I thought initially those two-liners that I sent back to that professor. I thought that first line said it all about what should be our view towards students, but now slowly I'm beginning to see it means more, especially having added that second line. It also means what should our view be towards ourselves. To be honest, I've taken myself deeper with my reflections on the meaning of my "Teacher's Oath" than I had expected. The Oath is as much about facing up to ourselves as facing students; it's a mirror reflecting ourselves as much as a window into students. That outside mirror is a sharp and accurate reflection of our inside essence. After all, every aspect of our lives is influenced every second by now we imagine teaching to be. And so, the kind of face we put on determines the kind of world we see and experience; and, what you get is who you are, how you act, and the way you think and feel.
The time we spend in the drousy darkness of fear, anger, frustration, annoyance, resentment is time we cannot spend in the awakened light of gentleness, empathy, compassion, love, joy, happiness, growth, kindness, satisfaction, fulfillment, significance. You see, nothing is inherently boring, nothing is inherently fascinating, nothing is inherently interesting. It is a matter of our choice. Each student is a sacred human being if we choose to see her or him that way. The classroom can be filled with endless riches if we choose to see it that way. So, if we see the Oath as both window and mirror, as a guide to teaching others and self-teaching, to empathy and self-empathy, to compassion and self-compassion, we can use the Oath to get a better grip on ourselves and teach better; we can shift from negative blaming for everything that is not to our liking to positive responsibility. We can transform from a "doesn't matter" attitude to making what we do in the classroom matter. Maybe this is what the Oath is also about: close that joyless and loveless, frustrated and resigned internal file outlining all the experiential examples of why "they don't belong" or "students today don't…." as well as a bunch of files proving "I'm not good at…." or "I can't…." from which we draw old perceptions and attitudes about ourselves and others, and inject them into the present to create our own reality as reasons to withdraw from students and maybe even create a pathological, weeding-out classroom climate. For me, then, the Oath is a solvent that helps clean up the sludge of blame that clogs the arteries of joy, loving, kindness, empathy, and compassion. Blame is such a hinderance to being awake and free. When we blame others and circumstances with a host of "made me do it" for things that just don't feel right, we enslave ourselves to circumstances and surrender our ability to change things; when we blame, we are not committed or dedicated, and we let the flimsiest excuse stop us; when we blame, we become close-minded and close-hearted; when we blame, we make half-hearted attempts; when we blame, we stop noticing and forget that it's action that matters, not the need to blame. When we let go of blame, stop being "response-unable," we become "response-able," things get quieter, more peaceful, less threatening, more empowering, and we focus on and take control of that one thing we can change: ourselves. And, it's change and growth that are the signs of true, deep, and lasting learning, aren't they--for us as well as for students. For me, change is synonomous with choice; choice, in turn, is synonomous with responsibility; responsibility is synonomous with self-empowerment. And, empowerment is synonomous with taking it all in in order to let it all out. Make it a good day -Louis- Louis Schmier http://www.therandomthoughts.edublogs.org<http://www.therandomthoughts.edublogs.org/> Department of History http://www.therandomthoughts.com<http://www.therandomthoughts.com/> Valdosta State University Valdosta, Georgia 31698 /\ /\ /\ /\ /\ (O) 229-333-5947 /^\\/ \/ \ /\/\__ / \ / \ (C) 229-630-0821 / \/ \_ \/ / \/ /\/ / \ /\ \ //\/\/ /\ \__/__/_/\_\/ \_/__\ \ /\"If you want to climb mountains,\ /\ _ / \ don't practice on mole hills" - / \_ --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=13834 or send a blank email to leave-13834-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
