Teaching, passion and what are we doing to our children?
![In January I returned to the English classroom. This has been one of the most fulfilling times of my career. The joy one receives at the front of a classroom is indescribable. There is no better sight than having taught a concept, to watch the students in the class apply the concepts and the facial expression on a child’s face when they achieve success. Not the mark they receive but the realisation that they have improved on their previous attempt. […]](http://markjhayter.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/AdobeStock_53218843-1560x1200.jpeg)
In January I returned to the English classroom. This has been one of the most fulfilling times of my career. The joy one receives at the front of a classroom is indescribable. There is no better sight than having taught a concept, to watch the students in the class apply the concepts and the facial expression on a child’s face when they achieve success. Not the mark they receive but the realisation that they have improved on their previous attempt.
Many of us would have read Ken Robinson’s book, The Element, where he describes “the Element as having two features and two conditions for being in it. The features are aptitude and passion. The conditions are attitude and opportunity…people who are in their Element take a deep delight and pleasure in what they do.”
Carmine Gallo in The Storyteller’s Secret, in the first chapter, writes on Steve Jobs and his success as a storyteller. He discusses passion in the work you do and comments on how Steve Jobs solve the puzzle of passion.
Steve Jobs discovered passion by asking, “What makes my heart sing?” The answer to the question: What makes my heart sing? is a lot different than the answer to the question: What do I do? Steve Jobs made computers; building tools to help people unleash their creativity made his heart sing.
Now, our Grade 7 pupils are madly attempting to jump through hoops to get their high school places. The parents are drained by the whole process. The children are anxious, stressed, tired and stretched beyond what a thirteen-year-old should have to cope with.
During a lesson the other morning two comments struck me. The first was from a child who said he would do whatever would make him the most money. The second from a child (thirteen-years-old) who just wanted to play in the sandpit with his cub (a five-year-old).
The two statement and the two writers struck a cord inside me, and I felt I have to ask the question: What are we doing to the children in our communities?
Life in 2017 is pressurised enough for a thirteen-year-old, surely we should be encouraging them to follow their passions and develop skills that bring them enjoyment. Not exhausted and tired children, who long for a free day with nothing to do. We should be searching for opportunities in the educational space to ensure children “play in the sandpit” and develop a passion for themselves, not driven by a high school acceptance or a scholarship offer.
Returning to the classroom reinforced for me why I went into to education and specifically teaching, but, are we giving the children in our care the opportunities to find their passions and the enjoyment of learning and discovery.
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