school should make sense and be a success for your child.
It doesn't take a rocket surgeon to figure that out, but we sometimes forget exactly what it is that makes that success possible.
In starting my forty-sixth year of teaching science in both high school and college, I really think I'm beginning to get it.
The "it" I'm starting to understand has several really important concepts, and I'd like to share a couple of them with you.
Firs of all your child's success in school goes far beyond the grade they achieve in any particular class or how well they do on the infamous standardized exams.
Doing well with grades or on standardized tests will be a byproduct of them choosing to follow the pursuit of a concept that I call HOPE.
In this case, HOPE is an acronym meaning "Higher Order Principles of Education.
" Simply stated, living by those Higher Order Principles of Education means choosing to live by actively applying some normal, traditional values to whatever you do.
If your children make a focused effort towards living their lives within the context of those Higher Order Principles, they will ultimately produce a life that excitingly illustrates a high level of Radical Excellence.
Some of those "traditional values" are listed here.
- Responsibility
- Enthusiasm
- Integrity
- Curiosity
- Politeness
- Timeliness
- Commitment
- Politeness
" Most of us DO know those things, but here's a disturbing fact.
More and more in our schools, public or private, a growing number of students have become enjoyable engrossed in their use of Electronic Enjoyment Devices like iPods and cell phones to the extent that they are forgetting (or ignoring) the productive application of those excellence-producing characteristics.
Saying something and actually doing that thing is what makes a hoped for success possible.
Having stated those principles used in producing excellent achievement, I would be guilty of a great omission if I didn't give you a very practical example of a specific activity you can do that will help your child in school.
A typical dinner time conversation with your teenage child might sound like this.
"How was school today?" "OK.
" "Is all your homework done?" "Yeah.
" You might be amazed at the dialogue that could develop simply by changing the way you ask questions of your child.
Let me give you a few examples.
- What was the funniest thing any of your teachers said today?
- What questions did you ask in class today?
- Which of your friends was the most enjoyable to be around?
- Did you observe any acts of random kindness?
- Let's study those vocabulary terms right after dinner, ok?
- How did your math teacher help you see where math is used in everyday life?
" Well, the fact is, we ARE in it together.
Let's see if we can make it work.