Monday, October 27, 2008

What is truly important?

As I prepare to attend the T+L Conference sponsored by the National School Board Association, I find myself reflecting on an excerpt from "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch.

"It is an accepted cliche' in education that the number one goal of teachers would be to help students learn how to learn. ...... But in my mind, a better number one goal was this: I wanted to help students learn how to judge themselves. Did they recognize their true abilities? Did they have a sense of their own flaws? Were they realistic about how others viewed them?"

This stuck with me as I recall the amazing essays and illustrations portraying "Why I Want to be a Part of eDCSD." I recognize that a traditional instructional vehicle may not push students to recognize their true potential. I realize that the adaptability and 1:1 instruction and mentoring available in an online approach my drive students to see their own flaws. I am convinced that in an online approach to instruction, students have less room to "hide" from who they are, what they desire, and the image they leave behind... because the must engage to benefit.

I am eager to see what others in our nation are doing to provide such an opportunity to our children.