New Beginnings
Sunrise at Sullivan’s Island
New Beginnings
I took a few weeks off from posting to just reflect on where I am in my life and to start a new chapter in my career. I started teaching again two weeks ago. I have a great group of students from all over the state of South Carolina. We are doing online precalculus and calculus. Getting back to working with students directly has been a real joy. It’s funny that with all the roles I have had as an educator, I am coming back to the fundamentals of teaching a class with new eyes and a lifetime of perspective. I want to take all that I have learned from each step of my journey and cram it into each session with my students. At the same time, I realize now that there are a lot of things that I used to stress out about that aren’t truly that important in the long run. It’s really just about connecting with my classes, seeing each student for who they are, sharing some relevant content about my subject, and, most importantly, helping them become lifelong learners, not only about math, but also about life. I know from prior students (some are over 50; you know who you are!) that what they remember most about their classes are not theorems and equations necessarily, but the relationships we formed and how we lived out the days while we were together. I don’t want to undervalue the power of mathematics and other disciplines in our lives. Instead, I want to integrate them as crucial parts of a greater whole so that my students can engage with the world in meaningful and powerful ways. I have always loved William Butler Yeats quote: Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire. So, here’s to sparking new flames this year!
On another note, with my new schedule, I wanted to get some feedback from those who follow my ramblings. If I cut back to one post a week, do you prefer the written ones or the videos? Or a combination of both? To give me some additional focus, are there any topics that you would like me to explore with everyone? If you don’t mind, share your suggestions in a comment or message. I greatly appreciate all of the support and kind words that folks have shared over the past year. As long as someone is helped by something I share, I will continue to offer up my thoughts and insights. Thanks!