Well, we just entered the second week of Fall semester classes. From reading the daily student journals, it’s already apparent that it is spirit which moves both teacher and student, that it’s spirit which sets the compass true, and that it’s spirit which gives–or should give–intent, meaning, and purpose to methods, techniques, technologies, and even assessment instruments. If we want to achieve, not in terms of research and publication and renown and position and tenure, but in terms of enhancing the life of each student, we need to change our too often ineffective and negative script to a positive one that underpins each student’s self-esteem and self-confidence. Many of us need, as a first year student just insightfully wrote in her journal, “a curriculum for caring, not just for giving out information.” It’s the only way that has a chance of getting a student to change hers or his fearful, self-disparaging, and discouraging script. To do that, you need to do several things unconditionally, selflessly, and tirelessly: dream big, believe wholeheartedly, respect sincerely, care truly, persevere tirelessly, commit endlessly, and love deeply. If you truly want to make a difference in a student’s life, if you want always to make each student feel appreciated and noticed and invaluable, if you want each of them to achieve, be careful to not demean or diminish her or him; if you want each of them to succeed you have to see intently in each of them the potential that they so often don’t know or believe is there. As you do these you’ll kick fear, doubt, resignation, excuse, and rationale out of the way; you’ll plan diligently; and, you’ll grow into your dreams.

Louis