But how long can they drink once we’ve showed them the water?

I am not a fan of the horse-to-water proverb use in education. Never have been. It puts too much–maybe all–on the kids. It presumes that we have done all that we can, and the rest is up to them. But have we? And what does that mean? We gave them an assignment and some directions? Is that where our “leading ends? Seems it should go on. Seems since we are holding the proverbial reins, our responsibility goes beyond and continues after we show them the water. Have we ever asked ourselves why thirsty kids won’t drink? What if they need to hang out at the water hole for a little longer than we planned? Will we wait? What if they’ve drunk before, only to get a mouthful of sand as they discover the mirage they’ve been led to?

Yes, mirages. The work that’s not relevant. The lack of continued support and feedback beyond assignment and direction. The penalty points. No opportunities to redo, retake, or correct. There are many mirages in the School Realm to which we lead our kids. Kids will drink, even deeply, if we lead them to water. Heck, we may even discover that if we let loose the reins they may splash around and play in it.

Happy Wednesday, all.

Do. Reflect. Do Better.