Throughout my education to that point, I had done reasonably well in school, but had few experiences where a teacher really saw me, or at least had the desire to challenge me in a meaningful and respectful way. I had, until then, relied on a varied skill set depending on the circumstances. Often, it was a combination of wit, charm, and doing just enough work to get decent grades, but I rarely “dug in.” Frankly, I didn’t see the point to expend more energy than necessary. I saw myself as a successful teacher after one semester of student teaching and one year of teaching high school English in South Dakota (oh, the arrogance!). Now I was training to be a counselor because, surprise surprise, I thought I would be good at it, and it seemed like it might be a little less work than teaching (oh, the ignorance!).
Nash saw right through me. Within the first few weeks, he spoke to me after class and in a compassionate but direct way challenged me to do more, to be more. And in that context of being in a program that was as much about personal development as it was about the research and practice of counseling, I took on the challenge. I did so not because I needed a higher grade or because I thought success in this class would lead to other opportunities, but because Professor Nash wasn’t going to let me settle for mediocrity in his classroom. It was time to dig deep, and it was the first time I totally absorbed myself in an educational experience. I loved it.
There is one lesson that Nash taught me that continues to resonate, and one that I try, daily, to incorporate into my life, both work and personal. It is a refrain that echoes in the conversations between me and my then classmate-now wife, and one that has the power to transform the classroom experience for both the teacher and the student: “impute the best motive.”
In this era of establishing norms or common agreements for working groups it may sound familiar, but in the fall of 1996 this was new to me. Nash suggested that in our interactions with colleagues, students, strangers, or whomever we come into contact with, we should assume that the other person is doing the best they can and for the right reasons, their right reasons. This concept, and the discussions we had on it, challenged my view of so many things. Most importantly, it put the onus on me to appreciate not only the present circumstances and motives of the person I was interacting with, but also the experiences and learnings that they carried with them. When you approach people with this understanding, it becomes difficult to judge, categorize, or make unfounded assumptions.
To honor Nash’s advice, our challenge is to truly believe that people are doing the best they can and for reasons that make perfect sense to them. It’s difficult to be frustrated by a student, colleague, or parent if you believe he is doing the best he can at that time and that his motivations are sound and reasonable given his experience, understandings, and expectations. It is, in essence, our job to recognize a student’s best, whatever that might be, and make that best better and to let go of judgement in the process. That is a big ask of taxed, overworked teachers. It is much easier to go to judgement than it is to go to compassion and empathy, but it is what our profession demands.
In this year of Rowland work, engaging with amazing teachers and administrators throughout the state, I am constantly reminded of how much I have yet to learn. As cliche as it sounds, I’ve come to the realization that there is a direct inverse relationship between how long I have been teaching and how much I know. Each time I read an article, read a book, or have a conversation with a colleague at Stowe High or a member of my humbling Rowland cohort, I’m searching for nuggets of instructional wisdom I can pocket for later to use in my own practice. All of them are valuable and treasured, but it is the words of Professor Nash that have come back to me repeatedly this year, and when I can truly honor them, they provide the fertile soil for the growth and wonder I hope for in all my students.
