students don't get failing grades. But then it seems like our grades also reflect this acceptance to mediocrity as it is rare for a student to repeat a grade or to have any consequences, even when this student is failing.
Is there a solution? I don't know. I'm presently talking to my son's martial arts instructor about him possibly coming in to teach some of this character building to the class. I already find myself repeating some of the things he says. I guess I just wonder about these kids growing up. Are they going to have the ability to achieve their life goals? Are they going to be able to persevere and push through the difficulties that they are bound to have? Was it any different when I was growing up? As usual, I'm left with more questions than answers.
Lately I've been reading lots about the idea of "grit." Students have to have grit to be successful, and we should definitely keep our high standards. In fact, it seems that grit is more important an indicator than IQ or test results. I've been reading some long term studies that follow students past high school in to college and beyond. I'm finding that I care less about IQ, smarts, and achievement - and more about character strengths.
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