“And I Won’t Back Down”

As I started my new journey to fitness I get to start watching documentaries again while riding my bike on my trainer. Since I was lucky to get Foo Fighter tickets at Wrigley Field before they sold out in under five minutes it only made sense to watch Sound City

I have only watched the beginning, but right away I took to heart something Tom Petty mentions in the documentary.

“Music is not really supposed to be perfect. It’s all about people relating to each other and doing something that comes from the soul.” Tom Petty

Right away I started thinking about life and in particular education. We have overcomplicated education and learning. We have tried to make connections to things that don’t need to be connected. We are justifying the wrong things to make decisions look good.

Tom is referencing music, but the idea is global. Learning is not perfect. It should never be perfect. Learning is about connecting with other people and doing things with passion. As educators we must have a purpose to everything we teach. I think we lose sight of that. With that purpose has to come passion. If we bring those two things to our teaching game, then students feed off that. When they feed off that it allows them to find their purpose and passion.

This leads to more curiosity and life long learners. In the end is that not what we are about? Who cares about standardized testing and what textbook is best? Those are adult mindsets that are missing the point of life and learning.

What inspires you? What ignites your soul to teach students every single day? Do the students feel that energy? If not, then you need to change your mindset!

One thing I know is that this is something that I believe. It has been a few tough weeks in my education world. I have to keep on the straight and narrow with my professional goals and not get bogged down in issues that don’t enhance learning for all students.

My mantra for the week is