Written by I shared a fairly personal example of a professional failure at the first Cohort 21 face to face session. If you were there you will possibly remember it, so the purpose of this blog post is not to rehash what has already been said. I wouldn’t want that in writing anyway. I want to talk instead about why I decided to share it.
Recall that we were working with the placemat community building activity entitled, “Cohort 21 Connect Four.” Recall that @edaigle‘s daughter’s pizza topping toys were being used by participants to choose volunteers for sharing out. When we were asked who had a piece of pepperoni or a mushroom on the square entitled, “Transformational Teaching Experience,” many people stood up. There were two amazing examples of transformational teaching and some volunteers were asked to sit back down so we could move on to the next cell.
My group struggled a little with whom to elect when @gvogt asked us to choose one person’s “Goals” square upon which to place our toy mushroom. My goals surrounded personal wellbeing (thanks, @gnichols) and I said I didn’t mind sharing that detail with the group at large, so I had the toy mushroom.
Instead the facilitators asked for pepperoni and mushroom volunteers for the square entitled, “Nailed It! – Describe your biggest teaching fail.” No one jumped up. I am fairly certain I heard crickets as their wait time elapsed. It is very hard to be vulnerable, embarrassing to admit bad choices, and scary to share tough outcomes.
My tough outcome was brutal at the time, and I definitely wouldn’t have blogged about it in the moment. I was mortified back then. I decided to share it today because, after a few years of thoughtful adjustments to my teaching practice, a one-year move to a non-teaching position as an instructional coach, and ultimately a move back to Canada, the experience is no longer raw. It was a relevant, authentic anecdote at a helpful moment when the Cohort 21 facilitators needed it.
How many events in your teaching career are now water under the bridge for you but that might be helpful to know about for other educators? I received a lot of supportive “thank you for sharing” and “that resonated with me” comments shortly thereafter. This is calorie-dense food for thought as we move forward together during Cohort 21 Season 7. Something to blog about, perchance? Thanks for reading!
@lfarooq,
Thanks for sharing this morning. Sharing personal experiences can be difficult but we can learn and grow as it appears that you have. Koodles to you!
Thank you for being vulnerable and brave, making this a safe space!
Well done, well thought out, and know that your story added so much value to our community today, because it is sharing ourselves – our tough challenges and tears – that help to build a safe community of sharing.
Merci pour le partage Leslie. Thanks for sharing and be so humble. Your experience resonates in me. J’ai vécu aussi une situation similaire et je me sens plus forte aujourd’hui et plus avisée. À la prochaine!
Thank you for making yourself vulnerable again yesterday @lfarooq, especially in front of the whole group. The success of the whole venture depends on participants’ willingness to put themselves in an uncomfortable position, and we were enriched by your honesty. I don’t know if we’ll ever know the effect your story had on people, but I can say with confidence that your bravery in telling it, and your analysis of its impact on you, were worthwhile in the sharing.
Jen