The Last Word, 23-24

Published: 2024-06-04 1:38 PM

Category: Teaching | Tags: lessons, observation, encouragement

In the past, I had written notes of encouragement to each student. They'd taken different forms from handwritten to printed slips to small conversations. This year, I decided to decide on a theme that would apply to my classes. This year's recommendation:

Set boundaries for yourself.

Frankly it stems from phone use, but it goes into many more aspects. There is value in hard work, and learning is hard work. There is dignity in working at things that are difficult instead of trying to take an easy road out. There is growth that can only happen when you work through a situation or problem.

I want to encourage my students to set boundaries for next year - limits they won't cross while they're in school. For some, it might be putting a phone in a backpack or locker. For others, it may be not opening an AI tool to get a quick answer. Or it's choosing not to engage in conflict.

Whatever the situation, having a boundary or a commitment to act in a particular way is an asset. Hopefully, some of them will put that to practice next year.