Post Workshop Thinking

We were asked to think about the purpose of grading. One of the participants (whom I had never met before) "joked" his purpose was to make his students cry. I cringed and said something about being sure the teacher wasn't being serious. I'm pretty sure I used my "all business" teacher voice to say it.

The group quickly became quiet. I suspect the other two members of the group could read my face and could see the joke fell flat.

Groups were changed again and we circulated to different groups.

Days later, I am still thinking about that one interaction.

It occurs to me that I've been taking for granted the progress we have made in our building. Sometimes when you attend a workshop, you gain new ideas to use back in your practice. You might even struggle with how to fit new learning into existing learning.

Yet, some workshops don't necessarily bring new learning. Some workshops force you to reflect on your own practice in your own building. This recent interaction did that. This interaction reminded me how far our building has come with grading and how much teachers STILL work to make connections with students and help them be successful. It's the kind of work we keep on doing, day in and day out.

It's the kind of work that makes me thankful, all over again, and for so many reasons.

Image by Sean Junkins, Thoughts by Corinth Middle School Teachers

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