Risk: There's a Train A'coming

If there is a buzzword around my school district this year, it is, without a doubt, "risk."

We've talked about it in trainings, I'm going to be taking part in a Twitter chat in just a little bit all about it and it is the centerpiece of a district Leadership Academy I am fortunate to be a part of. 

But why is is such a big deal?  Why should we as educators take risks?  In my district, at my school, where I've heard fellow teachers say- truthfully- "We've got a really good thing going here"- why take a risk?

I shared this quote with my classes yesterday, and I believe it answers my query very well:  

Life is progress. Education is apart of life. Thus, Education is progress. 

I have never feared taking a risk. I run to the edge of the Grand Canyon, I take my young children hiking up 14,000 foot mountains, I still do flips on a trampoline at 35, I started a church in a bar when I was 28 with no financial support, I ask my classes controversial questions about current events and sit back and watch them work out their opinions. 

Many educators do fear risk. They look at the track beneath their feet and think, "This is taking me where I want to go."  And they are right- but they do not hear the train of students who learn differently, new technologies that shape the classroom environment, and fellow educators desiring to lay the throttle down and get to that destination faster. 

My district and my campus have more than their share of risk-takers. But what if you are at a school that thinks risks are just too...risky?  How can you affect change and bring them along, too?

Here is my problem:  For me, risk is only worth taking if it is costly. I'm a bit of an adrenaline junkie. I get a rush from the danger of failure looming ahead and fighting with the throttle to stay on the track. 

So, I often find  myself wanting to take bigger risks than those around me. I do not ever want to force someone to take a risk they are not willing to take, so I must work to convince and offer security to take the risk I believe is worth it. Here is what I try to convince my fellow risk-takers of:

The risk is necessary. 

Maybe it is expected of us to "go big or go home."  Maybe there is a population of students that need us to dangle on the precipice of greatness and failure. Maybe there is a wound in the culture around our school that appears to be "just a flesh wound" but without the risk it can become gangrenous.  

I do not take- or attempt to persuade others to take- risks for the sake of risk. I take risks in my personal life because I need to test myself physically and mentally. I take risks professionally because I see and hear that train barreling down the tracks and gaining on me. 

The risk is worth it. 

The change a risk can bring must be worth the danger of its failure. If the cost is greater than the benefit, it is vanity and pride that drive the risk. And even if it succeeds, it fails because the change is not profound. 

The risk is indicative of leadership. 

If we are in a position of leadership, we are in a position that requires risk. Great leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr., Ghandi, Jesus, and Davy Crockett took risks.   

Crockett, when looking at the situation in Texas during fight for independence from Mexico, asked for help from his fellow U.S. Congressmen.  He wanted to aide the Texans because he believed it was for their benefit and the benefit of the U.S.  Their silence infuriated him, and he took a tremendous risk with the words, "You may all go to Hell, and I will go to Texas."

Crockett died there, but his leadership, along with the rest of the San Antonio martyrs inspired the phrase, "Remember the Alamo!"  Oh, and victory. 

We must lead, we must take the risk that others fear to take, because by our taking it, the fearful may be given courage. 

The train is coming. 

Here's the thing:  we all know things are progressing in this world very quickly. New tech appears by the seasons, and sometimes the month. Students have new learning styles. New teachers arrive every year, hungry to try new things, but afraid to fail. They need mentors, examples, symbols, of what teachers who take calculated risks look like. They are on the right track, let us be the train with them, so none of us get run over for just sitting there. 

Resolved: Classroom Debates are Vital to Education

I sat back in wonder and watched as the student walked through the info graphic she had drawn on the whiteboard defending her teams side in the classroom debate. There was logic, critical thought, refutation, and an easy to follow line of reasoning. 

All because I gave the class the challenge to debate two sides of an argument in History class. 

