Pedagogy: Teaching Teachers How To Teach
Pedagogy is a word I discovered in the 1990’s while preparing to address a group of students with undeclared majors at California State University at Los Angeles. For all who failed to bring your dictionaries, Pedagogy is a word I use to refer to the science, or art, of “teaching teachers how to teach.” Excellence in the profession of Pedagogy has gifted generations of great people with the keys that unlocked the doors the invisible fist of Ignorance previously closed for all the wrong reasons.
The insightful teachers I’ve observed practicing their excellence verified the veracity of the popular belief that one can’t teach what one doesn’t know. Try it. Teaching anything for the first time is a humbling and frightening experience. Nevertheless, the only way to know how to teach “something” is to do the “something” you’re trying to teach. I honestly believe that one too many of America’s teachers are frequently “overworked,” “underpaid,” and “taken for granted.” God willing, this, too, shall pass before our “unsung heroes and sheroes” become endangered absentees that no global economy can afford to absorb.
For me, sitting down and writing these daily messages that are worth reading from scratch is one example of why it takes courage to teach something new. Dig deep into my archives and look at the previous posts that began on January 1, 2007. Go ahead. Laugh. I did. Besides, it’s healthy to laugh at ourselves. Our pessimistic peers, cynical critics, and the politically motivated pundits may laugh at us and hate us today for daring to think critically. But keep pushing past the pain anyway. More times than not, children will teach teachers more than we ever thought we taught them. “Forrest Gump” did.
” No Struggle. No Strength.”
Hopefully, those of you who keep getting up and showing up daily will see the outpouring of love that inspires each message before you notice the mistakes. Our families, friends, and the people we love and respect may criticize us as we practice our excellence and despise our humble beginnings today. Keep digging deeper and climbing higher anyway. Despite all the ridicule, rejection, and laughter, I’m glad I did. Are you? I hope so. Since I choose to live the rest of my life for an audience of One, I refuse to give less than my best. Besides, “I can’t accept not trying.” Can you?
“If you do your best, God will do the rest.”
Switching to Firefox 2.0 has enabled me to eliminate most of the careless spelling errors “on the fly” while struggling to write a message I hope is worth reading. Once those of us us who dare to teach in non-traditional ways know better, we’ll do better. God willing, our galvanized group still has “300 days” before we meet for the last time during this “unpredictable year of firsts. Only God knows what day 365 of 2007 will bring our way before we ring out the old and enter into the uncharted waters of 2008. In the meantime, what are you teaching others about yourself? Think about it.
Quick question. Are you faithful over little things? December 31, 2007 is still about “7200 hours” or “432,00 minutes” or “25,920,000″ seconds ” away from where we are today. Time will tell if your actions shall speak louder than your words. It’s never too late to begin and always too soon to quit. Matters not what our peers, critics, and talking heads may say about your humble beginnings today. “So, they told you, ‘No!’ Keep on steppin’.” One of the bookmarks from THE LEADERSHIP BY EXAMPLE COLLECTION™ that I created and produced to inspire elementary, middle, and high school students says,
“To win, one must begin. If not now, when?”
As a former enlisted member of the U.S. Air Force, the excellent training I received reinforced my honest belief that mediocrity is simply unacceptable. Since I can do better, I still have a long way to go before I can think on my feet fast enough to write these dailies with excellence. Nevertheless, pushing past the pain has improved my ability to teach, absent any written notes, what Adversity taught me during my season of “sunny-side-down days.” Hence, I’m a lot closer to making my big dream come true and achieving great things today than 65 days ago when this ever-evolving site got birthed from scratch.
Absent the assistance of an insightful teacher, how many of us would have the specialized skill sets we need to excel and succeed today? Minus these insightful mentors, how many of us would be able to rise above the rim of mediocrity on the elevator of excellence? In an ever-evolving global marketplace, excellence in the profession of Pedagogy is rapidly becoming the “minimum mandatory prerequisite.” Minus effective, meaningful access to excellent teachers locally, our children will fail to gain equal access to the emerging global economies that are rapidly reshaping the landscape of the business world.
I’m still amazed by the amount of time and effort it takes for insightful teachers to conduct the additional research that’s required for a teacher to teach anything with excellence. Acquiring the wisdom and understanding to achieve excellence in any specialized, professional field of endeavor is never an easy task. Try it. Arduous? Yes! Impossible? No. In a global marketplace, both knowledge and information are rapidly becoming more valuable than ever before. A teacher’s ability to achieve excellence while teaching our children is both mandatory and necessary. I have nothing but love and respect for Ms. Marva Collins. Click on the name of this living legend if you aren’t familiar with this master teacher’s awe inspiring story.
Because of a teacher who mastered the art, or science, of teaching, how many of us honestly believe that we can beat impossible odds and achieve greatness with God’s help? As a sign of respect, I tip my hat to any person who has the courage to teach other teachers how to teach. Matters not the colour of that teacher’s beautiful skin. Our teachers deserve all the love and respect we can give them. Besides, it’s time to reward excellent teachers who have mastered the art of teaching others how to teach.
Copyright 2007 by Roderick O. Solomon. All Rights Reserved.
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5 comments March 6th, 2007
