..........carrot, egg, or coffee bean?

I went to my wife's graduation at Appalachian State University yesterday. She received her maters degree in educational media (technology). Appalachian State is one of the top schools in the nation for the teaching profession. There were quite a few undergrads there getting their degree in education areas of some sort. As I watched them cross the stage in pride, I thought; "do they really have any idea what awaits them in the teaching profession?"Many of them have great ideals about "the way things are supposed to be"; or, the way in which their instructors have told them it should be. The reality is, nothing in the field of public education is the "way it is supposed to be". Everything I have encountered in the past 25 years has been on a sliding scale! Teachers who are really intent on doing the best job possible, must learn to focus on their situation and devise the best way to produce the desired product. I am no "over-achiever" - I'm not sharp enough for that. I have personal drive that keeps me going; but, sometimes that drive is compromised by the situation at hand. I often get frustrated, and sometimes, just plain angry that things don't work out. I see failure as no option at all. There is no excuse to fail in the business of education. The demands change constantly, and I will overcome all adversity to acomplish my goals. Success is the only option. That's my philosophy of teaching.

Here is something I came across the other day that says just what I feel. It makes me think that I'm on the right track......

There was once a teacher who became tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose. Frustrated, the young teacher went to his grandfather for advise. The wise, older gentleman took his grandson into the kitchen to talk. He filled three pots with water. In the first, he placed carrots, in the second, the placed eggs, and in the third, he placed ground coffee beans. He let them all come to a boil without saying a word. In about twenty minutes, the grandfather turned off the burners. He fished out the carrots and put them into a bowl. He pulled out the eggs and put them into another bowl. Then, he ladled the coffee out and placed it into another bowl.

Turning to the gradson, he asked, "Tell me, what do you see?" "Carrots, eggs, and coffee", he replied. The grandfather brought his grandson closer and asked him to feel the carrots. He did and noted that they were soft. He then asked the grandson to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, he observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, the grandfather asked him to sip the coffee. The grandson smiled, as he tasted the rich aroma. The grandson then asked, "What's the point?" The wise grandfather explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity - boiling water - but each had reacted differently.

The carrot went into the water strong, hard, and unrelenting. After being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg began fragile. Its outer shell had protected its liquid interior. After sitting in the boiling water, the inside of the egg became hardened. The ground coffee beans are unique. After the coffee beans went into the water, they actually changed the water, itself.

When we are hit with adversity, how do we react? If you are like the coffee, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hours are the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate to another level?

I think there is great wisdom in this example. Success in teaching is not beyond our grasp. Our success as educators is on many different levels. All of our children will not learn at the same level and each one will challenge all that we have learned and come to expect. I real educator will find the boiling water and change it. I can't wait until my next class gets here!!!