Now, I teach Debate, but I've used classroom debates to challenge students to think deeper than regurgitation and be prepared to take a stand in my History classes. I know some teachers get a little nervous and squirmy when you mention debate, because it has the potential to go off the tracks and get into controversial subjects. This is true, but I also believe it has the power, even with those risks, to be a powerful tool in the educator's arsenal. 

Debate Teaches Listening Skills

You've got to listen to your opponent's views carefully to understand where they are coming from. Students who engage in classroom debates critically analyze the arguments made in an effort to answer the questions they raise. Students must listen for nuance and shades of ambiguity. All this leads to the next critical skill. 

Debate Teaches Organized Thought

If you are going to make a case, it's got to make sense. And step one is to organize an argument that is easy to follow. Now, the student in the opening illustration had her whiteboard, but that was just an image of the organization she and her team used to craft a compelling argument. They answered the points of their opponent clinically, and then made their own points clearly. These skills are handy to have in debate- but also important for communication skills throughout life. 

Debate Teaches Communication Skills

Not only do students need organized thought, they need to be able to speak. 

To people. 

In this age of Twitter and texting, face-to-face communication can get left behind. Students need to be able to give literal "voice" to their ideas. Debate allows students to find their voice and develop confidence. It can also give them an interest in addressing other issues close to their heart. 

Debate Teaches Responsible Discourse

Students are going to find issues to be passionate about. Students are then going to argue those points. A look at Twitter or comment sections on the internet reveals the sad state of rational debate. Name calling and hollow, evidence-lacking claims are the norm. 

This is not debate, they are temper tantrums. 

As educators who encourage classroom debate, we have the opportunity- and the responsibility- to help students learn the way to argue with passion and courtesy. We are able to give students the freedom to speak their minds in a safe place where we can guide them to better ways to share their hearts. We are able to step in if the debate gets a little too heated or personal and remind students that we can disagree and still get along. Our students have strong convictions, and a passion to defend them- but they need to know HOW. 

Getting Started

It's not tough to get students to debate. A discussion of character's action in a Lit class, questions over ethics in Science, actions from the past in History, or current events related to subject matter. You can divide students up (I like to have students argue the opposite opinion of the one they actually hold because it stretches them.), you can let them choose, or you can simply put a list of topics on the board and work through them. You just moderate and watch out for tangents. 

At the end of the day, like all strategies we use, sometimes it flops. So you learn from it, along with your students. 

But other times you get brilliance on a whiteboard. 

And that is why it's worth it. 

Week 2 Review

BMy weekly personal evaluation of what's going on in and around my classes. 

The Good:  

Preparation:  I managed to get ahead on planning, as per my goal. I also got ahead on tests and quizzes. 

Class Discussion:  We shifted into more classroom discussion and less me talking. Still want more student involvement, but this week was much better. Our Comm Apps current events discussion on Friday was great- students really took ownership and ran with it. Sociology classes had excellent debate on what values are strongest in America and we moved to an impact point of "What values do you want to be the strongest?" This was inspiring!  Debate class had our first speeches and cross examinations- great questions from the students. 

The Not-So-Good

Color Coded Schedule:  Yeah. This didn't happen. Grading by colors happened, but that necessary desk calendar is still blank. And on August. 

Names:  Did great! Until I totally forgot half the names in one class. While taking roll. Out loud. 

The Bad

Misjudgment.:  I spent a couple days concerned that a student was going to try to start an argument with me over a topic they wanted to cover in our current events discussion. Turns out, they were just posing a question for advice from the class on how to approach answering the subject the student brought. But I allowed my concern to affect, in small ways, how I viewed this student. They weren't trying to cause trouble, they were seeking support. I cannot let that happen again. 

The Grade

Good to great class discussions, but still struggling with names, schedule and a misjudgment of student intent drops the grade to  a B-, in my opinion. 

The Goals 

Names: Get them down. 

Schedule:  Write it down. Stay ahead. 

Gauging Student Intent:  Give students the benefit of the doubt, while being prepared for potential class disrupting/distracting comments. Also, figure out how to do this.